Years 1 and 2

HOLISTIC CURRICULUM

Happy and engaged students are able to push the boundaries of their imagination

REAL-WORLD EXPERIENCES

Small classes and caring, skilled educators help our youngest students transition to school

PERSONALISED LEARNING

Students choose what interests them and we help them build and extend their abilities

MEET THE YEAR 0-2 TEACHING TEAM

Alison Beatty
Alison Beatty
YEAR 0-2 EDUCATOR

"My role is to support each child as they use their unique abilities to become their best selves. I feel so privileged to witness the progress of each individual over time!"

Charlotte Syme
Charlotte Syme
YEAR 0-2 EDUCATOR

“I love the joy children's energy brings to the world. Taking new steps and discovering new concepts is a fascinating and rewarding journey – I get to experience this every day with my students.”

Glen-Thompson
Glen Thompson
YEAR 0-2 EDUCATOR

“I believe the most important aspect of being an educator is building caring, responsive and genuine relationships with children. Once you have this, the learning journey becomes a shared one”

A warm welcome

Alison, Glen and Charlotte provide ongoing feedback and stories about each child’s progress to ensure the dialogue between home and school is always open and clear, especially when your child starts school. 

A caring and positive environment

In the early years of being at school, children spend a lot of time developing their emotional and creative capabilities. Starting school is a big deal and all too often a traumatic experience for parents and children. We provide a really positive and personal introduction to our caring school community to make the transition easy for the child and their parents/care-givers.
We have fun in Year 0-2
Making every day fun

Play-based learning sounds like fun and it is, but oh so much more! Children are offered a wide variety of activities inside and outside, so our educators can discover their natural interests. Educators then provoke deeper and wider learning using the power of children’s own imaginations and motivation in areas they already find engaging. This is the most powerful way to introduce the NZ Curriculum and the Brilliant Curriculum.

Emotional support

A vital part of the Brilliant Curriculum centres on emotional development, and our children learn to identify their different feelings and work positively through personal challenges that arise from interactions with others. Each day, we support them in reflecting on their experiences  and provide them with strategies to help them grow.

A gentle introduction to academics

We offer a ‘soft start’ to reading, writing and numbers for most students, and an accelerated program for those who are independently motivated to learn at a faster pace to keep them interested and engaged. Afternoons provide an opportunity to mix with other children in the school to learn music, sport and other activities that change each term.

Keeping it real

Practical life skills are learned through activities like caring for the school’s chickens and sharing their bounty. Students have their own garden in which they grow vegetables. Morning tea is prepared in class, so students learn where their food comes from and how it gets to the table. They learn about nutrition and how their body responds to the fuel it is provided with. Regular trips to Halswell Quarry extend their connection with nature’s offerings.

“Moving her to Seven Oaks was the best decision we have ever made”

Amazing school. My daughter was not coping well with the modern learning environment at her previous primary school. She was... Read more

Meeghan, parent

“Both of our children instantly felt a strong sense of belonging at their new school”

The decision to move our children to Seven Oaks School was based upon the fact that we wanted our children... Read more

Leeane, parent

“We love the wide curriculum”

Seven Oaks School offers the individual approach we were looking for our children and we would highly recommend it. We... Read more

Jo, parent

“Our son thrives when he can learn in a hands-on environment”

Seven Oaks has been a fantastic fit for our family. In particular, the play-based learning philosophy for the new entrants... Read more

Matthew, parent

“All about developing more than just educational outcomes!!!” 

The right school... Small class sizes. Play-based learning is developing our child amazingly well. Key element for me is it's... Read more

Liam, parent

Hear it from our families

“Moving her to Seven Oaks was the best decision we have ever made”

Amazing school. My daughter was not coping well with the modern learning environment at her previous primary school. She was... Read more

Meeghan, parent

“Both of our children instantly felt a strong sense of belonging at their new school”

The decision to move our children to Seven Oaks School was based upon the fact that we wanted our children... Read more

Leeane, parent

“We love the wide curriculum”

Seven Oaks School offers the individual approach we were looking for our children and we would highly recommend it. We... Read more

Jo, parent

“Our son thrives when he can learn in a hands-on environment”

Seven Oaks has been a fantastic fit for our family. In particular, the play-based learning philosophy for the new entrants... Read more

Matthew, parent

“All about developing more than just educational outcomes!!!” 

The right school... Small class sizes. Play-based learning is developing our child amazingly well. Key element for me is it's... Read more

Liam, parent

“Can’t wait to send our youngest next year!”

We are happy we made the choice to send our 5-year-old son (now 6.5) to Seven Oaks. He has been... Read more

Kurt, parent

“Both our children have thrived”

We chose Seven Oaks because of its holistic, child-centred approach to education. In today’s environment of large class sizes, Seven... Read more

Fiona, parent

“His energy can be focused on learning and not worrying”

Seven Oaks School would have been off my radar had it not been recommended by a leading Christchurch businesssoman, whose... Read more

Di, parent

“Our boys look forward to going to school and they are engaged”

We are delighted with our experience at Seven Oaks School. All of the educators, as well as the head of... Read more

Cecily, parent