Tiny Nation Educator - Auckland- Ayu

About Me

Hi, I'm Ayu! I’ve been loving my time in the world of early childhood education for over 13 years now. While I enjoy teaching all ages, my heart truly belongs to our littlest ones! I'm specially trained in RIE (Resources for Infant Educarers), focusing on respectful, responsive care for infants and toddlers—it's been a truly wonderful and eye-opening experience.

My background is a big part of who I am as a teacher. Being influenced by different cultures, family traditions, and faiths taught me early on the value of whanaungatanga (building strong relationships).

I deeply believe that when teachers, children, and families work together and trust each other, the learning magic happens!

My Philosophy

My core belief is simple: respect the child as an individual.

I show this by: Getting on their level: I interact with children physically on their eye level, showing them respect, love, and support. We are constantly modelling how to be a kind, supportive human.

Trusting the process: I work hard to build trusting relationships by truly listening to what children are interested in and encouraging them to explore those passions. Art and Imagination My love for Art (I have a Bachelor of Education in Visual Art!) is a huge part of how I approach learning.

I understand that children are natural explorers with endless imagination. I see art as more than just drawing; it’s a way to learn how to ask questions, solve problems, find order, and create new ideas. I use things like schemas (patterns in play) and loose parts (open-ended materials) to create inviting spaces. This allows children to explore freely, without interruption, and discover the unlimited possibilities on their own terms!

My Environment

Think of our learning space as a thoughtfully designed home based educaring—it’s calm, inviting, and full of opportunities for discovery.

The Intentional Space: Drawing on my Visual Arts background, I see the environment as a powerful tool. It’s a place that is set up to encourage self-initiated, play-based learning. A Place for Deep Play: I intentionally use loose parts and create "provocations" (inviting set-ups) that pique curiosity. The goal is a space where children feel completely safe to delve into their ideas, test things out, and explore the world at their own pace. Listening to Children:

Above all, it’s a space where we focus on listening attentively to children's voices—their actions, their expressions, and their play—to understand what they need and what they are learning, being an active participant in their care moments and routines too.

Nature as Our Classroom: Explore nature by being in nature! Going for walks on the beach or in reserves and going on scavenger hunts for natural loose parts (like shells, stones, and leaves) to bring back and spark our learning curiosity.

Love, patience and guidance

"To Teacher Ayu, Thank you so much for the love, patience, and guidance you’ve shown our daughter. You nourished her with kindness, helped her grow, and supported her in ways we will always be grateful for. We truly wish we could have taken you with us to Australia — she still asks about you every day and talks about the Early Learning Centre with so much joy. You not only supported her development, but you supported us as parents too. You always took time to explain how you were helping the children regulate their emotions, express their needs, and communicate their feelings. Because of you, she grew more confident, more expressive, and so happy to learn. We highly recommend Teacher Ayu to any family. She is exceptionally caring, patient, and passionate about the children in her care. Thank you for being such a special part of our daughter’s(Dené) early years. We will never forget you. With love and appreciation, Bernadene, Jaco, Jano and Dené"