Meet our kaiako
Jan
Diploma in Teaching (Early Childhood Education)
W.I.T.T, New Plymouth
NZ Registered Nurse
Kia ora, my name is Jan Forsythe and I am the Service Provider (licensee), a director and part owner of The Redwoods Country Kindergarten.
I started my working life as a registered nurse and as a young mother to our 3 sons, first became interested in early childhood education while attending Tikorangi playcentre. After several years working and living overseas, I was inspired to train as a teacher and have now been working in early childhood education for over 20 years in a variety of settings, mostly in kindergarten. I have strong leadership credentials but am so looking forward to working in a shared partnership with my former colleagues Tanya and Trish. I am excited about returning to “hands on” teaching alongside the tamariki who inspire, motivate and constantly surprise me with their curiosity and motivation to learn. I am a founding member of REART (Reggio Emilia Aotearoa Regional Taranaki) so creating meaningful indoor and outdoor learning environments are a focus in my teaching. Environmental education has always featured as a strong personal kaupapa. Warm, responsive relationship building is the keystone to my teaching style. I strongly believe in the value of play and recognising the talents and identities of each child.
Originally from Palmerston North, I grew up on the edge of the town near Awapuni racecourse – a childhood of climbing trees and rolling in the grass. I relocated to Taranaki after meeting my husband Francis in London. We have always enjoyed living surrounded by nature and were privileged to raise our 3 sons (now grown up) in this lifestyle with lots of space and lots of places to explore-my vision is to share those spaces with the children of The Redwoods Country kindergarten.