What's the difference between kindergarten and daycare or preschool?
A whole lot! And that's the message Ruahine Kindergartens is now sharing with its
target audiences thanks to effective communication and eye-catching design.

Ruahine Kindergartens operates 25 kindergartens throughout Manawatu, Rangitikei, Pahiatua and Foxton, where 100 per cent trained and registered teachers provide our region's children with the best possible start. The association is innovative in its approach to early childhood education, so it seemed only fitting that they should team up with our flock of forward thinkers to raise the association's profile and enhance communication with target audiences.

There is a bunch of fantastic learning taking place at all 25 kindergartens, but little of this learning was being shared with parents, the wider community or local media. Some kindergartens felt disconnected from the association and communication initiatives lacked consistency. Teachers are busy people and children are their primary responsibility, so it was important for any communication initiatives to ease rather than add to their busy workloads. With this in mind, we set about developing a communication strategy, which provided a clear pathway for communication going forward.

Once we knew where we were going and why, we began implementing the most effective steps to get there. These steps included developing an association newsletter containing exciting kindergarten stories and photos which is now distributed twice per term, designing and writing copy for a vibrant new website complete with kindergarten locator function and individual kindergarten pages, and positioning Ruahine Kindergartens as a valuable source of early childhood information through regular media liaison. We've also developed a corporate standards manual and brochures along the way.

Ruahine Kindergartens received the thumbs up from the Ministry of Education for the way in which early childhood curriculum, Te Whariki, has been woven into the newsletter using easily understandable icons. Kindergarten children have been starring in local newspapers and the association received a two-page spread in the Education Gazette, focusing on its commitment to professional development. Cool right? But even better than all that, the teachers are smiling, they want to be involved and they look forward to the next association newsletter.