Yvonne Mattson
Co-Owner
Administrator
Hi, my name is Yvonne Mattson and I am one of the co-owners of The Learning Lane. I have a passion and interest in providing quality education for children and have been involved in preschool education for over 30 years. My interest in working with children began when my own children attended our local playcentre and kindy where I became very involved in preschool education which led me to working in the Early Childhood sector in West Auckland. I then went on to building and co-owning a purpose built centre in Swanson where I managed and worked for the next 20 years, building amazing relationships with whānau and the community. I am excited to be involved in my next adventure with The Learning Lane. I am primarily involved in the administration side but I enjoy my involvement with the children as well. In particular, I enjoy music and movement and creative opportunities along with watching the children blossom into individuals who are competent and capable learners. In my spare time I love reading, going to our caravan at the beach, spending time with friends, and watching my young adult children play sport.
Jackie Peden
Co-Owner
Registered Teacher
Hi, my name is Jackie Peden one of the the co-owner of The Learning Lane. I have lived in West Auckland all my life and am married with 3 grown up sons. Family is my everything, and over the years I have supported and celebrated their passions and successes in life, of which sport plays a major role. I have over 20 years’ experience in the ECE sector which began when a friend and I took on the challenge of running a local playgroup. This sparked my passion for the early childhood years, and a commitment to my formal education in this field. I obtained my Diploma in Teaching ECE and continued working in the sector, being involved in my children’s kindergarten years, and teaching in several early childhood centres. Just as we teach children, we too have so much to learn from children, and I continue to grow and learn in my practice. I am thrilled to have the opportunity to provide a nurturing, educational preschool in my local community, based on collaborative relationships with colleagues, children, parents and extended whānau.
Victoria Jacobsen
Registered Teacher
Hi, my name is Victoria Jacobsen and I am a fully qualified and registered teacher completing my bachelor of teaching (ECE) and have been teaching in the education sector for 15 years. I enjoy being part of a passionate and committed teaching team who seek to inspire, empower and learn alongside our tamariki. I am passionate about nurturing the self-esteem of our tamariki, building on individual strengths and forming partnerships. I feel it’s important to encourage a ‘can do’ attitude by supporting children to view themselves as competent and capable learners, who are eager to explore the world around them.
Katrina White
Registered Teacher
Kia Ora TLL friends and Whānau, my name is Katrina White, or you can call me Kat. I am a fully qualified and registered teacher completing a Bachelor of Teaching (ECE) in 2017 and a mother of two. I love being a part of a team that empowers and inspires each other, the children, whānau and the community, as we work together and learn alongside each other. I am passionate about nurturing the individual strengths of our tamariki and forming partnerships, resulting in tamariki seeing themselves as capable and confident learners in all that they seek to explore, in the world around them. I look forward to getting to know you and your whanau.
Brenda Malone
Registered Teacher
I’m Brenda Malone and I have been working in ECE for over 20 years. I am fully qualified with a degree in teaching, which I got in 2012. I have two children and a supportive husband, and we enjoy family time together which could range from watching sport (football) to camping in the great outdoors. I also enjoy reading, going for bush walks and just being out in nature.
I have enjoyed working and learning alongside young children from a very young age and I feel this comes from being the oldest of five. I have a strong belief that we not only support the children in learning about the world they live in but that as teachers we continue to learn and grow alongside the children.
I feel early childhood is about having fun through play; play is so rich in learning opportunities for the children as they learn new things within their environment and through play, they discover who they are within their community. Children should also have a safe, loving, and interesting environment, as this allows them to follow their interests and be curious about their environment and how things work and how they can make a difference in the wider world.
I look forward to building reciprocal relationships with the children and their whānau while they are at The Learning Lane.
Jynize Jensen
Provisionally Registered Teacher
Kia ora friends and whānau my name is Jynize but you can call me Jay. I am a provisionally registered teacher and have been working with children since 2018 in primary and early childhood settings.
I believe in and value in the importance of a child’s language, culture and way of life, so I really enjoy when whānau share their different traditions that they uphold or celebrate. I believe it takes a village to raise a child so family and Whānau relationships are important in getting to know children and what influences their learning.
I love supporting children to discover things on their own, its wonderful seeing children grow to be capable learners.
I look forward to getting to know you and your Whānau.
Elly Wilson
3rd Year Student
Hi, my name is Elly Wilson. I am currently in my third year towards studying a Bachelor of teaching ECE. I am passionate about children’s learning in the early years and one of my greatest loves is music. Having completed two years of a music degree, I am looking forward to utilising this talent in my teaching. The Learning Lane is the preschool I attended when I was younger, so I feel privileged to be given the opportunity to be an inspiring teacher to the children just as I experienced when I was young. I am enjoying being part of this supportive team who help guide me through my studies and I am excited to start my Early Childhood journey here.