Our director, Tina, joined the 2025 Reggio Australia Study Group at the Loris Malaguzzi International Centre in Italy. A small kindergarten of 40, with mature gum trees and a generous yard. Open 7am to 6pm. CCS approved.
St Ives Chase is a Reggio-inspired kindergarten on the Upper North Shore. Tina, our director, travelled to Reggio Emilia in northern Italy in April 2025 to study at the Loris Malaguzzi International Centre. The Centre is run by Reggio Children, the international body that guides the approach.
Reggio Emilia treats children as competent and curious. As researchers of their own world. Educators document what the children are noticing, then set up new activities that take that thinking further. The hundred languages of children, Loris Malaguzzi called it. The painting and the building and the moving and the asking, all counted as serious thinking.
From Turramurra you can be at our front gate in well under 10 minutes. We have families from Turramurra Station, the Wildflower Garden end of Mona Vale Road, and the streets around Turramurra Public and Turramurra High. Many families tell us the Italy connection is what drew them to us.
Turramurra is the closest of the surrounding suburbs to us, about 8 to 9 minutes by car via Mona Vale Road or Bobbin Head Road. Both suburbs sit along the same Ku-ring-gai ridge, with similar quiet residential streets and the same kinds of established trees in the yards. For Turramurra families used to a leafy local feel, our outdoor space tends to look familiar from the first visit.
We see children whose older siblings attend Turramurra Public School, St Ives North Public, or Sydney Grammar St Ives Preparatory, and families coming from the streets near Bannockburn Oval, Karuah Park, or up toward the Wildflower Garden side of Mona Vale Road. The drive in passes the very reserves many of these families walk on weekends.
Turramurra has good preschool options nearby, and we know we're not the most convenient choice for every family there. What brings Turramurra families to us is usually 1 of 2 things: they want a small, calm centre where every educator knows their child, or they want the kind of outdoor classroom you can't fit on a small inner-suburb block. For families who want a smaller, calmer centre or that kind of outdoor space, we tend to be a good fit.
Tina took part in the 2025 Reggio Australia Study Group at the Loris Malaguzzi International Centre in Reggio Emilia, Italy. She came home with new ways to record children's learning, ideas for our art space, and an even stronger belief that children's ideas deserve to be taken seriously.
Children paint, build, move, ask. We plan around what we notice them doing. Real materials. Real questions. Real time to think.
40 children. A generous yard with mature gum trees. A worm farm. A vegetable garden. An actual cubby with grass underneath.
I have had experiences with 5 nurseries and pre-schools in three different countries over the past 5 years and St Ives Chase Kindergarten has been the best. The team brings such warmth, calm and enthusiasm to all of their activities.
I cannot express enough how much I cherish St Ives Chase Kindergarten. The team is truly exceptional, going above and beyond to care for our children. Tina, with her kindness and nurturing spirit, runs the school seamlessly, making me feel completely confident that my son is not just looked after.
We absolutely love the warm staff, community vibe and huge space here, couldn't recommend it enough. The app posts show how much fun they're having whilst learning so much through all the well-structured, play-based activities. Our little girl is off to St Ives North Public School next year.
Choose between preschool hours or extended long day care, from 2 to 5 days per week. Child Care Subsidy approved, so most families pay significantly less out of pocket.
Families from Turramurra are very welcome. Book a tour with our team, a walk around the space, time to ask questions, no pressure. Usually 30 minutes, and you're welcome to bring your child.