Smiley Faces Educare – Upper Hutt Daycare
We are a family-friendly early learning centre in central Upper Hutt. Our philosophy is to recognise and support the central role of whānau and culture in the lives of our tamariki, building on the kete of knowledge each tamaiti/child brings from their home culture. We will work in partnership with you to nurture and develop your child in a holistic way to become a competent and confident young learner.
Our philosophy is to recognise and support the central role of whānau and culture in the lives of our tamariki, building on the kete of knowledge each tamaiti/child brings from their home culture.
We provide an environment, resources and experiences that foster children’s natural love of learning and which support their social, emotional, physical and mental development.
We provide a healthy and tasty, Heart Foundation approved, menu of morning tea, lunch, and afternoon tea, all served with water. Children staying for a full day also receive a late snack around 4.45pm.
Preparation for school
We provide a daily preparation for school class for children from around 4 years of age during term time. The class is fun and engaging, ensuring the children have basic skills for school including working in a group, holding a pencil, phonetic awareness for reading readiness, basic numeracy skills and project work. Our oldest tamariki regularly visit local school new entrant classes to experience the school environment.
Healthy eating & Enviroschool
We have an on-site cook who provides a healthy seasonal menu and we gently encourage tamariki to practice tikanga/manners, good eating habits, and social skills at our beautifully prepared shared kai times.
We are continually working on improving our sustainability practices and we encourage learning about sustainability in our work with the tamariki. We involve tamariki in composting, recycling, and growing veges, and we visit local natural environments as much as possible.
Healthy eating & Enviroschool
We have a trained chef on-site who provides a healthy seasonal menu and we encourage tamariki to practice tikanga/manners, good eating habits, and social skills at our beautifully prepared shared kai times.
We are continually working on improving our sustainability practices and we encourage learning about sustainability in our work with the tamariki. We involve tamariki in composting, recycling, and growing veges, and we visit local natural environments as much as possible.
Multi-cultural inclusivity
We are proud of our diverse community at Smiley Faces. We have families from all parts of the world – Africa, South America, Asia and Europe as well as the Pacific. We seek to learn about, respect, and celebrate all the cultures we have with us.
We provide a welcoming cultural environment for Māori and Pakeha (non-Māori) tamariki. As well as English, all tamariki will develop familiarity with Māori language and traditions through our use of te reo Māori, tikanga, waiata and karakia in our daily practice.