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About Us Our Story Our Philosophy Our Team Our Environment Our Programme It's not "just play" What's On? Our Community
Info for Parents Our Approach Our Services Who we Cater For Our Teachers Ratios, Meals & Date Days
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Early Childhood Education Centre and Day Care providing quality evidence based care
 
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We are dedicated to providing children with the best start in life.

Little Blue Penguin is dedicated to quality care and meeting the needs of each child and their whānau. This is achieved through our evidence-based and holistic approach to teaching and learning, as well as our core values: calmness, closeness, consistency, curiosity and confidence.

Knowing each child, their whānau (who they are and where they come from) is crucial to the success of the programme, and in order to truly implement a holistic approach Little Blue Penguin will provide nutritious home-cooked meals for children; caring for the children’s well-being first and foremost. 

 
 
Our Services
 
 
 
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High teacher to child ratios

Experienced, qualified, certified & dedicated early childhood professionals. Providing high quality care & education

 
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A Home-Like Setting

Natural & welcoming, with carefully designed learning spaces and quality resources

 
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A Great Location

Local amenities within walking distance to enrich the programme through excursions and community participation

 
 
 
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Nutritious Cooked Meals

As well as morning and afternoon snacks. These include plenty of fruit and vegetables, tailored to meet individual needs (allergies, intolerances, ages)

 
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Nappies, Wipes, Sunhats & Sunscreen

We provide disposable & fabric diapers and can cater to preferences. We also protect your child from the sun during play & regular excursions

 

A Holistic Programme

Designed to combine respectful care with learning through investigation

 
 

Our Fees are Flexible

We would love to meet your family and calculate a price based on what you’re looking for.

Email office@littlebluepenguin.co.nz with your preferred days and hours for a quote tailored to meet your needs. Or come into our centre anytime and one of our friendly staff will be happy to help you.

Who we Cater For
 

We are open Monday – Friday from 7.30am to 6.00pm, with a range of sessions and full day options to cater for your families needs.

We provide quality care and education for children aged 6 weeks until they start school.

Session Times:

Our opening hours are from 7.30am – 6.00pm Monday to Friday.

We can offer a morning or afternoon sessions to meet your needs.

Full days are 7.30am to 6.00pm (or shorter, a minimum of 7 hours) and include all meals.

Short days are 8.30am to 2.30pm or 9.30am to 3.30pm and include all meals.

Ask about our spontaneous Saturday morning ‘date days’.

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Our Teachers

Teachers at Little Blue Penguin are caring professionals who are there to offer gentle, respectful guidance for children through quality, responsive interactions and a collaborative ‘community’ approach to teaching and learning.

Little Blue Penguin is not only a quality early learning centre, but also a support system for the entire learning community. Each teacher has something special to offer our centre and learning community, and we are committed to growing great teacher leaders. To learn more about our teachers go to ‘Our Team’ 

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Ratios

Little Blue Penguin is dedicated to evidence-based and quality care, which means we are dedicated to providing better teacher:child ratios than required by the Ministry of Education.

For children under two we provide a 1:3 ratio, and for children over two we provide a 1:8 ratio.

 
 
 

Meals

At Little Blue Penguin we are committed to protecting and nurturing the health and wellbeing of our children.

Little Blue Penguin provides delicious and nutritious meals and snacks for all children, just let us know your child’s individual nutritional needs and we can cater for them when developing our menu.

Children are actively involved in the preparation and serving of their meals. Children peel vegetables and fruit for the meal as well as set up the table with mats, plates and cutlery. They get to take turns serving the food to their peers, and are able to lead a Maori karakia (non-religious) to express respect and gratitude for the meal.

Through their involvement in our meal times children will:

– Develop their fine motor skills;

– Learn about nutrition, hygiene and hand washing practices;

– Taste different foods;

– Expand social and communication skills;

– Build their independence, confidence and leadership skills;

– Develop an awareness of sustainability.

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“Date” Days

Little Blue Penguin’s Date Day will come up sporadically on Saturday mornings. Our Date Day allows you the opportunity to take a well-deserved break. Parents/caregivers can pop out for breakfast, brunch, coffee, or head to the markets knowing your children are safe and having a great time with their teachers and friends at Little Blue Penguin.

We are excited to be able to offer this option occasionally as we are passionate about mums, dads, caregivers/whanau looking after themselves and having quality time together too!

This incredible morning for your children is filled with a variety of fun experiences as well as a delicious, healthy breakfast and morning tea.

 
 
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Find Us

68 Farrington Avenue
Christchurch, Canterbury, 8053
New Zealand