Room 3: Toy Story

Ratio: 1:6

Pre School Services (2-3 & 3-School Age)
Full Day 8am to 6pm
Part Time 8.00am to 12.30pm
Part Time 1.30pm to 6.00pm
Sessional AM 9pm to 12noon | Sessional PM 1.30pm to 4.30pm

The Toddler Room caters for children aged between 2 & 3 years. CCC utilises a Key Worker System, for observations and IEP decisions for each child, and communicating with parents/guardians about their child. The Toddler room utilises an emergent play based curriculum that provides child led activities that encourage the children to become competent and confident learners. The daily activities include art activities, messy play, sand & water play, songs & stories and outdoor play using open ended natural materials. Toy story is designed with children in mind, and has a free flowing environment with well-structured areas: home corner, cosy corner, construction and art area. This allows children to be the masters of their own learning with EYP to facilitate their learning.

Routine (Toy Story)
A typical routine would be:

• 8.00 to 9.00am: Arrival / Meet & Greet Room (Toy Story)
• 9.00 to 9.30am: Free Play/ Child led Activity
• 9.30 to 10.00 am: Songs/Stories/Daily News
• 10.00 to 10.30am: Snack/Tidy Up
• 10.30 to 11.00am: Outdoor/Physical Play
• 11.00 to 11.30am: Daily Activity e.g. messy play/Arts & Crafts etc.
• 11.30 to 12.00pm: Dinner Time/ Tidy up
• 12.30 to 1.30pm: Nap Time
(this routine would be mirrored in the afternoon session, however full day care children would vary their activities accordingly)

Room 4: Hogwarts

Ratio: 1:8 (1:10 or 1:11 – sessional ratios apply)

Hogwarts room caters for children 3-6 years and incorporates a planned Aistear (2009) Emergent Play Curriculum that is can be adapted to suit each child’s interests, age and stage of development and is child led. Our aim is to provide heuristic care to children of all ages, stages and abilities. We provide child led learning experiences, encouraging the child to become more independent, in key foundation areas, i.e. early maths concepts, early language & literacy, and social & emotional behaviour skills.


Activities include:
sensorial, group activities, individual activities, role play, problem solving, outdoor/forest school principles. The ECCE room is planned using Siolta (2000) CECDE standard environments and include: home corner, art area, construction area, table top and outdoor area. The EYP’s in Hogwarts plan the ECCE curriculum and the activities or “themes” are adapted to children’s interests and can be changed daily to support children’s interest, to ensure that the child led approach is met. The curriculum is supported by free play which is a tool that enables EYP’s to observe the children’s interests and assess prior learning experiences. The ECCE curriculum is co-ordinated by the Room Leader & the Creche Manager and is reported back to the Manager on a regular basis in relation to ongoing curricular development.

The curriculum is documented in the “Hogwarts Learning Journal” and is accessible at all times to children, staff & parents. This is also used as a reflective piece for EYP’s. The journal contains photographs, a sample of the children’s work and verbal communication from the children. Reflective practise is an important aspect in the preschool environment and each child has monthly observations, carried out by their key worker (EYP) to document & reflect on further developing your child’s learning. Transition Snapshot reports are carried out in January & June to support assessment of your child and these can be shown to the teachers in the school to support the transition to primary school for your child.

Routine (Hogwarts)
A typical routine would be:

  • 8.00-9.00am: Arrival / Meet & Greet Room (Toy Story)
  • 9.00 to 9.30am: Free Play /Child Led Activity
  • 10.00 to 10.30am: Prep for Snack/ Snack Time/ Tidy Up
  • 10.30 to 10.45am: Library
  • 10.45 to 11.30am: Circle Time
  • 11.30 to 12.000am: Outdoor Time
  • 12.00 to 12.30pm: Prep for Dinner/Dinner Time/ Tidy Up
  • (This routine would be mirrored in the afternoon session, however full day care children would vary their activities accordingly)

Play Spaces
In addition to the above there are three outdoor spaces consisting of two safe surface outdoor courtyards (linking three of the four rooms) and a large, fully landscaped front garden with a variety of child friendly equipment and a large storage area for buggies. The garden incorporates a picnic area, storytelling/stage area, planting area, sand pit, play shop and climbing structure. Specialised multi user tri-cycles can also be used on the track surrounding the main play area.