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Thursday, November 10th, 2016

Giraffe Training Academy  – Toddler Staff Workshop

Last Saturday, Giraffe Childcare’s Training Academy hosted a training day for 63 practitioners with Lillian and Carol from Early Childhood Ireland, delivering workshops on Facilitating Play Based Learning. Our senior crèche managers acted as our In-House workshop facilitators on the day, and covered a wide range of topics on Managing Children’s behaviour and best practice in care for the Toddler age group (typically 2-3 years of age).

The afternoon workshops focused on supporting communication and managing change; as children grow up and transition to new social groups ( from baby groups to Toddler age, from toddler to Preschool and on to big School) it is our role as carers to support them and their families through this change.
Some of our senior centre managers delivered skills demonstrations in small focus groups, covering topics like Children’s Health (presented by Elena, Sharon and Susan), Managing Transitions (presented by Leona & Jennifer) , Communication (presented by Caroline & Ciara), Key Carer Groups (presented by Rachel) as well as Winter Garden Activity Ideas (presented by Toma). The sessions were both interactive and interesting and the team all had an opportunity to be hands on!

It was great day and we all enjoyed refreshing and developing our skills.  We have had some wonderful feedback from our practitioners and Giraffe Training Academy will host further workshops for all of our care groups.

A big thank you to our Centre managers, the central support team and all the practitioners who made the day such a success! and a particularly special Thank you to Chef Val from our Liffey Valley centre who kindly made wraps and sandwiches for our team lunch!

In recognition of their dedication, all of participants went home with a goodie bag of treats as a thank you for all their hard work.


Gardening Fun with Children

Spring is here!

Wednesday, March 22nd, 2023

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Christmas fun with the family

Christmas is a fun time of year for children and their families.

Tuesday, December 6th, 2022

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Virtual Interview Day

We are currently hiring experienced childcare staff for roles in our centres located in Dublin, Kildare and Meath.

Thursday, October 1st, 2020

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Halloween 2018

We love Halloween in Giraffe! The children and staff alike love decorating the centres and dressing up and really getting into the spirit of the spooky season! Each centre held a Halloween party and the children were delighted to dress up and see their carers dress up! For some of the younger children,  it was […]

Tuesday, November 13th, 2018

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Wobbler Care Seminar 2018

Wobbler care Seminar – Giraffe Training Academy   Giraffe Childcare’s Training Academy hosted a training day in May 2018 for 60 of our childcare practitioners with a focus on interactions with children in the Wobbler age group –  1 to 2 year olds. It was very educational day,  and we all enjoyed sharing ideas on curriculum […]

Monday, June 18th, 2018

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Team Giraffe @ Dublin Mini Marathon

For the past 4 years, team members from our Giraffe centres have taken part in the Dublin VHI Mini Marathon on the June Bank holiday weekend. 81 of our Giraffe team members took part in the race this year. This year’s event was held on Sunday instead of on the Monday – and we were all very grateful […]

Friday, June 8th, 2018

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Baby Care Workshop – May 2018

Last Saturday, Giraffe Childcare’s Training Academy hosted a training day for 40 baby group carers. Our senior crèche managers acted as our in-House workshop facilitators on the day, and the group broke up into smaller workshops for the afternoon. The topics ranged from preparing the learning environment for young infants, to curriculum planning and effective communication. A […]

Wednesday, May 30th, 2018

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Wellbeing Week @ Giraffe

Our wellbeing week was full of activities running across all of our centres, including the LunchtimeMile, healthy eating and wellbeing initiatives.

Friday, April 20th, 2018

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Easter Fun @ Giraffe

All of our centres were full of creativity and inspiration last week leading up to the festivities of Easter. The centres took part in our annual Easter project where they were all provided with an Easter pack of art supplies to allow the children explore and express their own creativity. As part of our Reach […]

Wednesday, April 4th, 2018

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Supporting your child’s emotional well-being

Mindfulness for children is about awareness of their thoughts, well-being and feelings.

Tuesday, April 3rd, 2018

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St. Patrick’s Day Celebrations 2018

Lá fhéile Pádraig Sona Daoibh go Léir! ☘️ Celebrating our national day makes us all feel proud to be Irish, and it allows the children to gain a better understanding of Irish culture and traditions (Aistear themes, Identity & Belonging).St. Patrick’s Day is an exciting time for all children! In the run up to the day, […]

Friday, March 23rd, 2018

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Spring has Sprung!

While the seasons are slowly changing from winter to spring, and the days continue to get a little bit brighter, the children in Giraffe have enjoyed a wide range of spring time activities. Below are just some of the wonderful events that have taken place over the last few weeks in our centres: Pyjama Day […]

Friday, March 16th, 2018

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Fabulous February

February has been an exciting month in Giraffe! With so many wonderful ‘early spring’ activities taking place over the past few weeks, we want to share some of the magical photos with you here. Fun in the Snow! Some of our centres enjoyed playing outside in the snow on a couple of occasions this month. The […]

Friday, February 23rd, 2018

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Giraffe Training Academy – Preschool carers Seminar

A team Workshop focusing on the Preschool learning environment.

Wednesday, October 11th, 2017

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Summertime Fun @ Giraffe

Here are the highlights from our Summer Festivals in 2017!

Monday, August 28th, 2017

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Learning together

The workshops covered topics such as play-based learning, transitions for children moving rooms, and a wide range of skills demonstrations modules to promote best practice in care for the Wobbler age group

Saturday, July 1st, 2017

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A quick and healthy dinner receipe from Chef Natalia

The children are waiting patiently at the lunch table, while Chef Natalia presents them with one of their favourite dishes…. Pork & Apple Casserole! Natalia has been our chef at Giraffe Blanchardstown for 4 years, and creates exciting seasonal menu options for the children. Pork and Apple Casserole from our Spring Menu The ingredients in this […]

Monday, June 19th, 2017

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Team Giraffe Mini Marathon

Staff from each of our centres get together once a year to do a 10km mini marathon. Over 80 staff members signed up to take part in the 35th annual VHI Dublin Women’s Mini Marathon, one of the biggest all-women charity events in the world. Team Work! The rain on Monday June 5th certainly tested our spirits!  But […]

Friday, June 9th, 2017

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Tuesdays with Grandpa Peter

Peter’s story-time tradition started after our Leopardstown centre held their annual Grandparents Day in September & invited the children’s grannies and granddads to join them for games and activities.

Wednesday, May 24th, 2017

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Easter Egg-citement at Giraffe

The children were all very egg-cited when a special Easter visitor hopped into our creches last week!

Wednesday, April 19th, 2017

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#WorkWell 17 – National Workplace Wellbeing Day

Giraffe Childcare were proud to participate in #WorkWell17 to help improve employee health through promoting better nutrition and physical activity.

Tuesday, April 4th, 2017

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Travelling with Tots

Some helpful travel tips

Thursday, March 23rd, 2017

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St. Patrick’s Day celebrations at Giraffe

Celebrating our national day makes us all feel proud to be Irish, and it allows the children to gain a better understanding of Irish culture and traditions ( Aistear themes, Identity & Belonging).

Monday, March 20th, 2017

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#PJDay2017

Every year in the month of March, Giraffe children and staff spend an entire day in their comfy pyjamas!

Friday, March 10th, 2017

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Pink Day @ Liffey Valley

The Carers and children at Childcare Liffey Valley held a special charity day in aid of A Princess called Emily.

Wednesday, February 15th, 2017

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Staying fit as a Family

Staying fit as a Family

Wednesday, February 15th, 2017

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Employee of the Year Awards 2016

At Giraffe, we believe that through a commitment to our role as carers and educators me make a positive difference to the lives of families, a children, our community and each other.

Wednesday, January 18th, 2017

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Cheerios Childline Breakfast

Every year in October, ISPCC Childline host a fundraising event called Cheerios Breakfast.  It is a fun charity breakfast which is hosted across the country to help support the ISPCC Childline services which answers calls from children in need across Ireland 24 hours a day. This year the event ran from 17 – 21st of […]

Thursday, November 10th, 2016

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Witches, Goblins, and Ghosts – Oh my!

Halloween is the time when scary skeletons, spooky ghosts and wicked witches roam the world. All of the Giraffe centres enjoyed the build up to Halloween last week, and the children and staff certainly got into the spirit of the festivities! The children were delighted to dress up for the whole day for their Halloween parties. For […]

Thursday, November 3rd, 2016

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Let them Play!

Giraffe Training Academy  – Wobbler Staff Workshop Giraffe Childcare’s Training Academy hosted a training day for 75 practitioners on Saturday with Lillian and Carol from Early Childhood Ireland, delivering a session on Facilitating Play Based Learning.  There were also a range of skills demonstrations modules delivered by some of Giraffe’s senior crèche managers to promote best practice in […]

Thursday, October 20th, 2016

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Affordable Childcare Schemes

The Affordable Childcare Scheme is currently available for ‘FIS’,  Medical Card holders and One-Parent families. It is also available to Adult Learners enrolled in VTOS or ETB courses.

Wednesday, October 12th, 2016

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Grandparents Day

Celebrating Grandparents Day at Giraffe!

Friday, September 23rd, 2016

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Parent Night with Aoife Lee

We recently held a special informational evening with our Parent Coach, Aoife Lee of Parent Support. The topic of the parent discussion was “Managing Change Together -Settling into Crèche, Moving Rooms and Preparation for School”. Our parents had provided feedback over the last few months on what they found were some of the more challenging aspects of parenting. […]

Monday, September 19th, 2016

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Summer festival Fun at Giraffe

Summer is festival time in Giraffe! The children look forward to the Summer Festivals every year, and every Giraffe Centre hosts different events through the summer months. This year, we saw Teddy Bear Picnics, Jungle Days, Magic Shows & Magicians, Beach days, Family BBQs and much much more! We have as many fun outdoor activities […]

Monday, August 29th, 2016

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102 Giraffe Staff Members Take Part in Women’s Mini Marathon!

Staff from each of our centres get together once a year to do a 10km mini marathon. This year a record number of our staff – 102 (!) signed up to take part in one of the biggest women’s sporting events of the year in Ireland – the VHI Dublin Women’s Mini Marathon. Our staff […]

Wednesday, June 22nd, 2016

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Staff Appreciation Month – Thanks a thousand!

“It takes a big heart to help shape growing minds”. (Anon) Every morning, the pitter-patter of tiny feet and the sound of joyful little voices resonate around the rooms at Giraffe Childcare. Every morning, the carers, chefs and staff teams welcome the children and families at their centre with energy and enthusiasm for the upcoming […]

Wednesday, June 8th, 2016

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Managing Sibling Rivalry over the Christmas season

If you really want to break the cycle of rivalry and children clashing with one another, allow them to pick activities that they can do together.

Thursday, December 17th, 2015

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Changes to the Free Pre-School Year…the detail explained

There’s great news for parents of pre-school children with the announcement of the extension of the free pre-school year in the budget yesterday. From September 2016, every child will be eligible at the age of three until they start primary school which has greatly increased access; and pre-school aged children will be able to enrol […]

Wednesday, October 14th, 2015

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It’s All in the Moment

Giraffe Training Academy had a wonderful training day on baby and infant care   Giraffe Childcare’s Training Academy hosted a training day for over 60 practitioners on Saturday with Lilian Joyce from Early Childhood Ireland, delivering a session on ‘’How Babies Learn, A Curriculum for Infants’’ and a follow-up session by Aoife Lee, parent coach […]

Sunday, August 30th, 2015

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Father’s Day – Happy Daddies and Happy Little Ones!

Father’s Day is a great chance to celebrate the Daddies and it is a lovely family day. We brought a real sense of that into the centres with many activities leading up to the day.The boys and girls in our crèches had a busy week leading up to Father’s Day preparing gifts and cards for their […]

Wednesday, July 1st, 2015

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