FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
Yes, there are in some of our units. Our preschool groups are called Master Ducks. The activities are based on the key objectives and contents of Helsinki City’s pre-school curriculum and the basics of the national early childhood education plan. Pre-school groups are formed if there are enough pre-school children to register with Mestari-Ankka (in 2019 the group limit in the city of Helsinki was 7).
Our kindergartens are open from 08:00 to 17:00. In the Helsinki and Espoo, Pakila and Jupperi will open at 7.30, Laurinlahti at 7.45. In Turku, Martinmäki’s Ankkalampi opens daily at 7.15, Ankkalammen Peppiina Raunistula and Pääskyvuori at 6.30. In the Helsinki Metropolitan Area, we are on holiday the whole of July (July 1-31) and between Christmas and New Year (December 24-January 1).
A typical day at Ankkalampi
8.00 Kindergarten opens
8.00 – 8.20 / 8.30 Breakfast
9.00 – 10.45 / 11.00 Early childhood education and outdoor activities
10.45 / 11.00 Morning circle
11.00 / 11.15 Lunch
12 – 14 Rest time and quiet games
14.00 Snack
14.30 Early childhood education activities indoors
15.30 / 16.00 Outdoor activities
17.00 The kindergarten closes
The daily rhythm may vary from unit to unit.
At Ankkalampi the food is healthy and varied. For breakfast we enjoy porridge and fresh snacks as well as muesli with yoghurt and bread. Our warm and assorted lunches with salad dressings come from the Compass Group food service. In addition to breakfast and lunch, we serve the children a snack, which is prepared partly by ourselves and partly ordered from the food service.
Our menus are designed under the guidance of a nutritionist. Our website has a weekly changing menu as well as meal contents. For children with allergies, it is possible to order a meal according to their own diet at an additional cost.
Our kindergartens are small and the children are divided into groups according to the age group level. There are up to 12 children under the age of 3 in the Mini-Duck groups and 14 children in the group over the age of 3.
Ankkalampi employs motivated and professional staff. Our team consists of early childhood teachers, early childhood nurses and a daycare assistant. There is at least one early childhood education teacher in each group of children.
In Ankkalampi kindergartens, music school activities are organized on a unit-by-unit basis by an external representative. At the beginning of the season we always inquire about families’ interests in hobbies for this possible additional service which is billed separately. Hobby activities during the kindergarten day allow families to spend time together on weeknights and weekends.
