The Happy Hearts Story
About Us
Happy Hearts Learning Center is a state approved preschool. It is co-owned and directed by Pam Noble and Ann Millard. Together they have many years of teaching and directing experience and have earned degrees in Early Childhood, Elementary Education, Reading, and Studio Arts. The staff is highly professional, motivated, dedicated and loving. There is a teacher and an assistant teacher in each classroom. Family input and participation are warmly encouraged.
Our facility, on South County Trail, is easily accessible from Routes 95, 4 and 2. Two buildings and two playgrounds provide plenty of space in which to learn and grow. The Cottage, which is the smaller of the two buildings, is a historic schoolhouse that is classroom space for one of our three-year-old classes. The Learning Center, which is the larger building, accommodates our two, three, and four-year-old classes.
Happy Hearts Learning Center has been providing opportunities for children to learn and grow since 1986! Our program has been formulated and guided by current practices in the ever-changing field of early childhood. In accordance with the RI Early Learning and Development Standards, we seek to encourage and foster the following:
A positive self-concept within each child
The foundation for a lifelong love of learning
Socialization skills within a school environment, including the ability to function as part of a group of children
Authentic and intentional relationships between children and staff
Acknowledgement of different personalities and learning styles among children, and the development of strategies to address these differences
Receptive, expressive, and interactive language skills (listening and speaking)
Literacy readiness skills
Mathematics readiness skills
Exposure to the scientific process, including the natural and physical world
Creative expression, including individual and group performance and visual arts
Physical health and motor development, including fine and gross motor skills, leading to self-sufficiency and confidence
Social studies concepts, such as appreciation for the cultural diversity of our families
Cognitive readiness skills, which include executive function, logic, problem solving, memory and attention skills, to cultivate growth and development and prepare children for their entrance to kindergarten
Family fun activities
The establishment of families as partners in the preschool experience, with sensitivity to each family’s culture and beliefs
We are dedicated to providing a loving, safe and enriching environment for all of our children and families.
CALENDARS – A calendar is sent home on a monthly basis. It may discuss upcoming events, classroom anecdotes, special activities or visitors, songs, and field trip information.
VOLUNTEERS – There are many opportunities to volunteer time for special events or field trips. Sign-up sheets are made available for volunteer activities.
CONFERENCES – Family conferences are scheduled twice during the school year to discuss children’s progress. The teachers are available for informal conferences at mutually agreeable times. Parent communication is always encouraged!
FIELD TRIPS – Field trips are taken at various times throughout the year. The trips are designed to compliment our curriculum. There are family member or caregiver drivers for all field trips. All children are required to sit in the back seat in age-appropriate child restraints.
FAMILY EVENTS – On several occasions throughout the year, families are invited to join us for special events that are held during the school day or in the evening. These events are always well attended and lots of fun! – UPDATE: Due to COVID-19 all in person family events are postponed until further notice.
SAFETY – The children are well supervised at all times. They are only allowed to leave the premises with authorized adults. A password system is used in the event of an emergency. Fire drills are conducted on a regular basis. Teachers use disposable gloves to treat injuries and toileting needs. All table and bathroom surfaces are cleaned and disinfected routinely. Staff members are certified in CPR and pediatric first aid. We also have a Crisis Management Plan in place. There is a nut-free policy at Happy Hearts.
Meet Our Teachers
4/5-year-olds in the Red Room. I love teaching at Happy Hearts because each day is filled with endless opportunities for children to discover, learn, and grow together!
WHAT FAMILIES ARE SAYING
We absolutely love Happy Hearts Learning Center. From the very first meeting/tour with owners Ann & Pam and the teachers, we knew that this was the place where we wanted to send our children in their early learning years, and we could not be happier! From the minute you walk in you feel welcomed and part of a loving family. The environment is extremely warm and nurturing, kind and patient, and we knew they would care for our children and teach them like they were their own. We sent our older son there and had a wonderful experience and continue to enjoy everything about Happy Hearts with our younger son who will be there for three years. We love sending our children there and know they are in excellent hands and learning so much through all of the activities that they do. I would highly recommend Happy Hearts for a family looking for a top-notch preschool! They are the best!
Our family feels so fortunate to have found Happy Hearts for our two children. It has provided a safe, warm and fun environment that both our children always looked forward to, and always came home spilling over with stories from the day. Baking, play dough making, dinosaur fossil excavations, outdoor games, painting with feathers, acting out stories…the list goes on. We will always be thankful to Happy Hearts for providing our children with a beautiful introduction to the world of learning.
We absolutely love Happy Hearts Learning Center! Our two daughters completed three wonderful years each and our son is currently experiencing his second year. Throughout the eight years we have been with Happy Hearts, we have never once questioned our decision. It has been the absolute best choice as the first classroom/learning experience for our family.
Each individual classroom at Happy Hearts offers a unique preschool experience that fosters and encourages both learning and socializing at every level. Every month we are provided with an age appropriate curriculum outline that keeps us as parents up to date with the intended educational and behavioral objectives. In addition to this, every single teacher provides monthly calendars on specific activities and events happening seemingly every single day in the classrooms. The teachers are knowledgeable, loving, and nurturing to each and every student and, without fail, every morning our son is welcomed into his classroom with open arms and big smiles…what more could parents ask for?!?!
Happy Hearts Learning Center is without question in a league of its own, starting from the very top of the organization and we, as a community, are lucky to have such a warm, loving place for our children to enter into the educational system. We will forever be grateful for our many experiences at Happy Hearts and will sincerely miss the entire experience when our tenure there as a family is complete.
When we started looking for a nursery school in the area it did not take much research to land on Happy Hearts. The feedback and buzz from family, friends and acquaintances all over town made it such an easy decision! With each day, the directors, teachers, parents, and kids are such great reminders of how lucky we were to become a part of the Happy Hearts family. It has truly become our community and happy place! Our 2 daughters have had such positive experiences with different combinations of teachers thus far, and it just further proves from the top to bottom they have a great system and equation to their program. I must also mention the peace of mind we have when pulling in and out of the parking lot that our kids are in such wonderful hands. That is priceless. We can’t recommend Happy Hearts enough and are so excited to watch our 3 daughters move thru the program over the next 5 years.
We do intend to return to school in September. Happy to hear of the plan for staggered drop off and pick-ups. Lots of unknowns now, but we don’t have any questions at the moment.
I was talking with a mom this weekend who sends her kids to another school and she expressed some disappointment with how there wasn’t really any communication to parents on the lockdown or anything after the stay at home orders. I was really happy to share how wonderful everyone at Happy Hearts was throughout the entire time. Despite uncertainty, there was open communication and I was just so impressed that the teachers kept reaching out to us, setting up zoom calls and texting photos and sharing suggestions of activities to do with the kids the entire time. The school was fantastic to continue to support putting together the big books for the kids, an amazing example of going above and beyond. Mrs. S. and Mrs. P were angels throughout and are such wonderful people.
It’s the tough times when people have the chance to show their true colors and Happy Hearts was shining brightly during this entire pandemic!
Thanks so much for everything. We will never forget how consistently amazing Happy Hearts is!
Shannon S.
AWARDS AND CERTIFICATIONS
LET’S TALK
Registrations are now being accepted for the next school year. Please submit the form below. We look forward to speaking with you.