Welcome - The Laughing House

The Journey of a “Dream”

” All children are born geniuses…”

Richard BUCKMINSTER FULLER

Welcome to The Laughing House. We are a family-owned bilingual school for kids aged 6 months till 6 years old, based in Varkiza Athens.

You will hear many of our parents describing our school as a community.

The Laughing House provides a creative and nurturing environment in which highly qualified educators inspire and encourage all of our children’s intellectual, emotional, and physical skills needed to become self-motivated learners, flexible thinkers and creative problem solvers. We support their natural and ever-increasing curiosity about the world in which they live through hands-on experience indoors and outdoors.

“Our secret is the code of kindness…“, our teachers say.

To be surrounded by children from all over the world is a privilege and our pupils regularly benefit from the rich tapestry of cultures that make up our community.

During your child’s education journey, we aim to establish and build strong partnership with parents or main carers . Communication between home and school is built on 4 common elements : respect, compromise, commitment and mutual benefit.

Υour contribution to your child’s learning and development process is part of our curriculum, therefore we will support you and make you feel an indivisible part of your child’s education throughout the year with a range of activities and workshops.

” Όλα τα παιδιά γεννιούνται ιδιοφυΐες, … “, Richard BUCKMINSTER FULLER

Our Founders

Aglaia and Niko

Meet Aglaia, Niko and Anastasia-Christiane!

Aglaia and Niko as a couple fulfilled their life dream when they founded “The Laughing House” in 2012 as a personal need for their future kids. Nowadays their daughter Anastasia–Christiane is also a student here and part of their desirable community.

Niko, of Greek-Swiss origin, as an engineer, created a safe space for children, elegant and based on European standards. “As parents of a “The Laughing House’s” student ourselves, we are dedicated to providing all children and parents with exactly what we want from our daughter’s school. A safe, stimulating and happy educational experience, in a unique and nurturing setting that sets the foundations of moral values and Ethos.”

Aglaia’s vision since a kid was to be part of a small multicultural community who shares the same passion for kindness.

Now as the Principal she is dedicated to run a modern school but with traditional values:

“Our school is not limited to simply describing these values to the children, but is focused on the factors, methods and means involved in empowering the human moral compass. My job is to ensure that high standards of behaviour are always modelled and encouraged and kids get the most out of preschool education of the highest level.

Please feel free to contact me personally and let’s start your most precious journey together”

Anastasia–Christiane has been Head of Customer Experience at The Laughing House since 2023. She personally field tests all rooms, resources, and our delicious food before recommending them for use by her friends at TLH. She’s currently in our nursery and due to graduate in Summer ‘27.

Our educational method

Our Greenhouse

Our educational method is based on the UK education system and determines the standards that must be met by all primary education providers, aiming to help children learn and develop properly while keeping them healthy and safe.

Based on a wide range of knowledge and capabilities, it promotes teaching and learning in a way that provides the correct foundations for the progress and readiness of the children, both in school and in their future life.

Fundamental principles of EYFS (Early Years Foundation Stage)
There are four guiding principles that form the practical implementation of EYFS during the first months of a child’s life. Those are the following:

Every child is unique, learning incessantly and able to adapt, capable and full of confidence and certainty.
Children learn to be strong and independent via positive relationships.
Children learn and grow healthily in a favorable environment, in which their experiences align with their personal needs and where teachers and parents and/or guardians collaborate closely.
Children grow and learn in different ways and paces. This framework covers the education and caretaking of all kids during the first years of their lives, including children with special educational needs and/or disabilities.

Child learning and growth support The development matters of EYFS can help teachers support the learning and growth of children, tightly combining what they provide with the child’s current needs.

Formative Assessment

Continuous formative assessment is the key to effective education during the early years of a child’s life. The teachers:

Observe the kids as they act and interact while playing, during their everyday and premeditated activities (observation).
They examine the growth examples by observing what the children can do an what each child can do individually (assessment).
They examine the ways they can support children, which reinforce and delve deeper into the current education and growth through the “Positive Relationship” and “Enabling environment” (planning).
They use EYFS’ development guidelines case-by-case, in order to detect possible areas where further learning and development is needed (planning).

Summative Assessment

EYFS requires that teachers review the children’s progress often and share an overview of this progress with the parents.

The Seven Areas of Learning and Development

There are seven areas in learning and development that must shape educational programmes during the first years of a child’s life.

Communication & Language
Physical Development
Personal, Social and Emotional Development
Literacy
Mathematics
Understanding the World
Expressive Arts

For further information on the EYFS, please download the following document: What to expect in the Early Years Foundation Stage: a guide for parents

Our Teachers

The only people in direct contact with the children are our teachers and this is a point that we take great pride in. The key traits that we require in our teachers are: patience, organisational skills and capabilities, devotion in their role, positive outlook, passion and communication skills.

We provide an integrated educational programme, since the substantial theoretical and practical educational and teaching training on all the new educational approaches is an obligatory and necessary affair.

We follow a strict monitoring process to ensure a high staff/kid ratio thus children are given close attention within a clear structure. High expectations are underpinned by detailed policies and procedures.

The teachers of “The Laughing House”, are First Help Aiders and have the following education and qualities

love and affection for kids
kindness, sense of responsibility, morals and integrity
international educational training
experience in various language, teaching and learning environments
knowledge of at least two foreign languages
creativity, enthusiasm and an appetite for more knowledge

Our Premises

“The Laughing House” is housed in the 600m2 “Villa Mary” in Varkiza, surrounded by a 1000m2 lot, built in 1985 according to Swiss standards, as a luxury country home. In 2012, the building was completely renovated to follow the current standards regarding nurseries and kindergartens.

The school has 750 m2 of free space for games and “learning by doing”. The free space has high quality artificial lawn with a drainage system for the children’s safety and handmade toys from recycled materials to meet the needs of every child. Last but not least our numerous trees and flowers provide natural shade so children can play endlessly.

In order to reinforce experiential education, we have set up a greenhouse designed in the USA, where children can practice educational farming all year round.

A pool in our school’s backyard, is used during summer by children for educational activities, always being supervised by our trained and certified teachers as lifeguards.

The school’s premises are always monitored by CCTV system.

Inside space

The school’s classrooms are especially roomy and the environment is airy with plenty of natural light. The colours, the wooden toys and furniture and the children’s creations stand out, decorating the surroundings.

The floors of the whole school are coated with special vibrational insulation and antibacterial and antimicrobial coating without “corners”, so that it can be deep-cleaned. The electrical grid starts at a 1,5 m height, so the children cannot reach it.

The space is heated through central petrol heating, it has a highly efficient ecological air conditioning system and ventilation openings. The use of the natural light is predominant.

Among others, the school’s modern equipment includes a projection room equipped with an audiovisual system, as well as a “computer room” for the kindergarten children.

Enrollment process

Quality care and education are primary and universal rights for all the children, since they are essential for their wellbeing and growth. We welcome kids from every corner of our community, regardless of their abilities, their needs, their race, their religion, their faith, their colour or gender.

Our Enrolment Policy has been designed to reflect our fair and democratic values. Priority is given to the brothers and sisters of our already registered pupils. The enrolment is following the “first in, first out” method. When the parents confirm their interest to join us, we will arrange a visit to our school, so that they are informed about our procedures and more important meet the teaching staff. The place is reserved upon sending the registration documents and confirmation of the deposit.

If you need more information regarding the enrolment process, please contact us at office@tlh.edu.eu or call our office at +30 21 0890 0116 from 09:00 to 16:00 on any working day.