About Emali
“The best way to make children good is to make them happy”
~ Oscar Wilde
About
Welcome to Emali! It’s a world of imagination.
At Emali Early Learning Centres, we believe childhood should be full of wonder, imagination and endless joyful learning moments. Proudly South Australian owned and operated, Emali was established in 2007 by founder and owner, Ali Serhan, creating a network of purpose-built centres where children aged six weeks to school age are supported to grow, play, and thrive.
Our passionate teachers and educators create exciting, play-based learning experiences that are linked to each child’s unique interests — because we know that’s when the magic happens! Backed by the latest research in brain development and guided by the Early Years Learning Framework (EYLF), our programs are designed to ensure wellbeing and empower children as they build confidence, spark curiosity, supporting each stage of development in meaningful ways.
From daily nutritious meals and enriching extra-curricular programs to engaging excursions and our school-ready Preschool program — everything we do is designed to support happy, resilient children. We work hand-in-hand with families and our local community to create warm, welcoming and inspiring environments where everyone feels like they belong.
At Emali, we’re big believers in kindness, creativity, and lifelong learning — for children and grown-ups alike. Step into our world of play, discovery and connection — where children learn and thrive every single day.
Our Emali values
At Emali Adelaide child care we’re focused on leading South Australia in a holistic approach to early learning with state-of-the-art facilities and highly trained educators to support your child into their brightest future!
Safety
We prioritise emotional and physical safety, creating nurturing environments where children, families, and educators feel secure, respected, and supported in every interaction.
At Emali, safety is the foundation of everything we do. We are committed to providing a physically and emotionally secure environment where every child, family member, and team member feels protected, respected, and valued. Our caring team partner with families to understand and respond promptly and sensitively to children’s needs. Guided by the Early Years Learning Framework (EYLF), we create nurturing environments that ensure children are engaging in enriching, supportive learning experiences and strictly follow all legislative requirements and the National Quality Framework (NQF) to uphold the highest standards of safety.
Joy
We cultivate joy through play, curiosity, and meaningful relationships, creating a positive, inspiring atmosphere where children and our community can flourish.
We believe joy is essential to a child's development and learning. At Emali, joy is cultivated through play, curiosity, discovery and meaningful relationships. Our educators celebrate each child's individuality by actively listening to their voices and cues ensuring wellbeing and happiness. Through listening and observing, we co-construct fun learning experiences, helping children build confidence, a sense of identity, happiness and a love for lifelong learning. For our team and families, we foster a culture of positivity and shared purpose. Joy is present in the activities we do and in the way we treat each other—with optimism and encouragement. Together, we create a joyful environment where everyone thrives and feels inspired.
Growth
We foster lifelong learning by supporting holistic development in children and offering continuous personal and professional growth opportunities for our team.
At Emali, we nurture lifelong learning—for children, families, and staff alike. We are committed to each child's holistic growth by offering rich, engaging learning opportunities grounded in pedagogy, real-world exploration, and creative play. We support children’s natural desire to explore as they build strong social connections, critical thinking skills, and emotional intelligence. Our educators actively collaborate with families and the community to innovate, evolve and personalise our curriculum and programming, helping children meet and exceed their individual developmental milestones. Equally, we champion professional and personal growth for our team, investing in ongoing training and reflective practice as we strive to be better together.
Kindness
We lead with kindness—creating a culture of empathy, respect, and belonging that supports every individual as part of the Emali family.
Kindness is at the heart of our relationships and the culture we cultivate. We speak and interact with warmth and empathy, treat others with respect, and approach challenges with compassion. At Emali, we believe in creating a space where everyone feels they belong—where children, families, and team members are welcomed, accepted, and celebrated for who they are. We see ourselves as an extension of the family home, offering love, support, and consistency to every child, parent and caregiver. We embrace feedback as an opportunity to grow, and every voice is heard with empathy and openness. By modelling kindness, we help children build respectful relationships and grow into caring, considerate individuals.
Connection
We build diverse, strong, inclusive relationships across our community, recognising the value each person brings to creating a united and supportive learning environment.
We believe that strong relationships are the key to successful learning and community wellbeing. Emali is a place where meaningful connections are formed—between children and educators, families and teams, and across our broader community. We create diverse, inclusive environments where every individual—regardless of background, ability, or identity—feels seen, valued, and included. Our team fosters a culture of collaboration and mutual respect, working in partnership with families and the wider community to provide consistent, connected care. We honour the vital role each person plays in shaping the Emali experience and understand that our collective efforts contribute to something greater. At Emali, everyone matters.
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Locally owned and community focused
Proudly South Australian owned and operated, Emali is deeply rooted in the local community having built a reputation of inclusivity and quality across nine centres within the Adelaide Metro and Adelaide Hills areas including Brighton, Broadview, Campbelltown Findon, Littlehampton, Morphett Vale, North Plympton, Prospect, Salisbury and Underdale.
Leaning in to the intention of supporting fellow locals, Emali partners with many South Australian organisations and suppliers to provide their services, meals and experiences.
Environments for Exploration and Growth
Each Emali Early Learning Centre is uniquely designed, reflecting and embedding the local community and surroundings into our environments. Free-flowing indoor-outdoor learning spaces are full of developmentally appropriate activities set to inspire young children as they grow and transition from babies to kindergarten ready for school.
Explore what a day at Emali looks like for different age groups
Innovating Early Learning At Emali:
Creating holistic learning experiences for young children takes on a deeper meaning at Emali, with our locally owned centres striving to provide more value and better experiences for children and their families. As we lead the way with providing inclusive early-learning programs, the innovation of our facilities and services continue to support the unique developmental requirements of children.
Emali Sensory Rooms:
Located in Salisbury, Campbelltown & North Plympton
Emali identified the need for additional sensory support and development in young children and collaborated with Occupational Therapists to create a unique space offering tailored experiences that nurture each child, supporting their self-regulation, sensory development and social connection.
Emali Barn
Located at Littlehampton
Embracing the Adelaide Hills farming community, Emali Littlehampton includes an on-site barn, incorporating animal interactions into daily learning programs. Experiences like these offer children real-world learning, promoting an understanding in responsibility, empathy and patience as the children contribute to caring for the animals and barn.
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Emali Swim School
Located at Salisbury
One of its kind, the Emali Swim School based in Salisbury facilitates excursions for children aged 3+, hosting in-house swimming and water safety lessons for enrolled children. The swimming program is planned and implemented by the Emali Pool Manager, teaching key skills such as safe entry & exits, floatation, water confidence, swimming strokes and more.Not only does this program offer convenience to busy families, but it makes essential water safety and swimming skills accessible to young children and families.
The Emali Curriculum
Our learning programs are planned with purpose, understanding each individual child to create engaging play-based experiences. From creative art & craft activities, through to gardening, sports days, playing an instrument, enjoying dress-ups with friends or relaxing with story time, planned activities are complemented by open-ended play to promote confidence, creativity and strong foundations for future life-long learning.
Our curriculum extends far beyond the norm with extra-curricular programs offered as a core inclusion enhancing daily planned learning experiences. Some of the popular programs we run inside our centres include, Music & Movement, Sports & Activity, Kitchen & Nutrition Cooking Lessons plus more. All Emali Early Learning Centres also facilitate a combination of in-house experiences and community excursions, seeing the children explore the world in a safe and controlled environment.
Meals, Nutrition & Wellbeing
“With a strong focus on providing nutritional, delicious meals and snacks for young children, Emali provides inclusive seasonal menus for everyone to enjoy.”
Investing more into ensuring high-quality produce is a core focus at Emali. The meals prepared for children within our centres are substantial and cater to each individual child’s nutritional, cultural and dietary needs contributing to a healthy, balanced diet.
Our certified in-house cooks prepare fresh and mostly organic meals five times per day. We prioritise sourcing local produce and ingredients and our bread is specifically made just for Emali to help reduce inflammation and harmful ingredients for our little-ones.
To ensure complete inclusivity, all Emali centres source and use Halal certified ingredients and produce for all snacks and meals.
Our Journey to Reconciliation - Embedding Aboriginal Perspectives: The Emali Story:
Through collaboration with Pwerle Gallery, and introduction to Aboriginal Artist, Charmaine Pwerle, Emali Early Learning centre continues to work to introduce more authentic opportunities and tools to learn about and integrate Aboriginal culture throughout the curriculum across each centre.
All spaces designed for safety, play and growth
Our happy families
Hear from our wonderful families.
We’d love to meet you
Book a tour today and visit a centre closest to you or contact us for general enquiries.
