What Our Program Offers

Our Commitment to Fostering Strong Partnerships with Families

Our team is dedicated to fostering strong partnerships with families and the community. We welcome families to be involved in the program and active participants in their children’s education. Reciprocal communication is foundational for building partnerships with families and for participation in the program; therefore, the program utilizes many methods to facilitate communication with families, including Storypark; an online, collaborative documentation of each child’s individual learning and development, formal parent/teacher meetings, documentation around the classroom, parent workshops, and e-mail updates of program developments and daily conversations. Through ongoing two-way communication with parents and families, we foster their engagement and encourage them to be involved with us, which strengthens the children’s sense of belonging in our program.

Our Curriculum

Each day curriculum opportunities are thoughtfully planned to build on the children’s curiosity and questions about the world around them. Through the process of exploring inquiries, children and educators are actively involved as co-learners as they explore new ideas, and construct knowledge together. Through this process, children learn the skills to synthesize, interpret, and evaluate information in ways which are meaningful to them.

Educators design curriculum based on reflections and team discussions surrounding observations of the children. Planned experiences allow children to explore materials and questions of interest to them and build on their existing knowledge. Every experience or encounter is designed with the children’s development in mind. Educators enhance these encounters through responsive interactions. This type of curriculum planning is known as an emergent curriculum approach.

Each experience takes into consideration the foundations for learning in the Ministry of Education’s pedagogical document: How Does Learning Happen? Learning experiences offered, incorporate the learning goals and program expectations in the areas of Belonging, Well-Being, Expression and Engagement in the following ways:

To read more about the How Does Learning Happen?  document please visit the ministry website at www.edu.gov.on.ca/childcare/HowLearningHappens.pdf

Belonging

The educators in the preschool program ensure that every child has a sense of belonging – a feeling of being connected to others and a contributor to their world. The preschool program cultivates authentic, caring relationships and connections to create a sense of belonging between children, educators, families, and the community.

Our orientation process is designed to ensure a smooth, comfortable and secure transition into preschool. The intake meeting and orientation process is the first step to establish a relationship, by getting to know a family’s history, culture, routines and learning about a child’s personality, temperament and interests. Educators are attuned to the physical and emotional states of each child in the program and respond to children in a warm and sensitive manner.

In our preschool programs, educators ensure that each child and their family is represented. This is evident through documentation that represents each child’s ‘voice’ as well as spaces such as our family photo walls which help children feel close to their families even when they are apart. Families are encouraged to spend time in our programs sharing their expertise, family culture and traditions with the children.

Experiences that allow children to connect to the environment and their community are regularly incorporated into the planned curriculum. These opportunities included: visiting the seniors at Chartwell Retirement Residence, exploring beautiful natural environments our community offers, growing produce in the Family Centre’s community garden, and caring for our environment through participation in events such as Cleaning up the Capital.

Educators encourage children to share their inquiries, questions, and ideas as they explore with curiosity and enthusiasm. Small group experiences provide a daily opportunity for children to develop relationships as they respond to, and collaborate with their peers and educators in the program.

The preschool program is an inclusive environment ensuring that all are able to participate in social interactions, shared exploration, play, and learning with adults and children in ways comfortable to each individual.

Well-Being

The preschool program promotes the emotional, social, physical well-being and overall health and nutrition of children in a variety of ways. The preschool environment is intentionally arranged to provide choice during play including choices for active, physically challenging play as well as quiet, calm and relaxing play.

Emotional development is a focus for all educators as preschoolers are developing their sense of self.  Programming emphasizes positive emotional experiences and emotional literacy, allowing children to learn to identify, express and regulate their emotions.

Preschool offers the Seeds of Empathy Program. In Seeds of Empathy, we use stories to help children explore their own feelings and take the perspective of others. Through the Seeds of Empathy program children are provided with opportunities to identify and reflect on their own feelings and the feelings of others.

In preschool, educators support, model and encourage strategies for self-regulation, self-awareness and self-care. The educators additionally promote the development of social skills and peer relationships by supporting children to solve problems, and resolve conflict all while fostering a sense of resiliency.

Children’s physical health and well-being is supported through outdoor play opportunities. Children are encouraged to explore the natural world around them. The preschool program makes use of a variety of outdoor spaces including: the tree farm, the pond, a local forest, the field, and the Family Centre’s community garden. Educator’s thoughtfully plan hands-on experiences which allow children to develop a sense of environmental stewardship and a connectedness to their environment.

Risky play is a natural part of children’s play and it is welcomed and supported. Risky play provides challenge and has many benefits such as building self-confidence, physical ability, setting limits, resiliency, practicing skills and connecting with nature. Risky play is fostered through daily experiences provided by educators and through the use of the natural environment. When exploring our outdoor spaces children are encouraged to run, jump, twirl and climb as they desire. Educators help children to manage risks through open conversations which encourage the development of self-regulation and self-reflection skills.

Our program fosters the development of self-help skills by providing the children with ample learning time during transitions. We use positive reinforcement and role modelling as a strategy to help guide the children through dressing for outdoors, toileting, and hand washing. The children eat lunch with the educators in the dining room. Programs foster a sense of well-being by offering family-style eating, which allows the children to practice patience and turn taking by sharing and passing starters, and by teaching appropriate language and manners. Encouraging the children to self-serve cultivates independence and enables children to feel in control of their choices. Children are encouraged to try different foods and conversations about nutrition and healthy food choices are an important element of daily eating experiences.

Engagement

Children are full of natural curiosity and have an intrinsic desire to learn, test and create. The preschool educators observe and listen to the questions and theories that the children have. We foster children’s natural curiosity by providing them with open-ended materials and opportunities.

Experiences and environments are intentionally planned for the children to expand on their interests and foster new learning. We approach children’s inquiries and thoughts openly, and allow their questions to guide the opportunities and choices of the materials we offer.

When a child is fully engaged, they are fully involved and focused on the experience at hand. Educators extend the children’s learning by offering open-ended questions and gathering their current knowledge and encouraging deeper thought.

Educators in the preschool program, have a shared view of children as competent, curious, learners who are capable of complex thinking. Educators support this view of children by providing experiences or invitations to play that provide children with opportunity to fully explore and engage with materials, to test theories, and create.

Loose parts are common materials provided to children in preschool to support engagement. A loose part is a material that can be moved, carried, combined, redesigned, lined up, and taken apart and put back together in multiple ways. Loose parts encourage children’s problem solving, creative thinking, and innovation.

Expression

Expression is the ability for children to communicate their thoughts, ideas and understandings about their world. The preschool program promotes expression through a variety of mediums. Expressive mediums offered to children include: loose parts to build and create, open ended art opportunities and music and movement experiences. Open ended opportunities are provided for children everywhere programming occurs encouraging children to express themselves in ways that they feel most comfortable. Children are provided space for ongoing work and space to showcase their creations.

Each week we offer a music program. Through the music program the children are exposed to rhythmic activities, and concepts such as tempo, pitch, timbre, and melody.  The children are given an introduction to percussion and orchestra instruments as well as instruments specific to certain cultures. In the program, the children explore the beginning of notation representation. Singing is a key component of this program as the children are given opportunity to learn new songs and explore their singing voices.  Dance is explored in the music program as children explore music and dance from a variety of different cultures.

Communication skills are fostered in the preschool program as children are provided with many opportunities exchange ideas and collaborate in small groups – asking questions, doing research, engaging in meaningful conversations, negotiating, problem solving and practicing self-advocacy skills.

The expression of all emotions is encouraged and supported by educators in the preschool program.