At Children’s Castle Daycare (CCDC), our programs are guided by “How does Learning Happen? Ontario’s Pedagogy for the Early Years (2014)” document published by the Ontario government. Our focus is on providing a quality childcare program that reflects our view of children as being competent, capable, curious and rich in potential. Our strategy is to support each child's learning and development by planning and creating a positive and creative learning environment with experiences that foster the children's own initiated exploration, play and inquiry, while providing adult support.
Using “How Does Learning Happen?”, we strive to help children reach their goals around the four foundations of belonging, well-being, engagement, and expression while integrating the six guiding principles of Early Learning for Every Child Today, (ELECT). Along with these two documents, we abide by the Child Care and Early Years Act, 2014 (CCEYA), and we also refer to the document titled, “Think Feel Act: Lessons from Research about Young Children”.
All of our programs at CCDC are designed to:
- Encourage children to interact and communicate in a positive way and support their ability to self-regulate
- Foster the children’s exploration, play and inquiry
- Provide child-initiated and adult-supported experiences
- Offer opportunities to create authentic lasting relationships with others in the program
Our goals for children, consistent with the Ministry of Education pedagogy, include the following:
- Every child has a sense of belonging when he or she is connected to others and contributes to their world.
- Every child is developing a sense of self, health, and well-being.
- Every child is an active and engaged learner who explores the world with body, mind, and senses.
- Every child is a capable communicator who expresses himself or herself in many ways.
Children’s interests are valuable to their learning and offer a rich variety of experiences. The type of activities we offer daily include:
- drama, music, dance and visual arts
- physical literacy
- language and literacy
- nature, science and technology
- construction and design
- daily opportunities for physical literacy and active outdoor play
- opportunities for school-age children to work on their homework
- rest time for children who require it, based on their developmental needs.
A. We promote the health, safety, nutrition and well-being of children.
Children’s Castle Daycare Centre (CCDC) has developed policies and procedures that support an environment of well being and belonging. We view children as being capable and competent and we encourage children to be self-reliant in their daily routines.
Healthy eating is an important part of the daily routine. Our menu reflects Canada’s Food Guidelines and we accommodate many dietary and allergy needs required for religious, health and lifestyle reasons while providing a healthy variety of foods that children can enjoy.
Keeping active is another important part of our daily routine through indoor and outdoor gross motor activities. We maintain a safe and hazard free environment, as safety plays an important role in play. All of our educators and staff have up-to-date First Aid and CPR training.
B. We support positive and responsive interactions among children, parents, child care providers, and staff.
When caregivers consistently respond to a child’s distress in sensitive and supportive ways, a secure attachment is formed. Caregivers, children and families develop genuine and respectful relationships. When a child experiences this, they tend to feel safe in their environment, which optimizes their learning. Children explore and communicate with their senses, body and mind. Caregivers view children as capable communicators and encourage children to share their opinions and participate within the program.
Not only do the caregivers at CCDC practice positive interactions and relationships with the children, we also do this with the families. Family is the biggest influence in a child’s life. We work closely with families and have open communication so that we work together as a community. Parents can take a look at what we have been doing in the classroom on our parent info boards, in their child’s communication logs, as well as online, on our facebook page and website.
C. We encourage children to interact and communicate in a positive way and support their ability to self-regulate.
Self-regulation is the ability to control one’s physical, behavioural and mental impulses. Improving a child’s ability to self-regulate, improves how they effectively and efficiently deal with, and recover from stress. CCDC’s inclusive programming leads to children’s sense of belonging. We give the children lots of opportunities through play that promote interaction and communication. Progressive learning environments and practices, focused on play-based learning, also encourage children’s self-expression, self-regulation and their ability to deal with stress. We encourage children to express themselves in a positive way through their play by role modeling positive communication methods facilitate effectively and help children identify their feeling and emotions.
As stated in the Child Care and Early Years Act, CCDC prohibits the use of: “corporal punishment of the child; physical restraint of the child, such as confining the child to a high chair, car seat, stroller or other device for the purposes of discipline or in lieu of supervision, unless the physical restraint is for the purpose of preventing a child from hurting himself, herself or someone else, and is used only as a last resort and only until the risk of injury is no longer imminent; locking the exits of the child care centre or home child care premises for the purpose of confining the child, or confining the child in an area or room without adult supervision, unless such confinement occurs during an emergency and is required as part of the licensee’s emergency management policies and procedures; use of harsh or degrading measures or threats or use of derogatory language directed at or used in the presence of a child that would humiliate, shame or frighten the child or undermine his or her self-respect, dignity or self-worth; depriving the child of basic needs including food, drink, shelter, sleep, toilet use, clothing or bedding; or inflicting any bodily harm on children including making children eat or drink against their will.” (https://www.ontario.ca/laws/regulation/150137)
D. We foster children’s exploration, play and inquiry.
Our physical set-up meets children’s need to become independent and self-reliant by allowing free choice of play materials. Children create the space that they learn in. Not only does our environment, often known as the third teacher, allow room and time for a project to evolve, it allows children to become engaged, explore their surroundings and foster their curiosity. With minimal transitions, children have more time to be engaged in the activities and projects they enjoy. No one tells a child what must be constructed and the child is given no set patterns that they must follow when working with paint, paper, playdough, markers, any other creative media or other classroom materials; the children may use these materials the way they wish.
E. We provide child initiated and adult-supported experiences.
It is our experience that children learn best when they are actively involved in personally meaningful activities with people and things. Caregivers encourage children to pursue their own interests and are supported by caregivers who connect old information to new information, setting the stage for the learning experience. This approach to learning supports the view of the child and the caregiver as competent, capable of complex thinking, and rich in both potential and experience. In our programs the caregiver and the child are partners in shaping the learning experience. In an active learning environment, children develop a sense of belonging by forming authentic relationships with others and being part of a diverse community of learners. The structure of the day, with minimal transitions, provides a balance of child- and adult guided/supported experiences, designed to engage children’s natural curiosity and inquiry
F. We plan for and create a positive learning environment in which each child’s learning and development is supported.
CCDC uses a play-based learning approach and a well-designed environment to support children’s growth in all areas of development, including a sense of belonging. Caregivers use their knowledge of child development to design a positive learning environment that is intentionally and clearly divided into interest areas that invite them to investigate, imagine, think, create, solve problems, and make meaning from their experiences. The environment, which is also the third teacher, is set up to support different types of play, where possible. Materials are carefully chosen so that they are varied, open ended and plentiful, and reflect children’s interests, family lives, and communities.
G. We incorporate indoor and outdoor play, as well as active play, rest, and quiet time, into the day, and give consideration to the unique needs of the children receiving care in our centre.
Following the CCEYA, we provide 2 hours of outdoor play for each program, every day, weather permitting. Learning to run, jump, climb, and take turns is a healthy way to participate in group activities while developing coordination and strength. Rest time is provided in each program so children have the chance to unwind and nap from their busy morning. Indoor and outdoor active play is based on the children’s interests and each child’s individual needs are taken into consideration when planning each experience.
H. We foster the engagement of families as well as ongoing communication with families about the program and their children.
CCDC encourages and practices open communication with the families about our program and their children’s learning experiences. We believe that families are the experts when it comes to their children and they are the number one influence on their child. Sharing knowledge between caregivers and family is essential to the success of the child. Respect, care, empathy, trust and integrity are core values in all our interactions with families. We know that our partnerships with our families help our program to best meet the needs of the children. We encourage families to give us feedback and approach us with any concerns or questions they may have about their child’s learning. We have daily log books for each child that families can look at to see how their child’s day was overall. We also communicate with families through our classroom parent boards, our Facebook group and our monthly newsletter. Sharing knowledge is integral to the success of your child.
I. We involve local community partners and allow those partners to support the children, their families and staff.
CCDC is committed to involving local community partners and to engage those partners in supporting CCDC children, families and caregivers. We provide learning opportunities and practical work experiences to members of the community through local high schools, college and universities. Volunteers and students on placement strengthen the high-quality care and individual attention given to the children in the programs. We are also fortunate to have many community partners—individuals, organizations and agencies who support CCDC children and families. We collaborate with these partners and continue to create more opportunities to expand these relationships on behalf of our children and families.
J. We support our staff and others who interact with the children in relation to continuous professional learning.
“Educators are competent and capable, curious and rich in experience. They are knowledgeable, caring, reflective and resourceful professionals. Educators are life-long learners. They take responsibility for their own learning and make decisions about ways to integrate knowledge from theory, research, their own experience and their understanding of the individual children and families they work with.” How Does Learning Happen? Ontario’s Pedagogy for the Early Years (Ministry of Education 2014). CCDC encourages caregivers to continue their learning and has a budget set aside for caregivers when they request to attend a professional development event.
K. We document and review the impact of our program statement children and their families.
CCDC has regular annual visits from the Ministry of Education and Ottawa Public Health to ensure that regulations and guidelines are being followed, so that our license can be renewed. Accident reports and serious occurrences are documented and analyzed for trends.
At CCDC, we understand that the How Does Learning Happen? Ontario’s Pedagogy for the Early Years document is a way for our caregivers to learn about how children think and learn. Our caregivers make frequent observations of children in the program and use this information for their program planning. The purpose of our documentation is also:
- A way to value children’s experiences and help them to reflect back on those experiences and what they have been learning
- An opportunity to make children’s learning and understanding of the world visible—to themselves, to other children, to their parents, other families, and to the caregivers
- A way to reflect on developmental growth over a period of time
- A process for caregivers to co-plan with children about learning
- A way to build dialogue with families about children’s experience
- A self-reflection opportunity for caregivers
Our Program Statement is in alignment with our policies and procedures, which caregivers are required to adhere to, and which guide their work with children and families. These policies and procedures, along with the Program Statement, are reviewed annually to ensure that they are in alignment with How Does Learning Happen? Ontario’s Pedagogy for the Early Years (Ministry of Education 2014). Our Program Statement is a living document that will also be reviewed and updated; when this occurs, caregivers, students and volunteers will review and sign off on the statement and all related policies and procedures.