About Our Program

Centretown Parents’ Daycare views children as competent, capable, curious and rich in potential. We recognize that the early years can be strongly influenced to set a positive, healthy foundation for years to come. The following goals guide our program:

To promote the health, safety, nutrition and well-being of the children.

Our centre provides children with healthy eating choices in order to model lifelong skills to feed and nourish their bodies for optimal health and development. All menus are comprised of an assortment of healthy and diverse food items from each of the food groups in the Canada Food guide, with a focus on reduced sodium and sugar and an emphasis on whole grains and whole foods. We acknowledge dietary restrictions and choices and refrain from serving pork or nut products at our centre. Our menus are rich in fruits, vegetables and whole grains which provide the body with a high concentration of vitamins, minerals, and dietary fiber.

To promote the wellness and safety of the children in our care, we teach independence skills. We strive to educate young children and their families on nutrition and healthy child development.

Our centre follows guidelines as prescribed by Ottawa Public Health and all our staff have training in first aid, CPR, and WHMIS. We have a Health and Safety representative appointee in our staff under the Occupational Health and Safety Act (OHSA).

To support positive and responsive interactions among the children, parents, childcare providers and staff

The core values of Centretown Parents’ Daycare foster collaborative and cooperative relationships among all of our partners. We view the diversity of children and families as an asset, and plan programs to reflect differences (including individual support plans) and enrich our environment with these differences. We view our staff, parents and children as co-learners, constructing knowledge together.

Our staff respects the co-operative style of managing our centre. We support professional interactions and are trained in conflict resolution, following our conflict resolution policy as listed in this Handbook. Input into the decision-making process, open communication and equality of all staff are a fundamental part of the cooperative.

To encourage the children to interact and communicate in a positive way and support their ability to self-regulate

Our educators at Centretown Parents’ Daycare support children in developing strategies to self-regulate while recognizing the effects of their actions on others. We encourage age-appropriate communication, self-expression and language development. Experiences are provided based upon the children’s interests and we promote a holistic approach where the condition for learning that encompasses all areas - physical, social/emotional as well as cognitive development.

Our programs include special activities and care to enhance children's self-regulation skills. They are focused on play based/inquiry learning which allows children to actively construct, challenge and expand their own understandings through connections to prior experiences. This gives children an opportunity to investigate, ask questions, solve problems, and engage in critical thinking.

To foster the children’s exploration, play and inquiry;

Our programs are focused on play based/inquiry learning which allows children to actively construct, challenge and expand their own understandings through connections to prior experiences. This gives children an opportunity to investigate, ask questions, learn problem-solving, and engage in critical thinking. Through play and inquiry, our children practice ways of learning and interacting with the world around them that they will apply throughout their lives. These skills, along with collaboration, creativity, and imagination are capacities vital for success throughout school and beyond.

To provide child-initiated and adult-supported experiences

Centretown Parents’ Daycare sees children as capable and powerful communicators who are able to initiate and respond to communication exchanges. Our centre believes that children are entitled to opportunities that satisfy their social, emotional, cultural, physical, and intellectual needs and to develop these abilities in an environment that fosters co-operation, a sense of responsibility, creativity and order. We recognize the child as the focal point and attempt to meet the unique needs of the child within the context of the whole group. We seek to provide “Learning provocations” - activities or experiences to boost children's engagement. Put simply, they're spaces where children can pick up, touch and explore different objects. Think of them as an open-ended invitation to explore, wonder and be creative.

Our educators practice “scaffolding”, which is how adults support children's development and learning by offering just the right help at just the right time in just the right way.

To plan for and create positive learning environments and experiences in which each child’s learning and development will be supported and which is inclusive of all children, including children with individualized plans.

Our centre ensures that every child has a sense of belonging while cultivating authentic, caring relationships and connections. We ensure children see how they contribute to their world to create a sense of belonging among and between children, adults, and the community around them. Staff respond in a warm and sensitive manner to children’s physical and emotional state. We seek to build an environment that respects and supports inclusion and meaningful participation.

Our curriculum incorporates children with special needs. We address their health & safety, and developmental needs by offering an inclusive curriculum. We also support individualized support plans, for children with unique medical and development needs.

Incorporate indoor and outdoor play, as well as active play, rest and quiet time, into the day, and give consideration to the individual needs of the children receiving childcare;

Our commitment is extended to outdoor spaces on a daily basis. The outdoor learning environment provides extended opportunities for physical well-being; from gross motor development, nature exploration and independent or cooperative games. Our infants go out for walks in strollers to visit parks and the toddlers and preschoolers also enjoy walks off-premise. When weather is inclement and unpredictable alternative indoor gross motor activities for the children are provided.

Our children are given age-appropriate rest times, as per Ministry of Ontario standard, with soft music and dim light. For those who wake early or aren’t sleeping, we have quiet programming such as books or puppets. Individual needs are always considered.

Foster the engagement of and ongoing communication with parents about the program and their children;

In our programs, highlights of children are documented in our daily logbooks, on our storyboards throughout our centres, and communicated directly with the parents daily during drop off and pick up. We use the mobile app SeeSaw to update parents about the day, children's needs, incidents, and program plans.

One of our primary goals is to effectively maintain continuous links with families and parents describing play experiences and how the child’s play is linked to learning. At Centretown Parents’ Daycare we value the strengths, contributions, and unique perspectives that families can provide. Our centre sees families as primary caretakers. Including the child’s family in discussion and taking the time to make daily connections with them is critical to the success of an Early Years program. We encourage strong, respectful, and reciprocal relationships and provide opportunities for family involvement.

To involve local community partners and allow those partners to support the children, their families and staff;

Children at the James St. location often take excursion to local parks in the area during the summer and fall. Neighborhood walks and field trips during our full-day and summer programs enrich our children, as do visits from special guests, such as parents for Career visits. As our Preschool, Kindergarten and School Age programs are located in Centennial Public School, relationships with the principal, faculty and teachers are critical. We work closely with Centennial PS in sharing play areas, resources, bulletin boards, etc. Our emergency evacuation plans rely on community partners Bronson Centre and Vesta House. We also benefit from a relationship with the Ottawa Public Library – with visits from a librarian to checking out the Bookmobile. We view our larger community as a valuable resource and we seek out opportunity to share our knowledge and to learn from others within the community.

Support staff in relation to continuous professional learning

All educators are registered with the Ontario College of Early Childhood Educators or have equivalent qualifications. ECEs renew their qualifications yearly, and engage in CPL (Continuous Professional Learning) as part of their certification. Our staff have up to date Police Vulnerable Sector Checks, Standard First Aid and CPR C training, mental health first aid, and attend professional development workshops. Our kitchen staff is up to date in training for food handling and Canada Food Guide practices. Centretown Parents’ Daycare supports educators in their continuous professional learning and growth by recommending workshops, conferences, and online training. These opportunities allow educators to think about their practice /pedagogy and engage in critical reflections and discussions with other team members/community educators. 

Centretown Parents’ Daycare views our educators as reflective practitioners. We encourage self-reflection, discussion, and ongoing collaboration and learning among educators. When we see educators as knowledgeable, reflective, resourceful and rich in experience, we value the experiences and environments they create for children.

Centretown Parents’ Daycare documents and reviews the impact of the strategies on the children and their families.

Centretown Parents’ Daycare understands that pedagogical documentation is a way for our program staff to learn about how children think and learn. Our staff make regular observations of children in the program and use this information to design their future planning. We use pedagogical documentation to study, interpret and visibly inform parents about children’s learning and development.

Our staff are apply renowned child development theories and research-based knowledge within the program. We engage in regular room meetings and staff meetings to reflect on our strategies. The Coordinators check in daily and staff are supported in their planning by the Board of Directors.

Centretown Parents Daycare implements the Ontario Pedagogy Documents, How Does Learning Happen and the Learning Framework, Excerpts from 'ELECT' (Early Learning for Every Child Today) in the program curriculum to ensure children's learning foundations where we focus on children's root skills.