About Us
Shoberry's Daycare Centre was originally founded in 1998; Shoberry's 2 Daycare Centre has been in operation at its current location since 2006. Shoberry's facility provides care for infants, toddlers, preschoolers, kindergartens, and school age children to the age of 12.
At Shoberry's Daycare Centre, we believe deeply in the value of inquiry play. During inquiry play, children use their senses to discover and manipulate the things in their environment. They interact with other children and adults. They imitate and experiment with roles and means of expression. Through the exploration of their environment, children begin to form the concepts on which all future learning will be based.
Shoberry's Daycare Centre strives to provide a stimulating and nurturing inclusive environment that challenges and fosters a capable child's curiosity of the world and potential for learning by engaging him/her through child-directed activities. The program focuses on both the competent child and the family, recognizing the value, worth and dignity of each individual. Safe and stimulating environments are crucial, enhancing a child's full development. Our centre provides a combination of a stimulating and nurturing environment that focuses on opportunities for learning through a variety of hands-on, play based inquiry experiences.
The Centre is an integral part of the school and community. The program focuses on both the child and the family, recognizing the value, worth and dignity of each individual. It is our intention to provide quality care for the children through the use of trained, qualified staff who provide a warm and stimulating environment geared to each child's own interests, abilities and needs.
The children in the program are encouraged to initiate their own activities as dictated by their personal needs and pace. During these self-chosen activities, children draw ideas from their own interests and imaginations. The children have the opportunity to improve their problem-solving skills, as well as gain a sense of self-responsibility as a result of having a wide variety of choice in their activities. Throughout this process, their self-confidence will increase and flourish. In addition, our Early Childhood Educators are trained and will follow "How Does Learning Happen?" guidelines and principles when facilitating and expanding upon the individual child's interests. By providing open-ended materials, activities, and creating an environment that is appropriate for the child's developmental needs. These dimensions of the learning environment ensure the growth of each child through belonging, well-being, engagement and expression.
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In the spirit of co-operation on which the Centre is based, families and teachers work together as responsible role models reflecting warmth, consideration, and respectfulness. The community between home and child care helps to ensure an atmosphere of acceptance and care. Working together, we can create an environment in which the children not only learn, but also develop a love of learning. It is our aim to provide an atmosphere in which children feel free, safe and comfortable to follow their urges to explore, discover, learn and thrive.
At Shoberry's, we encourage the children to learn to be responsible for their own behaviour. When appropriate, we expect them to solve their own problems, with the assurance that there is an adult present for support if it is needed. There is immediate adult intervention if destructive behaviour is exhibited by any child against self, another child or equipment.
We practice positive child guidance strategies. We believe, however, that it is impossible to create a warm and secure atmosphere if the environment is punitive. We place the emphasis on understanding the individual child and the reasons for the inappropriate behaviour. It is therefore our responsibility to locate the source of that inappropriate behaviour, understand it, and help to change it.
The most effective means of producing more appropriate behaviour is through modeling, explanations, redirection, and presenting alternatives. Our focus is to bring the children to a level at which they understand their own individual needs and are able to express emotions and direct themselves appropriately. Shoberry's Daycare Centre provides an anti-bias approach in program development that promotes equal respect and acceptance for all. Differences are GOOD; they exist and can be enriching. As children are exposed to diversity in all programming areas it teaches the acceptance of these differences. As a result, children grow to be more tolerant. Our staff is trained to work closely with families to provide cultural consistency in harmony with the home. This promotes an atmosphere that encourages openness to the perspectives of others.
Shoberry's Daycare Centre program is open to all children. We will continue to train and support all staff consulting the expertise from outside agencies such as Early Intervention Services, York Hills, and Mackenzie Health to provide programs based on the needs of the child and the family. It is our intention to work closely with families to provide support based on a family's unique needs and expectations. We are willing to make changes to the program and/or space to accommodate the physical needs of a child with special needs.
It is the policy of Shoberry's to use behaviour management techniques that ensure the developmental growth and safety of all children. The aim of behaviour management is used to contribute to the mental, physical and emotional well-being of the child. A developmental program of good quality that meets the needs of each child should by and large eliminate unwelcome behaviour.
Shoberry's Daycare Centre
At Shoberry's Daycare Centre our goals and approaches are to:
- promote the health, safety, nutrition and well-being of the children by adhering to the Canada Food Guide;
- support positive and responsive interactions among the children, parents, families and staff by establishing and maintaining meaningful relationship
- encourage the children to interact and communicate in a positive way and support their ability to self-regulate by modeling positive communication through role modeling;
- foster the child's exploration, play and inquiry by providing a balance of indoor and outdoor time throughout the day for the children;
- provide child-initiated and adult-supported experiences by providing a variety of materials for the children to explore;
- plan for and create positive learning environments and experiences in which each child's learning and development will be supported by following the children's direction in an inclusive environment;
- incorporate indoor programming and outdoor active play, including a two hour rest time, while giving consideration to the individual needs of the children receiving care at the same time maintaining a routine that supports both individual and group needs;
- establish and facilitate ongoing and open communication with parents and families using a variety of methods (i.e. verbal, email, newsletters, learning stories, etc.) about the program and their children by engaging in meaningful relationships with families;
- involve local community partners (i.e. emergency service providers, and locally accessible/public services) with our program and promote/contribute to community events, by establishing connections with community partners and children, families and staff by being involved and encouraging participation;
- support staff, families and others who interact with the children at the child care premises in relation to continuous professional learning, knowledge of "How Does Learning Happen?" principles and guidelines and centre policies and procedures, by having the supervisor trained and made available; and
- document and review the impact of the strategies set out above by implementing a variety of methods of open communication and professional documentation available for children, families and staff.
Permitted Methods of Discipline
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1.
RESOLVE/REASON
In a controlled voice, explain in simple language the inappropriateness of the behaviour displayed.
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2.
REDIRECT
If the behaviour continues, staff shall redirect the child to an alternate activity.
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3.
REMOVE
If the behavior continues, the child shall be removed from the situation (to another activity) for a limited supervised period. As soon as the child is ready to return, he/she will rejoin his/her group.
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3.
NATURAL CONSEQUENCES
Follow through with natural consequences; e.g. if he/she continually throws sand, he/she will not play in the sand box.
At Shoberry's We Do Not
- Permit corporal punishment of a child by an employee of the operator.
- Permit deliberate harsh or degrading measures to be used on a child that humiliate a child or undermine the child's self-respect.
- Permit deprivation of a child of basic needs including food, shelter, clothing or bedding.
- Lock or permit to be locked for the purpose of confining a child the exits of the Day Nursery
- Use a locked or lockable room or structure to confine a child who was withdrawn from other children.
- Permit the use of physical restraint as defined as "using a holding technique to restrict a child's ability to move freely".
Failure to comply with any of the above is cause for dismissal of an employee.
All Shoberry's Daycare Centres staff, students and volunteers review the program statement prior to interacting with the children, and at any time the program statement has been modified. Placement Students and volunteers are not permitted to be having direct unsupervised access with the children (ie. When the child is alone with an adult). Placement and Volunteer students are not counted in staffing ratios. The statement is also reviewed annually, during staff evaluations.
The Supervisor will ensure that the approaches set out in the statement are implemented in the daily operations of the program.
Testimonials
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Your hard work and dedication is what makes you ladies such an amazing team. Thank you for ALL you do for the children and families you work with.
Love Kristin
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Just wanted to express our gratitude for all the work and teaching you do. Over the past few months we have seen such incredible development in John. Sure some of it is age and what we do with him at home, but you have and continues to have a large role in his learning. His communication, life skills, creativity and cognitive skills have really flourished and we remain so impressed by all of you. We are so happy we chose Shoberry's and John ended up with such a wonderful group of loving, dedicated and talented teachers. Some people see day care as exactly that - care - but you have shown us that it is so much more than that. I feel that because of you, John will be off to a great start and well prepared for JK. Thank you for all your awesomeness!
Leanna & Erron