Kemptville Area Family Resource Centre (KAFRC)

Our goal is to promote the health, safety, nutrition and well-being of children by providing a clean and safe environment. We strive to meet and exceed all health and safety requirements of the Ministry of Education and the Leeds and Grenville Health Unit. Proper nutrition is critical to overall development of young children. Healthy meals and snacks are planned in accordance to the Canadian Food Guide, and encourage proper nutrition and eating habits. Our centre’s Brown Bag Policy provides nutrition guidelines for parents in our Kindergarten and School Age Program. Educators will familiarize themselves with all information concerning any medical conditions, exceptionalities, allergies, food restrictions, medication requirements, and parental preferences in respect to diet, exercise and rest time.

We will provide positive and responsive care that is clear, consistent, and developmentally appropriate. By seeing the child as a unique individual, and establishing a supportive and trusting relationship between the child/parent/daycare provider we will develop a strong foundation for the child’s future social, emotional, and cognitive well-being. We understand that relationships of trusts are the basis for learning and co-operation.

We will model and guide positive behaviour and encourage children to take responsibility for their own behaviour. By creating a caring and respectful environment we will foster an atmosphere where everyone feels a part of the group and we will encourage children to take responsibility for not just the well-being of others but also themselves.

Our Educators will foster the children’s exploration, play and inquiry by viewing children as being competent, capable, curious and rich in potential. The How Does Learning Happen? and OELF documents will be used as foundation in all of our programs. Our programs create a culture of investigative and active learning. It is our aim to create, support and encourage questions, curiosity and the desire to explore through play based learning. We will offer interesting and engaging materials and resources that will provide the stimulus for children’s questions, desire to create and play thereby enhancing their overall learning experience

Our physical environment and daily program will be set up to include adult-supported and child-initiated learning. Children will have access to a wide range of interesting open-ended resources to explore and investigate imaginatively, while also developing an emotional environment where children feel safe to share their thoughts and ideas and try new things. As educators we will observe and document children’s learning and use this information to continue to plan and offer our children opportunities and experiences to help deepen their understanding of the world in which they live.

In order to support each child’s learning and development, our Educators will plan for and create positive learning environments and experiences through listening, observation, documentation, and discussion with families, to understand children as unique individuals.

Our programs will provide age-appropriate, play-based learning with a variety of inviting equipment and materials. We will offer sufficient space for active play and as well as a cozy space set aside for individual and quiet play. We will incorporate outdoor play which offers physical, cognitive and social development. Rest and quiet time will vary throughout our programs and will be based on the needs of the child and parental direction.

We offer an open-door philosophy of communication between families and ourselves. We know that proper two-way communication is necessary for children to succeed. It is essential that a variety of strategies be implemented in order for parents to feel included in the process of their child’s day to day learning. Using daily communication books, newsletters, social media and effective verbal communication are some of the ways in which we will foster continued communication.

It is our intent to provide a support network of people that can share information and work together with our children and families. By having support from educators, families can feel comfortable leaving their children with us knowing we have the child’s best interest. Using our local community services and partnering with them will allow both educators and families to feel understood and supported by those around them. We view the community as a valuable resource and our educators plan learning opportunities to engage the community in our programs. We seek out opportunities to share our knowledge and learn from others in the community.

We fully support our educators in their efforts to develop and expand their skills, knowledge and practice which are essential to the profession. These professional learning development opportunities are designed to enhance professional competency and enhance growth and leadership. We will provide ongoing opportunities for educators to engage in critical reflection and discussion with others about pedagogy and practice, to support continuous professional learning.

Our Educators will build a climate of trust, honesty and respect at KAFRC, working collaboratively in order to provide a safe, secure, healthy and inviting environment for all children and their families, building and maintaining healthy professional relationships that encourage growth and offering support and mentorship.