FAQ - Common Questions

What kind of services are included with this investment in my child's education in comparison to other programs?
Our program is unique, just like each child enrolled.  We realize that all children learn differently and explicitly teach a variety of academic skills: pre-literacy, numeracy, and science.    We offer a 1:5 ratio with a varied compliment of professional staff (SLP, OT, Certified Teachers) that work together as an interdisciplinary team creating individualized learning plans, working in small groups, with 'in the moment' training.  Our class sizes are a maximum of 20 and we use 'dynamic' assessment tracking progress by portfolio and create an electronic video/photo documentation of your child's learning.  We cater to all learning styles and differentiate our instruction to the developmental stage your child is currently working at.  Our site is a newly renovated 3700 square foot space allowing for a variety of activities to take place at once.
 
What is an Individual Learning Plan?  
An ILP is a specific program/strategy of education/learning for children receiving PUF funding that takes into consideration your child's strengths and weaknesses and is based on the premise that all needs of individual students are different and, therefore, should be differently addressed.  Your child's ILP will incorporate long-term and short-term goals that synthesize with the larger educational framework giving credence to your child's aspirations, artistic, social, and personal learning preferences.
 
Will attending your Centre better prepare my child for school?  
Yes.  That is our primary goal.  Having the experience of preschool and junior kindergarten, your child will be better prepared and benefit from the exposure of literacy/numeracy/socialization/communication increasing their self-worth and esteem.  That we explicitly teach.  Staff works in conjunction toward creating curriculum to meet the interests and needs of your child's ability/potential.  Therefore, a child at any level will continue to learn and grow from that starting point.
 
What is the difference between a Certified Teacher and a play/preschool Teacher?
Our Certified Teachers have completed a four-year degree in Elementary Education from the University of Alberta and are registered with Alberta Education in addition to having Early Childhood Level 3, while a play/preschool teacher is not required to hold certification to teach therefore, may or may not have a secondary education in elementary or early childhood.
 
What is a Speech Language Pathologist (SLP)?  
Language is an excellent predictor of future school progress in a young child.  A Speech-Language Pathologist (SLP) is a professional who is trained to manage communication and is concerned with both non-verbal and verbal skills to include:
 
                  Understanding and using language - using words, sentences and telling stories
                  Social skills and communication
                  Clarity of speech, including the ability to produce and combine the speech sounds of the child's language
                  Correct use of the voice
                  Alternative or augmentative ways of communicating, such as sign language or picture symbols
                  Fluency
                  Pre-literacy skills
                  Feeding difficulties in young children which involve the ability to chew and swallow.
 
What is an Occupational Therapist (OT)?
Occupational therapists evaluate children’s abilities, modify classroom equipment, and help children participate as fully as possible in school programs and activities. A therapist may work with children individually and/or lead small groups in the classroom. Specifically, this may include facilitating the use of the hands, promoting skills for listening and following directions, fostering social skills or teaching dressing and grooming skills.
 
OT's have one guiding principle of maintaining or increasing skills and/or adapting environments to meet the unique needs of an individual so they may become as independent, functional, emotionally and physically free, and developmentally on target as they are capable of. Also, an Occupational Therapist has a critical role in helping/treating children with sensory processing difficulties and the developmental and "behavioural" issues that accompany some children. Once we correctly identify these deficits, the OT then has a unique role in their learning.
 
Do I need to bring a snack for my child?
No, nutritious snacks are provided each school day.
 
Do parents have to volunteer?  

No.  We do not count parent volunteers as "staff" in our Centre.   We will have an occasional event where parents are welcome to participate and this will be posted in the Centre as a sign-up sheet.