November 9, 2011
CHILD CARE MENTORING PROJECT SHOWS ADMINISTRATION & EDUCATOR BEHAVIOUR LINKED TO PROGRAM QUALITY
In recognition of the upcoming National Child Day (November 20, 2011), the Early Childhood Community Development Centre (ECCDC) is releasing data from its Mentoring Pairs for Child Care (MPCC) project.
Building on strong evidence that a supervisor with effective administration and leadership skills is crucial for developing and sustaining an early learning and care program that enhances children’s development, the project aimed to enhance the quality of Ontario’s child care centres through increasing supervisors’ application of the Child Care Human Resources Sector Council’s Occupational Standards for Child Care Administrators(CCHRSC, 2006). While the task was to learn about and better implement these administrative standards at their centres, a mentoring process that included individual, pair and group learning, sharing, reflection, assessment, planning and reporting was also utilized.
(full document)
October 11, 2011
PREPARING 21st CENTURY CHILDREN FOR A GLOBAL WORLD: A COMMUNITY COLLABORATIVE WORKSHOP ON PLAYFUL LEARNING
Is your child prepared to succeed in the conceptual age? Early Childhood Educators, Kindergarten Teachers, Full‐Day Early Learning‐Kindergarten Teams, Family Support Services Staff, parents, and others involved in the education and care of young children are invited to attend a special community collaborative workshop at 6:30 pm on Thursday October 20 at the Holiday Inn Suites St. Catharines Conference Centre(formerly Quality Parkway) 325 Ontario Street, St. Catharines Ontario. This professional learning opportunity is being hosted by the District School Board of Niagara (DSBN), Niagara Catholic District School Board (NCDSB) and the Early Childhood Community Development Centre (ECCDC).
(full document)
January 18, 2010
SPEAKER WILL URGE PARENTS AND EDUCATORS TO TEAM UP FOR CHILDREN’S EARLY LEARNING
St. Catharines: On Thursday, January 21 at 6:00 p.m., the Early Childhood Community Development Centre (ECCDC) in partnership with the District School Board of Niagara and the Niagara District Catholic School Board will be hosting a free workshop for parents, educators and community leaders. This special, interactive event will feature a presentation by Dr. Debbie Pushor, Associate Professor of Education from the University of Saskatchewan and outspoken advocate for increasing parental engagement and leadership in children’s education. It will take place at the Quality Parkway Hotel & Convention Centre on Ontario Street in St. Catharines. (full document)
December 11, 2009
NEW KIWANIS PROJECT WILL HELP CHILD CARE CENTRES BOOST CHILDREN’S MATH SKILLS
St. Catharines: The Early Childhood Community Development Centre (ECCDC) and the Kiwanis Clubs of Niagara are pleased to announce the launch of a new project designed to enhance children’s numeracy skills. The project, which is funded by the Trillium Foundation, will provide 150 of Niagara’s licensed child care programs with classroom resources related to math and numeracy skills instruction. Additionally, over 1000 Early Childhood Educators will be specially trained to use the resources. Some 6,000 children under the age of five will benefit. (full document)
October 27, 2009
ECCDC APPLAUDS NEW PROVINCIAL POLICY ON FULL-DAY LEARNING FOR YOUNG CHILDREN
St. Catharines: The Early Childhood Community Development Centre (ECCDC) is pleased to welcome the Honourable Laurel Broten as the new Minister of Children and Youth Services and looks forward to working with other Niagara stakeholders to implement the new Provincial child care policies announced earlier today.
“The announcement is a first step toward implementation of the broadly supported recommendations made last spring in a report by the Premier's early learning advisor Dr. Charles Pascal,” says Tammy McCormick Ferguson, the ECCDC’s Executive Director. “Dr. Pascal’s recommendations amount to transformational
change for a comprehensive publicly funded early learning system in Ontario." (full document)