Our Curriculum Model
PCH believes that children learn best through play and inquiry that is directly rooted in their interests and daily life experiences. Educators develop daily learning opportunities based on their deep understanding of child development and the observed strengths, needs and interests of the children in their programs. PCH uses the Continuum of Development within Early Learning for Every Child Today (ELECT) and How Does Learning Happen pedagogy to guide their curriculum. Our responsive approach to programming sparks children’s natural inquisitiveness and desire to learn. The environment is also adapted to meet the individual needs of the children. Our educators ensure we support the whole child by curriculum planning for all developmental domains. We respect that children have their own way of learning, and take this into consideration when planning. Our educators meet the children where they are, modifying their teaching styles as needed. Educators are highly trained to observe, acknowledge and identify each child’s strengths and needs, and adapt their program curriculum planning and learning materials accordingly.
To support communication with families, educators at PCH use an app called Himama. This app enables the team to make profiles for each child, allowing educators to share children's learning, skill development, strengths and needs with families. Families can be updated through email, and notifications via the HiMama website and mobile app.
PCH also provides additional program enrichment on a weekly basis. Our current program enrichment includes music education with Ashley Braga.
Ashley Braga offers unique workshops for toddlers to senior kindergarten children with the influences of ORFF, Dalcroze and Kodaly. Each music lesson is organized by age and includes singing/movement games, storytelling, instrument exploration and a listening component. For the school age children Ashley fosters the exploration of sounds and allows children the freedom to create their own music with their voice, body and carefully chosen instruments. Children will learn basic music concepts such as duration, tempo, meter, timbre and dynamics all in a fun and playful manner.
Past program enrichment included mindfulness with K.J. and interactive storytelling with Cheryl the Storyteller.
K.J. visited the programs to teach children about the brain and how we can choose to react to situations. Children also engaged in yoga and mindful movements. K.J. also coached the educators, giving them the necessary tools to support the children with self regulation. K.J is currently on maternity leave, but we hope to have her back in the future!
Cheryl Thornton is an experienced storyteller, educator and entrepreneur. Her unique interactive storytelling presentations have been featured in hundreds of Ontario schools for over 20 years. She is co-developer of Storyvalues Interactive, the popular online resource used by over 1,000,000 educators, students and families in Canada, USA and Australia. In 2016 Cheryl co-founded KapowKidz, developing original story and song based content for use in China. Cheryl’s professional experiences have demonstrated how classic myths and fables resonate deeply with children and adults alike, sparking the imagination, igniting the intellect and conveying important information about the positive values we all have in common.