Our Programs

Our Child Care Centre offers four group childcare programs: Two Infant/Toddler programs, and two School-Age programs

Infant/Toddler

Up to 36 months 

Our Infant and Toddler Program focuses on providing warm, responsive child care, supported by a primary caregiver role. One infant/toddler program has a group size of eight children and a maximum educator-child ratio of 1:4  The second program has a group size of 12 children and a maximum educator-toddler ratio of 1:4.

The programs offer flexible daily schedules, experiences and materials to support the rapid and extensive developmental changes usually experienced by children in their first three years. We accommodate children’s sleep and food needs as required, and provide environments that support language, cognitive, motor and especially social skill development. Each day includes choice-filled indoor and outdoor play times and small group experiences, punctuated by routines such as snack time, nap time and diaper time, and opportunities for language and music activities. Parents provide main meals and one snack.

School Age

3 – 5 years  

We have two full-day, 3-5 age group child care programs. One program has a group size of 25 and a maximum educator-child ratio of 1:8. The second program has eight children with a maximum educator-child ratio of 1:8. 

The British Columbia Early Learning Framework informs the curriculum of all UBC Okanagan Child Care programs, including the 3-5 centres. That framework emphasizes the importance of interpersonal relationships, flexible dynamic environments and play for children’s learning. It also identifies four key interrelated areas of early learning: well-being and belonging, exploration and creativity, languages and literacies and social responsibility and diversity. Curricular choices made by early childhood educators reflect the learning goals identified within these four areas. 

Our programs foster learning by emphasizing opportunities for negotiation with others, problem-solving, exploring curiosities, engaging with materials, and expressing creativity.   

Our Infant and Toddler programs follow a primary care giving model. When your child enrolls, they will have a primary caregiver who will be the one to sit with the child during mealtimes, change their diaper, assist with toileting (when the time comes), and communicate daily with the parents. Although each Educator has their own primary care group, they all work together to provide quality care and build relationships with all of the children in the program. 

Each program follows a similar daily schedule which is posted in your child’s classroom. Following a schedule helps provide routine and predictability for children. We use these schedules as a guide for our days, but also understand there is often opportunity found in spontaneity or slight deviation from the norm at times. 

Our programs’ objective is to nurture the children’s desire to learn through exploration, and to promote their development and social, moral and intellectual autonomy. Messy play is a regular part of our programming, which is balanced between structured (Educator-led) and unstructured (free play) activities. Our programming promotes the development of each child in a holistic manner, taking into account each child’s personality, developmental stage, age, learning style, personal experiences, family dynamics, and culture or religion. Our programs incorporate a variety of teaching and guiding strategies, opportunities for exploration, and tools to encourage and reinforce Social, Physical, Intellectual, Cognitive and Emotional development. We acknowledge and respect that each child develops at their own rate, and agree that it is best that opportunities for development to occur naturally. 

We believe in the importance of outdoor play all year long. It helps increase children’s imagination, encourages them to explore and cooperate with friends, and boosts motor development. Our educators encourage outdoor play daily, even during rainy and snowy months, and parents are asked to send their children in weather-appropriate clothing throughout the year.

During the summer months, children spend a considerable amount of time outdoors. Morning and afternoon snacks are often eaten outdoors, and waterplay and messy play are daily occurrences. Educators take the children on walks on the trails behind the childcare centre, or on campus walks. Sunscreen is applied as needed and children are encouraged to wear a hat. Educators monitor the UV and Air Quality Health Index regularly to ensure that adequate sunscreen is applied, and limit outdoor time when the AQHI advises. 

The centre provides a morning snack. Parents are responsible for providing a reusable water bottle (to be left at the centre), and sending a balanced lunch and an afternoon snack daily. Warm meals can be re-heated in our microwave.  

Our educators follow the “Division of Responsibility” model where the caregiver is responsible for what, where, when (how often) and the child decides how much and whether or not they choose to eat.