Southgate Medallion Tribute

Volume 42 Issue 5

Educator Appreciation Day/40th Anniversary

Saturday, May 21st, 3pm

4540 50 Street Northwest

Edmonton, AB

We are looking forward to seeing all of you and celebrating the day.

RSVP link will be sent out in next few days. Please make sure to RSVP when you get the link.

Get Directions

Ashely Cadger (consultant)

I just want to take this moment to introduce myself, my name is Ashley Cadger. I have been working in the childcare field for 13 years, over these past years in have been worked with toddler, preschool and out of school aged children in daycare settings. I attended CDI college and graduated in 2014. I value social-emotional literacy in the yearly years and scaffolding the children in problem solving. During my time working daycare I have had the chance to work along side GRIT and ASaP to create inclusive environments for children and families. Another on of my core values is fostering relationships with families, educators and children. I’ve been working close with the FLIGHT Early Learning Framework and implementing into my practice and educating others on pedological documentation and learning the language of the Framework. On the weekend you can find me at our lake lot on Lac La Nonne enjoying the weather and spending time with me with my beautiful stepdaughters, fiancé and our dog. I also like to spend my free time at spin class or exploring different places in the mountains.

This opportunity to work with SMFDH is another step to work within the childcare industry to advocate for quality childcare.

Getting ready for Summer

As summer is coming. The weather is getting warmer and you can spend more time outside with children. Here are a few reminders:


  • Remind the parents to get summer gear like hats, water bottles, sunscreen.
  • Check for UV before going outside.
  • Apply sunscreen if the UV is higher than 3.
  • Only use cream sunscreens. No spray sunscreen.

Mother's Day

On behalf of all the staff from the agency, Happy Mother's Day to all the wonderful mothers out there.
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Sister Margaret shared some pictures of an activity she did with children for mother's day. She brought mother's day ornaments from the dollar store and let her children decorate it.
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Coordinator corner

Educator Appreciation Month!

On behalf of all of the agency staff, owners, and directors I would like to express our deepest gratitude for all of the hard work and commitment you put in to providing quality, safe and excellent childcare options for families in Edmonton and the surrounding area. The Agency couldn’t do what it does without you. I hope that you can attend our Educator Appreciation/40th Birthday event on May 21st. After two years of not being able to gather in-person, I know that it will be a lovely opportunity for everyone to reconnect.

Annual Educator Survey

Thank you to all of you who participated in the Annual Educator Survey. The Agency really appreciates you taking the time to complete this and offer comments, suggestions and feedback.

Thank you

Emma - Coordinator

Core Training

Documentation - May 18, 2022

Outdoor and Risky Play - June 15, 2022

Positive communication with young children

A child’s ability to manage stress, feel confident and motivate themselves in later life has a lot to do with their early childhood experiences. As children grow and develop, they begin to form attachments to their primary caregivers. When adults are responsive to the cues of infants, the child begins to develop trust and feel secure with the adult. This bond is enhanced throughout childhood when care is positive and consistent. These early relationships are essential to the ongoing relationships children develop as they move through childhood, adolescence, and adulthood. Positive relationships during childhood enable children to develop appropriate social skills and behaviours and learn the social rules of their culture and community.

Listen to children

Listen with your whole body. When you sense that a child needs to talk, give them your full attention. Face them, make eye contact, kneel to get on the child’s level if necessary – even tilt your head – to show that you are really listening.


Encouraging children to listen

    • Let children finish talking and then respond. This sets a good example of listening for your child.
    • Use language and ideas that children will understand. It can be hard for children to keep paying attention if they don’t understand what you’re talking about.
    • Make any instructions and requests simple and clear to match children’s age and ability.
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Positive, encouraging words help children to feel confident and happy.

  • Notice when they are being good. Praise them for tidying up their messes or taking turns. Praise reinforces good behavior.
  • Thank them for helping you.
  • Let them know you have faith in their abilities. A child who is constantly told to be careful or that they will hurt themselves will eventually lose confidence in their abilities.
  • Allow them plenty of opportunities to do things they enjoy and do well. Feeling competent builds self-esteem.
  • Praise their efforts, not just their results. A child needs to know that it is okay to fail.
  • Try to avoid always correcting a child’s mistakes. Trial and error are part of every child’s life. A child may feel discouraged and hopeless if all their efforts are marked or criticized.
  • Separate the child from their behavior. Disapprove of the activity, not the child. For a child’s positive sense of self, it is better to say ‘drawing on the walls was a naughty thing to do’ rather than ‘you’re a naughty child’. A child needs to know that your love is unconditional.
  • Tell the child what you do want them to do rather than what you don’t. In most cases, it’s simple to turn a negative sentence into a positive one. For example, instead of saying ‘Don’t walk so close to the road’, say ‘Come and walk next to the road’.
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Positive communication is a vital component of meaningful interactions and relationships. When individuals communicate effectively, they are able to be positive members of the social and cultural groups they exist in. Adults caring for children in children’s services need to demonstrate positive and respectful communication towards children, families and other educators. Good working relationships between educators create a harmonious atmosphere that influences the behaviour and communication styles of the children within the service. This leads to a positive environment where children and educators feel valued and respected.


References:

7 Tips for Effective Communication with Your School-aged Child - Child Development and Parenting: Middle Childhood (mentalhelp.net)

Young children and communication - Better Health Channel

Relationships-Guide-Educator-Interactions-and-Relationships-with-Children.pdf (centresupport.com.au)


childrens_learning_center-teacher_bent_down_talking_to_child.jpg (400×238) (naeyc.org)

mother-and-little-son-giving-high-five-picture_gg85979570.jpg (270×194) (gograph.com)

Comments from Parent's survey

The Agency is pleased to inform you that parents are happy and satisfied with the care they are receiving. Well done Educators!

Here are some reminders in response to the feedback received from the parent survey:


  • Communicate with families on a daily basis about the child's day, activities in day home.
  • For infants, sharing the infant form with parents about the child's meal, activities and other daily activities of children.
  • More outdoor time for children.
Educator's Survey Results/comments

Educator's Survey Results/comments

Thank you for taking the time and completing the survey. The comments from the survey are shared below.

Keep continue supporting the educators. - THANK YOU

· l suggest the paper work in in the day homes should be minimize so that we can have time to take good care of the children. thanks. - Paperwork required by the educators is a standard by the government. The agency is working on making it digital and will be sharing it with our educators soon. We will still have to continue to complete the forms required as it is a standard for a day home.

· My current consultant is wonderful and I enjoy working with her. - THANK YOU

· It’s my pleasure to be part of the agency. - THANK YOU

· It is more than 3 years that I have no referral from agency. All the kids that I have just I advertised and no any referral from agency. - As we mention during the home study process that the agency advertises for the agency and not a particular day home. Day home educators are required to self advertise their business. If the agency receives a call for somebody looking in your area, your name is referred if you have a spot for that age group. We do have Facebook page and educators are always welcome to share their advertisement on that page.

· Till that I got all information whatever I am looking. - THANK YOU

· Fee structure needs to be changed. We should charge more for infant. - The agency was looking into changing the fee schedule structure, but now due to the government 3% cap on increase we are not able to do this at this time. In the future when possible the agency will be looking into this.

· I gain knowledge and experience with agency. My consultant is very supportive ❤️. She always help me whenever I want. - THANK YOU

· The Agency is doing an amazing job! - THANK YOU

· None at this time - THANK YOU

· I am proud to be the part of the agency. I suggest that agency can arrange meetings with all the educators, consultants and director at least twice a year. In this way, all the educators gets opportunity to share their opinions on some important issues and also meet other consultants and director. - THANK YOU. As an agency we always organized a get together with educators. Due to Covid it was not possible to get everyone together for last two years. Regarding sharing opinions, educators are always welcome to email their consultant or coordinator if they have feedback regarding any issue related to day home.

· Provider should be entitled to get sick days ; in a business world , common thing that people get sick ; also, fees should be a bit more ! - As you are self employed, the agency cannot have a sick day policy for educators. Educators are able to make a sick day policy for their day home. Please contact your consultant for sick day policy. Agency has a recommended fee schedule. Educators are welcome to have their own fee schedule. With limit in fee increase by the government, we are not able to change our fees at this time.

· Please inform the consultants to respond immediately when we email or leave a voice mail. Sometimes we will be so busy with children that we cannot type everything in email. I feel easy to call n inform. We understand how busy they're but immediate response is more appreciated. Thanks. - Our role as consultants are to do visits or attend a meeting or help parents with registration, or we might be helping your co - educator in dealing with a critical. It is not always possible to be on phone or email at all times as we have different aspects to our job. We have a 24 hour policy to return your emails or calls. Educators can ask to talk to a different consultant if there is an emergency in their day home like a critical incident.

· Very responsive and helpful. - THANK YOU

· agency must work on upgrade online version to get new families for providers to get kids. It isn't working well at all since I started my day home. I feel agency online procedure isn't helping much. Providers need help to get kids by the agency. As we mention during the home study process, the agency advertises for the agency and not a particular day home. Day home educators are required to self advertise for their business. If the agency receives a call for somebody looking in your area, your name is referred if you have a spot for that age group. We do have Facebook page, educators are always welcome to share their advertisement on that page.

· I am happy with my agency & consultant. Each other grow by Understand, Respect & Trust. - THANK YOU

· I am really comfortable with agency . My consultant is very helpful. - THANK YOU

· I have answered `no opinion' where I have not yet experienced that part of being with an agency. My experience has been very good so far! - THANK YOU

· More ideas for learning story, daily age appropriate activities, nutrition snacks. - The Agency has shared these in our newsletters. They are available on our website for our educators. If you need more ideas, you can always consult with your consultant and they will guide you with ideas and resources.

· It' will be safe for me and the kids to use a changing table instead of changing them on the floor - If you have a changing table meeting the legislation requirements, please contact your consultant and you can use the table if you can place and use it in a safe way.

· Am vey much comfortable working with my consultant. She always assist me and clarify my doubts whenever I need a guidance. - THANK YOU

· Thank you so much for being such a great Agency. - THANK YOU

· Agency should arrange more workshop and small get together for all the providers at least twice a year. - The Agency has always and will support get togethers. Due to Covid we have not been able to offer these due to restrictions. We are looking forward this year to offer these.

· Opportunities to become a consultant position those who wish to .2 paid emergency leave per year. - As you are self employed, agency cannot make policies for your day home for sick and emergency leaves. Educators can make their own policies. Please talk to your consultant and ask for options for paid days off. Regarding consultant positions, we do post our job postings, if you are interested you are always welcome to apply when we have an opening.

· If Agency can provide a computer knowledge through a course that would be so beneficial for many educators. - Your consultant should be able to help you with downloading, saving and printing issues. We will look into offering a beginner computer course for our educators in the future.

· I am so glad to work with Southgate Medallion Family Day Home agency with highly professionals and educational and supportive staff. I really appreciate and great thankful to my consultant. - THANK YOU

· Keep providing updates. - THANK YOU

Educator's Survey Results/comments