Wise Owl Day Care

ABOUT US

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Who We Are

Wise Owl is a licensed child care centre, serving Pembroke and Renfrew County since 1981. We believe children are competent, capable, curious and rich in potential. We respect their need to learn, we support their interests, and we provide opportunities for children to answer their own questions. Our program is a place where children thrive and develop a healthy understanding of themselves and their place in the world. 

The daycare operates with a volunteer Board of Directors made up of parents and community members. We are licensed annually by the Ministry. 

Wise Owl is a non-profit centre and registered charity.

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Mission Statement

At Wise Owl, it is our mission to:

  • Provide child care, as an essential service, to the families of Pembroke and surrounding area.
  • Create a place where children thrive in a nurturing environment, where they are respected and acknowledged for their rich potential.
  • Provide a place where families trust us and are comfortable to leave their children with the knowledge that they are being cared for and supported in their learning and development.
  • Be a place where educators desire to work, and have a work environment where they are respected and encouraged to develop their knowledge and skills.

Vision Statement

At Wise Owl, it is our vision:

  • To provide childcare equally to all children. Where the family’s financial position is not a factor in being able to access quality care for their children.
  • To offer a workplace where staff are respected as professionals and compensated at a level that expresses that.  To be a centre where people strive to work and are able to sustain a quality of life that not only includes fair compensation, but provides benefits for their health and dental needs and a pension plan that provides future security. Where their well being is provided for with fair health leave and vacation time and a continually progressive work culture.
  • To be a centre where our belief and priorities are constantly evaluated to ensure that we are providing nutrition, environments and programs that are based on current information.
  • Where our professional advocacy is heard and valued at all levels of government. A centre that is fully funded and accepted as an essential service for all our future citizens.

Our Staff

Our educators are professionals and are registered (RECE) with the College of Early Childhood Educators (ECE) of Ontario, or alternatively have been approved by the Ministry of Education. It is a requirement of the College of ECE that educators participate in Continuous Professional Learning. At Wise Owl, we encourage our educators to become life-long learners and staff are encouraged to attend workshops or conferences when appropriate.

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The Natural Environment

Providing opportunities to care for and interact with the natural world can be a valuable learning experience and can stimulate children’s interest, curiosity and appreciation of nature. At Wise Owl, children will have the opportunity to observe changes in plants and animals, and learn the responsibility of feeding, watering and caring for living things.

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Outdoor play will provide time and space for children to:

  • Have their efforts supported to take reasonable risks, test their limits and gain increasing competence and a sense of mastery through active play and social interactions, and
  • Experience environments that spark curiosity, invite investigation, and provide challenges that are responsive to individual capabilities to help children extend the boundaries of their learning.

Our Program Statement

learning about how water worksWe view children as competent, capable, curious and rich in potential. We respect their need to learn by engaging in experiences of their own discovery. We will support their interests and provide opportunities for children to answer their own questions and follow the direction of their own thoughts. Our program will be a place where children thrive and develop a healthy understanding of themselves and their place in the world. Our educators understand the importance of relationship and the natural development of children through their daily play experiences, and where they use their observation of children’s play to guide inclusive programming and pedagogy.

We are committed to the health and well-being of children and their innate need to connect to the natural world. We recognize the value of and will model a healthy lifestyle. We will offer choices and provide opportunities that support health and well-being.

We respect all of the environments – the children’s space, the adult spaces and the community.

Educators will use their experience to thoughtfully design and maintain the environment to provide provocation for children’s engagement, support children’s individualized plans, and provide opportunity for children to develop a sense of self in relation to their world.

Our priority is relationships and developing healthy attachments with children and their families to ensure that they feel a sense of belonging and safety.

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It is our goal to be a centre that is respected and trusted by families in the community. We will use a form of expression that respects the educator, the family and the children while ensuring authentic communication.

We will provide and share pedagogical documentation of children’s experiences to connect families to their discoveries and experiences.

We will support children’s need for expression by being present with them and giving them time and space to share what is meaningful to them. We will be there to help them through emotional times and challenging learning experiences that shape who they are and promote self-regulation.

We strive to remain at the forefront of early childhood education and to continue learning and changing as new information and insights become available. To be a place where educated and passionate professional choose to work and learn and where employees are motivated to reach for the highest standards. To reflect and discuss with each other and to fearlessly change as we learn and develop as professionals.

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Check out our recent announcements to learn more about what's going on at the centre

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