Educational Resources

Search Resources:
Browse Resource Categories:

Category: Early Childhood

Founded in Culture: Strategies to Promote Early Learning among First Nations Children in Ontario

Source: Best Start

Summary: The purpose of this First Nations early learning report is to:

  • review early learning policy and research that has been done with First Nations children (from birth to age 6) living in Ontario; and
  • identify strategies to support early learning for service providers who work with First Nations parents/caregivers.

The review involved a scan of relevant literature and interviews with key informants. Early learning is important because it forms the foundation for lifelong learning. Taking part in early learning programs has been shown to positively influence school success.

OJIIBIKENS EARLYON PROGRAM

Source: Ojibikens Indigenous Cultural Network

Summary: There are ninety EarlyON centres in Toronto that provide a welcoming drop-in environment. Parents and caregivers and children access services and programming together and can:

•          join fun activities – reading, storytelling, sing-alongs, games and more

•          get advice from professionals trained in early childhood development

•          find out about other family services in the community

•          connect with other families with young children

Ojiibikens means ‘little root.’  Ojiibikens is a land-based EarlyON program for children ages 0-6, and their siblings, parents and caregivers.  Our mobile team provides Indigenous land-based programs in partnership with EarlyON centres and community organizations across Toronto.  We are creating hands-on, outdoor learning environments for children that integrates language, culture, food, and physical activity.  The core of land base education is about families being on and connecting with the land.  Our activities will reclaim and rebuild land-based skills of growing, harvesting to preparing our Indigenous foods and traditional medicines.

Calmer Classrooms: Working with Traumatized Children

Source: Child Safety Commissioner, Australia

Summary: This booklet assists Kindergarten, primary, and secondary teachers, and other school personnel in understanding and working with children and young people whose lives have been affected by trauma. The majority of such children will have come from backgrounds of abuse and neglect, although some of them will have suffered as refugees, or experienced war or dislocation overseas. An even smaller number will have experienced illness, painful medical interventions or one-off traumas such as disasters or accidents. Calmer Classrooms particularly addresses the needs of children who have been traumatized by abuse and neglect. These children may be involved in the child protection and family support systems. Some may not be able to remain in the care of their families and are living in foster care or other forms of state care.

Guidance for Child Care Facilities

Source: Saskatchewan Government – Health

Summary:As of August 4, 2020, all child care services as defined in The Child Care Act, 2014, are limited to a maximum of 25 children per building space. This may mean 25 children per facility or, in the case of larger facilities where area permits, a facility reconfigured to allow a maximum of 25 children in one defined area. These areas must be separate for each group and need to be separated by a barrier (floor to ceiling barriers not necessary) that can prevent children, toys and other items from crossing over. The child-to-adult ratios and usable floor space requirements for the child care areas must align with the Child Care Guidelines for Care and The Child Care Regulations, 2015. 

Groups of children and the staff members assigned to them must stay together throughout the day and cannot mix with other groups. Staff should remain with the same group. Groups must be within in the same room/space at the same time, including pickups and drop-offs, meal times, playtime and outdoor activities.

Children are restricted to attending a single facility to reduce transmission risks. All child care facilities located within special care or personal care homes are subject to all general restrictions and must have private entrances and separate spaces so there are no shared common areas. There must be no interaction between children and residents of the home.

Diverse family characteristics of Aboriginal children aged 0 to 4

Source: Statistics Canada

Summary: Highlights:

  • About 6 in 10 Aboriginal children aged 0 to 4 lived in a family with two parents. This was the case for 53.7% of First Nations, 71.8% of Métis, and 68.8% of Inuit children in this age group.
  • More than one‑third of Aboriginal children aged 0 to 4 lived with a lone parent. This was the case for 38.9% of First Nations, 25.5% of Métis, and 26.5% of Inuit children in this age group.
  • About 1 in 6 Aboriginal children aged 0 to 4 shared a household with at least one grandparent. This was the case for 21.2% of First Nations, 10.5% of Métis, and 22.8% of Inuit children.
  • Aboriginal children accounted for 7.7% of all children aged 0 to 4 and about one‑half of all foster children in this age group.

Diverse Family Characteristics of Aboriginal Children 0-4

Source: Statistics Canada

Highlights:

  • About 6 in 10 Aboriginal children aged 0 to 4 lived in a family with two parents. This was the case for 53.7% of First Nations, 71.8% of Métis and 68.8% of Inuit children in this age group.
  • More than one‑third of Aboriginal children aged 0 to 4 lived with a lone parent. This was the case for 38.9% of First Nations, 25.5% of Métis and 26.5% of Inuit children in this age group.
  • About 1 in 6 Aboriginal children aged 0 to 4 shared a household with at least one grandparent. This was the case for 21.2% of First Nations, 10.5% of Métis and 22.8% of Inuit children.
  • Aboriginal children accounted for 7.7% of all children aged 0 to 4, and about one‑half of all foster children in this age group.

Stepping Stones to School: Aboriginal Head Start to Kindergarten Transition Toolkit

Source: Aboriginal Head Start Association of BC. Editor: Annie Jack

Summary:  The start of kindergarten can be both an exciting and worrisome time for children and families as they step into new worlds, new beginnings. For Aboriginal children and families, the transition to kindergarten can be experienced much differently from their non-Aboriginal counterparts. This is in large part due to the lengthy history of oppression and marginalization that Aboriginal people have experienced in their relationship to formal schooling systems. Yet, early learning programs that respond to the social and historical realities of Aboriginal families offer the potential and promise to connect them with schools in positive ways.

The Aboriginal Head Start Association of British Columbia, representing 12 Aboriginal Head Start (AHS) sites in urban and northern communities in BC, is committed to supporting the early childhood development of Aboriginal children. The preschool program instills pride in their Aboriginal heritage and focuses on children 3 to 5 years of age, with the intent of bringing them to the school readiness stage in order to ensure an easy transition in to kindergarten. Family involvement is a major factor contributing to the success of the program. Aboriginal Head Start represents one of the important ‘stepping stones’ that will lead families on their continuing journey with learning.

Indigenous Early Learning and Child Care Framework

Source: Employment and Social Development Canada

Summary: Children hold a sacred place in the cultures of Indigenous Peoples. With that comes a sacred responsibility to care for them. High-quality, culturally-specific and well-supported early learning and child care (ELCC) programs, services and supports that are specifically designed for and with Indigenous families and communities will make a genuine difference in the early experiences of children. This, in turn, will support children’s long-term development and life outcomes. High-quality Indigenous ELCC programming empowers young children with a strong sense of identity. It provides educational opportunities and school readiness and contributes to their overall health and wellness from early years into adulthood.

ELCC programs can holistically support parents and families to participate in their cultures and languages. Programs provide access to information and resources, connections to community, alignment to unique health, education and social needs, and child care for children while parents participate in traditional lifestyles, work, training, education and other facets of their lives. For the purposes of this Framework, Indigenous ELCC includes a wide range of programs and activities designed to support children aged 0 to 6 in their development, learning and cultural identity. Indigenous ELCC programs and activities aim to support culturally-based language, emotional, intellectual, spiritual and physical development in the home, in a preschool or nursery school, or in a home child care or daycare setting.

Early Childhood and Education Services for Indigenous Students Prior to Entering School

Source: Resource Sheet No. 7 for the Closing the Gap Clearinghouse, Margaret Sims,
May 2011, Australian Government, Health and Welfare and Family Studies

Summary: The National Partnership Agreement for Indigenous Early Childhood Development (COAG 2008a) aims to halve the gap in mortality rates for Indigenous children under five within a decade, halve the gap for Indigenous students in reading, writing and numeracy within a decade, and ensure all Indigenous 4-year-olds have access to quality early childhood education within five years, including in remote areas.

Currently 75% of Indigenous children between 3.5 and 4.5 years of age do not attend any formal early childhood service (FaHCSIA 2009). Of those who do, 34% are attending a community-based (i.e. non-school) program, 30% a kindergarten or pre-first year of school program in a school setting or a preschool, 21% a child care program and 2% family day care. Of the infant cohort, 29% had attended a playgroup or similar group in the month prior to data collection. Alternative care was provided for the children by the child’s other parent (51%), grandparents (49%), other relatives (30%) and a parent living elsewhere (6%). In order to achieve these targets it is important to understand that early childhood education cannot be separated from child, family and community health and wellbeing. In acting on this understanding, Indigenous early childhood programs in Australia are sometimes interpreted as ‘leading the way’ in current attempts to reinterpret early childhood education as a strategy to address social inclusion (Sims et al. 2008). Internationally, such a perspective is often positioned as quality early intervention or, more recently, integrated service delivery (Azzi-Lessing 2010; Katz & Redmond 2009; Melhuish et al. 2010) which is known to be particularly effective for addressing disadvantage.

Sign up to receive monthly PPW Educational Resource outreach: