EarlyON Child and Family Centres – King

EarlyON Child and Family Centres – King

EarlyON Child and Family Centres are family-centred establishments that welcome families and children from all upbringings with open arms. These family support centres provide daily programs and informative resources free of charge to support the needs of families and children. EarlyON programs generally foster children from birth to six years old; however, children attending EarlyON with older siblings are welcome. Located at 15 Old King Road, Nobleton, EarlyON King opened its doors to families and children in 2019. What started as a closed, empty area directly attached to the Dr. William Laceby Nobleton Community Centre and Arena, transformed into an EarlyON Child and Family Centre after Social Enterprise for Canada negotiated with the King Township regarding the need for a EarlyON Child and Family Centre based upon local census data and budget reports. 

Naturalistic materials are preferred in place of overstimulating accessories–this is shown throughout EarlyON King’s setup in their allocated space. There is a wide range of furniture and sources of play around the centre, from natural loose parts to colourful bead mazes, to wooden tree stumps for chairs. Muted colours surround the space to provide a calm, natural atmosphere where families and children can relax without overstimulation. EarlyON Child and Family Centres aim for caregivers to be consistent, present, and encourage families to be unplugged from their phones to focus on what is important: their children. Although EarlyON’s encourage play between families and children, EarlyON’s primary values are to build safe and secure connections with the community, specifically caregivers. Whether through daily greetings at the door or remembering the names of caregivers and children, community building is highly esteemed as their work provides substantial support that meets the needs of families and encourages them to come back for the necessary resources. 

A variety of community bulletin boards are posted throughout EarlyON King’s Centre. The “Look What’s Happening” board broadcasts several programs and partnerships as beneficial resources for families to utilize. This includes assistance with kindergarten registration, locating breastfeeding clinics, promoting their program calendars, and countless more resources. EarlyON Child and Family Centres have partnerships with York Region Public Health and various community partners located throughout York Region. These partnerships provide both physical and mental health services to families, including but not limited to optometry, dental hygiene, massage therapy, sleep specialists, prenatal/postnatal development and one-on-one counselling sessions. Furthermore, the “Topic of the Month” board focuses on a specific service families can refer to if needed. This month’s topic was social service workers–the board concisely explains who social workers are, the services they provide, and where/how to contact social service professionals.

EarlyON Child and Family Centres embraces its diverse demographic of families by providing programs in multiple languages and celebrating cultural holidays. Programs are offered in different languages such as Cantonese, Italian, Mandarin, Persian, Punjabi, Spanish, Turkish, Ukrainian, and Urdu. In addition, the diverse staff continue to emphasize community building by advocating for cultural diversity–this is demonstrated in the centre by celebrating different cultural holidays each month. So far, the staff has celebrated Black History Month, Lunar New Year, Nowruz, and Ramadan. EarlyON Child and Family Centres advocate cultural exposure and awareness among families and children by providing books, items, clothing, instruments, visually appealing symbols, and concise facts pertaining to the specific cultural holiday.

Early Learning Specialist Samina joined the EarlyON Team of educators six years ago. Prior to EarlyON, she was with Parenting and Family Literacy Centres (PFLCs), where she would provide similar supportive resources for caregivers regarding children’s development and parenting support. Samina participates in continuous learning by attending various workshops, such as partaking in Early and Infant Mental Health, the Ages and Stages Questionnaire (ASQ), and forest school practitioner courses. Samina currently runs the “Songs, Rhymes, & Stories in Urdu” program that promotes language learning for families and children. She has a strong devotion to finding community partners, mentoring post-secondary students, and developing trusting relationships with families. Samina states that the key to a successful work culture is to treat the centre as if it were a second home and to take care of one another as a family. This means having open communication, trust, and balancing the workload in the centre. 

Parents report being more confident and capable in their parenting skills because of the accessibility to resources and support that EarlyON educators provide. Staff are often reminded of the strong relationships that they build with families when parents return to the EarlyON years later and seek them out. This clearly demonstrates how the EarlyON staff has created a comfortable, safe, and inclusive environment where families and children are provided a space for family bonding, social support, informational resources, and are welcomed with open arms.