Our Approach
Child Care >
Alex House’s Reggio Emilia inspired approach.
Our mission for the children’s centre.
Alex House provides opportunities for people to gather, grow and build a spirit of community. A big part of that is our commitment to providing child care programs where children are valued for their wonder and curiosity, their unique perspectives, ability to play, and capacity for meaningful work.
Alex House Children's Centres aspire to create an environment where children are nurtured, valued and seen as collaborators in their learning. In this process, we seek to foster a sense of belonging for all of our children and educators by listening to each other with all of our senses as we move along our learning journey.
We want to help children learn by being children. To support this, our highly-qualified educators provide a Reggio Emilia-inspired approach to learning alongside the BC Early Learning Framework. We couple these principles so that children can appreciate their learning journeys, understand the value of play, their vision, knowledge, skills, and develop a strong commitment to families.
How we view each stage of growth in our programs.
Infant and toddler
We view the children to be capable, competent, curious explorers who are eager to get to know the world around them.
Multi-age
This program is a small family-like setting where children are viewed as a small close-knit community where they lead, collaborate and advocate for their learning.
3 to 5 & pre-k
The children are viewed as a community where they take one step further into their learning journey. Reflecting their ability to motivate, they are building the capacity to deepen connections and relationships with the world around them.
School-age
The children are a diverse group of individuals that are starting to form their own unique identities and build a foundational understanding of their social responsibility. They are viewed as active and collaborative citizens of the community.
The role of the educator.
Alex House has a diverse group of educators who create an inclusive and unbiased space for children. We see ourselves as learning partners that seek to create a dialogue and be active listeners, researchers and reflective thinkers. We want to create a space that supports children as they discover who they are, and get to know their social responsibility through their surroundings and beyond.
The environment as the third teacher.
We value the environment as a “third teacher”, where our programs allow time and space for children to learn. We believe in materials that deepen relationships and connect inclusion, culture and diversity. We encourage the many different opportunities for the environment to interact and speak with us.
The role of the community.
Families at Alex House are seen as the heart of children’s learning. We value the partnerships that can be fostered between families, educators and the community. We honour and respect the First Peoples, and their knowledge an stewardship of the land.
“Let us find a way to belong to this time and place together. Our future, and the well-being of all our children rests with the kind of relationships we build today.”