Earlier in March, we opened a newly expanded program at St. Augustine Elementary School in Dundas. This expansion allowed us to combine our before-and-after school program with our toddler and preschool programs, making it easier for families to access our services. All told, the program will have 15 toddler spots and 48 preschool spots.

St. Augustine’s is situated in the picturesque heart of Dundas, just a short walk from the Driving Park and fields of green space to explore. There are other reasons to be excited about the new program space, too: the classrooms are completely ours and were designed to better help our Early Childhood Educators provide excellent care. The program space includes a kitchen with new appliances, a laundry room, designated storage space, and even a staff room for our hard-working ECEs!

The space is also designed to be accessible for all, and features ramps by our entrances and exits, accessible washrooms, and child-sized toilets and sinks.

The classrooms themselves are bright and open, with lots of natural light. Having large windows and glass doors not only mean a brighter space: they also allow the children to see each other as they arrive at and leave the program.

The transition seems to be a hit with the children, too. Children are going home excited to talk about their new classroom and toys. In an age where transition from home life to child care can be difficult, having a space that children are excited to go back to and explore does wonders to ease the transition and facilitate learning.

Overall, we could not be happier with our new space, and more excited to continue to build relationships with St. Augustine Elementary School, as well as the families of Dundas. Please keep your eyes on the blog for more centre stories coming from St. Augustine’s!