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WINTER 2015
NEWSLETTER
Inside this issue:
Seasons Greetings and holiday
closures
2
Free workshops, winter tips
3
Remember P.L.A.Y. article
4-6
Responsible Adult course
6
Off Coast training, new resources
7
When Less is More article
8-9
Playing with Ice
9
Early Childhood Tax benefit, Child Care
Capital Funding
10
Job Opportunity, First aid renewal
11
Holiday events, Exploration and
Discovery
12
Healthy after school eating
13
Locations:
 5520 Trail Ave Sechelt
885-5657
 659 North Road, Gibsons
886-3103
Fax: 604-885-5699 or 886-3106
It’s time for a winter hike at
Teddy Bear Daycare!
Email: [email protected]
Web: www.coastccrr.ca
Facebook page
Funded by the Province of BC
Seasons Greetings!
Winter is definitely here! And what a beautiful winter wonderland it has been with our first dusting of snow.
With the holidays fast approaching, December is a hectic month for many of us – especially for child care
providers who are busy planning activities with the children in their care and trying to squeeze in time for their
own families. So our Christmas wish for everyone is that you all have the opportunity to relax and enjoy some
down time with your loved ones during this special time of year.
Thank-you to everyone who came out and supported our fall conference. Thanks to you, it was a great
success with over 80 participants. We appreciated the feedback we received and will use it to guide us as we
begin planning next year’s conference.
Due to popular demand, one of our conference presenters, Dr. Sonya Vellet will return on Saturday March
28th for a four hour presentation on children’s mental health. We hope you can join us for this free event at the
Seaside Centre in Sechelt. Please see inside the newsletter for registration information.
We are also collecting names for a potential “Responsible Adult in Child Care Settings” course for the new
year, dates TBA. If you are interested, or have staff that need their 20 hours of training please let us know.
Congratulations to the YMCA of Greater Vancouver who were awarded provincial funding to create new child
care spaces in Gibsons and Sechelt. The second intake for the Ministry of Children and Families’ Major
Capital Funding program is January – February 2015 so if you were not selected in the first round of
applications or have not yet applied, there is still time. Please see inside for details.
Starting in January, we will be sending out child care provider update forms. To help us provide the most
accurate and up-to-date child care referrals we would be grateful if you could keep us posted regarding any
changes to your program.
We hope you all have a safe and joyful holiday season and wish you all the best for a happy new year!
Catherine, Paul, Tracy & Liz
HOLIDAY CLOSURE
Both CCRR offices will be closed from
Wednesday, December 24, 2014
to Thursday , January 1, 2015
Our offices will re-open on Friday January 2, 2015, regular hours. If you
need assistance with child care subsidy, please visit our website at
http://coastccrr.ca/for-parents/child-care-subsidy/
For all other enquiries, call Sunshine Coast Community Services
Society at 604-885-5881.
Gibsons Office Closure
On Thursday, February 5, the Gibsons office will
be open 1:30pm - 5:00pm
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FREE WORKSHOPS!
Healthy Early Childhood Mental Health and Development: The emerging
abilities to self-regulate, form attachment relationships, and to play, learn, and
explore.
Presenter: Dr. Sonya Vellet
Date: Saturday, March 28, 2015
Time: 10:00 am – 2:30 pm (includes ½ hr break)
Location: Seaside Centre, 5790 Teredo Street, Sechelt
Fee: Free!
Workshop Description:
This workshop will summarize recent research in multiple fields on the core story of early childhood mental health and
development, including what promotes and derails healthy early development. We will discuss practical strategies to
promote attentional, behavioural, and emotional self-regulation, attachment relationships, and readiness to play,
explore, and learn in infants and young children at home and in daycare and preschool settings. Professionals
supporting infants and young children and their families as well as parents are welcome.
Dr. Vellet is a Registered Psychologist specializing in early childhood mental health and parent-child attachment. She
provides evidence-based assessment and therapy to caregivers who have children with challenges with self-regulation,
behaviour development, and attachment. She also provides consultation to daycares and preschools on how to
incorporate practical attachment-based strategies into their classrooms to help strengthen the teacher-student
relationship.
To Register call the Child Care Resource and Referral Program at 604-885-5657 or 604-886-3103 or email
[email protected]. Seating is limited – Register early to avoid disappointment!
Tax Tips for Child Care Providers
Tax season is upon us! Do you have questions regarding child care business expenses, deductions, record keeping and
completing your tax return?
Join us for an evening with Nelson Alvarez, CPA, CGA, Principal at
Nelson Alvarez & Co. Ltd.
Date: Tuesday, February 24th
Time 7:00 – 8:00 pm
Location: CCRR Gibsons, St. Bart’s Church (corner of Gibsons Way and North Road)
Cost: free
This workshop is suitable for group and family child care operators.
TO REGISTER, CALL THE CCRR at 604-885-5657
For some great winter safety tips follow these links:
Staying safe during the winter holidays:
http://www.parachutecanada.org/injury-topics/item/winter-holidays
How to keep kids safe during winter play:
http://www.parachutecanada.org/injury-topics/item/winter-safety
Caring For Kids - information for parents from Canada's paediatricians:
http://www.caringforkids.cps.ca/handouts/winter_safety
Toy Safety:
http://healthycanadians.gc.ca/drugs-products-medicaments-produits/consumerconsommation/children-enfant/holidays-temps_fetes-eng.php
3
Remember P.L.A.Y.
By Christine McLean
As ECEs we all know and understand the importance of play to
young children – but we also need to convince parents. In her
keynote address at ECEBC’s conference, Christine McLean talked
about how we need to “rebrand” or change the perception of play as
just “messing around” to something that is essential for children’s
growth and development.
I have been involved in the field of early childhood education for three
decades, and during this time I have been an advocate for the
importance of play in a child’s life. I’ve noticed, however, that as the decades go by, my memories of play are
not the same kinds of memories that younger generations have of play. In fact, sometimes I think I am starting
to sound like an old geezer when I recount how I had to walk all the way across the living room to change the
channels on the only TV in the house, which, by the way, had only two channels to choose from. I talk about
how I talked with my friends on a telephone…attached to a wall. For those of you who maybe can’t relate to
this, think of it as spoken texts in real time. And we knew when we talked too long on the phone because a
helpful neighbor who shared the party line (no…not that kind of party line) would pick up their phone and let us
know it was time to hang up. I recall for my younger colleagues that, as a child, I would get bored, but I would
never let my mother know that I was bored because she always had a suggestion on what I could do to keep
busy.
I have to be careful, though, not to look at my childhood memories solely through rose-coloured glasses. This
was the same era that gave us lawn darts, chemistry sets with radioactive materials, candy cigarettes, and
clackers, which would leave a trail of purplish-green bruises up and down your arm as you tried desperately to
keep the hard plastic balls rhythmically clacking at breakneck speeds. (Google it). We had bad hairstyles, ugly
polyester pants with matching acrylic knit tops, and earth shoes. Our cartoons were only on Saturday
mornings and our video games involved a small dot making its way across the screen while we moved a
cursor up and down to stop it. Our parents told us to go outside and play and not to come home until
suppertime, and that’s what we did.
So how does this contrast with the childhood of today?
Children today are living in a world of relentless 24/7 screen time beginning in infancy. (Our screen time
involved TV and Etch A Sketch.) Today, parents can buy infant seats with a built-in holder for an iPad or
tablet. There are pottys and strollers with built-in iPads. There are DVD players in minivans and toddlers are
provided with iPhones to keep them busy in the grocery store. There are TVs in almost every room at home
and laptop computers that can be carried from room to room. Children’s programming is available anytime,
and anywhere and parents, who feel they are programming children’s development when they plug them into
an educational program, don’t always understand that passively watching a screen does little to promote
children’s development.
The onus is on early
childhood professionals to
reassure parents that the
single most important thing
they can do to promote their
child’s holistic development
during the early years is to
provide them with time and
opportunity to play.
When today’s children lift their eyes up from the screen, they are often
shuttled off to an organized sport or recreational activity such as soccer,
dance, violin, baseball, hockey, gymnastics, piano, and martial arts, where
they get much needed physical activity, but they still aren’t calling the shots.
The questions become: When do they get to play? When do they get to be in
charge? Why does it matter?
We know from important brain research that has been done over the past
decade that the first 2,000 days of a child’s life are crucial in terms of their
long-term health and development. This fact can make some parents
nervous, thinking that if they don’t expose their child to opportunities during
these first five years then they haven’t done their job in terms of making sure
4
their child is the best, smartest, and most advanced he or she can be. This is an understandable conclusion
that parents can take from this science.
This belief is reinforced through the media, through advertisers of “educational” toys, through other parents
and grandparents, through the school system, and through programs that promise to get your child ready
for school. The onus is on early childhood professionals to reassure parents that the single most important
thing they can do to promote their child’s holistic development during the early years is to provide them with
time and opportunity to play.
For some people, the notion of play has become somewhat trivialized. Play has been thought of as
something that you do once the real work has been done. It has been seen as a time-waster or a time-filler,
or just a time of messing around. In fact, play is essential to healthy child development. Object play (playing
with objects) is how children learn to manipulate objects, how to sort and classify (important mathematical
skills), how to understand spatial awareness, how to problem solve, and how to be creative. Social play
provides children with the opportunity to learn how to self-regulate, how to solve conflicts, negotiate,
communicate, cooperate, and collaborate. Play, by its very nature is child-centred. It is intrinsically
motivated and self-directed. It is controlled by the players and is concerned mostly with the process and not
the end product. It is through play that children learn to express their thoughts, written and verbal. Play
promotes children’s ability to question, explore, discover, hypothesize, and innovate. All of these skills are
essential to children’s ability to succeed in school and in life.
Is it time for play to undergo a rebranding exercise? Branding is how advertisers let possible consumers
know what to expect from their product or service. Re-branding puts a new spin on things and changes the
consumers’ perceptions of the product or service. Perhaps we need to do this with play; change the
perception of play as just “messing around” to something that is essential for children’s growth and
development. My proposition for the re-branding of play involves using PLAY as an acronym – one that
provides parents with the essence of what play is all about and why they
should be clamouring for it for their children. Here goes:
“P” stands for “Problem-Based Learning.” Dr. Fraser Mustard often
talked about how children learned to solve problems through play, and it’s
true. Play is a form of experiential or problem-based learning, which is one of
the most effective ways that all humans learn. Take some time to watch a
child at play and you will notice that they are continually solving problems
such as how to make the block tower stand up or how to assign roles to each
of the children in the dramatic play area (“You’ll be the dad and I’ll be the
dog…”) When children play, they seek to solve problems in creative and inventive ways. This proven
approach to learning is more effective from a brain development perspective that a didactic or skills-based,
adult directed approach. In other words, play builds brains!
“L” stands for “Language-Rich”. Somewhere along the line, the concept of play-based learning
was misinterpreted as a curriculum approach that did not promote the learning of ABCs and other preacademic skills. In one way, this is correct. Play-based, developmentally appropriate programs do not
promote the teaching of isolated academic skills in the form of work-sheets (paper or virtual) in ways that
are not meaningful to a child. However, play-based programs are rich with words, letters, storytelling,
writing, reading, discussion, debate, questioning, predicting, and
recording. They are a place where literacy skills are learned but
We need to promote play-based
not necessarily taught.
learning in our early learning set“A”stands for “Age-Appropriate Activities”. A solid
tings as the way that children learn
knowledge of child development helps to ensure that the play
to solve problems, learn to comsetting is a developmentally appropriate one where children’s
municate, and learn about the world
individual interest, strengths, and needs, combined with an
around them.
understanding of age-appropriate expectations guide the
development of the curriculum.
“Y” stands for “Young Children”. An understanding of child development is essential, but it is
also essential the adults who promote play-based learning have an understanding of the individual children
that they interact with. This means taking the time to observe the children as well as discuss with them their
interests, their questions, and what they wonder about. In this way, adults will have a better chance of
providing experiences, activities, and materials that are relevant, engaging, and appropriate.
5
Daniel Pink, author of A Whole New Mind: Why Right Brainers Will Rule the Future, says that “the future
belongs to a very different kind of person with a very different kind of mind – creators and empathizers,
pattern recognizers, and meaning makers. These people – artists, inventors, designers, storytellers,
caregivers, consolers, big picture thinkers – will now reap society’s richest rewards and share its greater joys.”
P.L.A.Y. is how we nurture these different kinds of people with different kinds of minds. It is essential that we
provide our children with the same types of wonderful unstructured, open-ended activities that we had as
children. We need to let them have opportunities to be in charge. Parents do not always have the luxury of
providing their children with these large blocks of time for play. They are busy, the children are busy – we get
– we get that. But as early childhood educators we have the wonderful opportunity to provide children with
these types of memory-making and brain-developing types of experiences. We need to promote play-based
learning in our early learning settings as the way that children learn to solve problems, learn to communicate,
and learn about the world around them. Children have a right to play – not because they are future citizens of
the world or preschoolers or pre-anything. They have the right to play just because they are children. It is
essential to their well-being.
So, we are going to be active in re-branding play. We are going to want parents to demand the P.L.A.Y.
approach to programming for their children. We want children to refuse to cooperate until they get the
opportunity to P.L.A.Y. We are going to take this brand over the top! Through P.L.A.Y., children are being
provided with the tools they need to survive and thrive as they grow up in a world that needs these bright,
literate, and innovative minds now more than ever.
Christine McLean is the manager of the ECE program at the College of the North Atlantic. She has been
involved in ECE for over 25 years as an instructor, registrar of certification, and provincial child care
consultant.
The Early Childhood Educator
Summer 2014, Vol. 29., No. 2.
Reprinted with permission
Training Opportunity
For those interested in working in child care
CCRR is collecting names for a potential 20-hour Responsible Adult course to begin early in the new year. Exact
dates TBA.
This 20-hour course prepares participants for the following employment possibilities:
School Age Group Child Care (licensed) - Occasional Child Care (licensed) - As a replacement or a
substitute/casual on call for Early Childhood Education Assistants (licensed group child care centres or
preschools)
Family Child Care (Registered Licence-Not-Required providers will need to take a ‘Managing the Child
Care Business’ workshop in addition).
This course also meets the training requirements for non ECE Child-minders. Other employment possibilities
may include casual family drop-in programs, or other related positions.
This is a non-credit course (cannot be applied towards the completion of a degree).
Cost is $100.00 (includes workbook). ***Bursaries are available for owner/operators of Licensed Family Child
Care or Registered Licence-Not-Required Child Care or those in the process of becoming licensed or registered.***
If you are interested in taking the course or have staff that need training please call the CCRR at
604-885-5657 or 604-886-3103 or email: [email protected].
6
Off Coast Professional Development
ECEBC is very pleased to present its 44th annual conference, “Strengthening Connections Through Our
Cultures and Practices” from April 30 to May 2, 2015 at the Radisson Hotel Vancouver Airport in
Richmond, BC. Please join us for this opportunity for professional development and networking.
UPDATE: FRIDAY MORNING KEYNOTE SPEAKER -- MAY 1, 2015
Monique Gray Smith, author of Tilly, a Story of Hope and Resilience and winner (first prize) of the 2014
Burt Award for First Nations, Metis and Inuit Literature, has been confirmed as the Friday morning
keynote speaker at next year’s conference.
ONLINE REGISTRATION – STARTS EARLY FEBRUARY 2015
The 2015 ECEBC Conference brochure will be mailed to members with the Winter 2015 issue of The
Early Childhood Educator in mid-February 2015. The conference brochure will be available for
download from our website at www.ecebc.ca in late January 2015.
Wecome!
Congratulations to Susan Bell who has successfully met the
requirements to become a licensed family child care. Susan
operates Tiny Tots Daycare in Sechelt.
New Resources in the CCRR Lending Library!
STAMPS!
Thanks to a generous
donation, we have lots
of new stamps activity
bags.
* Different themes!
* Come in and have a
look!
7
When Less is More
by Rachel Dunstan Muller
It took me three days to dig through and reduce my five- and seven-year-old’s
belongings by more than half. I was inspired in part by Kim John Payne’s brilliant
book, Simplicity Parenting. Payne has some insightful things to say about the
value of simplifying all aspects of our children’s lives: creating reassuring
rhythms and rituals, protecting free time, and filtering out excessive or adult
information. But his practical program begins with a call to physically de-clutter
our children’s environments.
Payne offers some compelling reasons for a less-is-more approach. Too much stuff equals too many
choices—which can be a source of stress both for the child overwhelmed by the avalanche, and the parent
who has to wade through the mess. According to Payne, a modest selection of quality toys invites children
into “deeper play and engagement.” Children are better able to focus when they have a smaller collection of
toys (or books, or items of clothing). They’re also significantly more likely to appreciate what they have, which
in turn fosters deeper connections and creativity, and better stewardship. Conversely, children with too much
stuff can develop a sense of entitlement, and the belief that constant shopping is the key to happiness—which
doesn’t serve our kids or our over-burdened planet.
As a family counselor-therapist, Payne has been testing his simplification principles for two decades. After
thoughtfully downsizing their children’s possessions, his clients report that their kids are calmer and exhibit
less stress behaviours. They play better with siblings, and immerse themselves more quickly in imaginative
games. Simplifying other areas of a child’s life can have even more profound effects.
I was itching to put Payne’s theories to the test, but I waited until my children were at school and I had a few
free hours over a few days before digging in. Payne has some practical suggestions on what to keep and
what to pass on or discard. With these guidelines in mind, I set to work systematically. Broken toys went
straight into a garbage bag. A few outgrown treasures got put away for the next generation. The rest were
divided into three categories: “keepers,” a pile for younger cousins, and another pile for the local thrift store.
(Payne also suggests that parents can create an in-home toy library, periodically rotating toys in and out of
storage). I repeated the sorting process with my children’s books and clothing.
The room looked significantly tidier—and bigger—when I was finished. I saved most of my kids’ building toys
(Lego, wooden blocks, etc), a reasonable selection of stuffed animals and dolls, some “active” toys (balls,
skipping ropes, sandbox stuff), some quality puzzles and games, a condensed selection of art supplies, the
play food and dishes from their kitchen tub, and a few other odds and ends. In other words, my kids are still
far from deprived!
I gave my children advance warning before I undertook this project, but was vague on the timeline. I promised
I wouldn’t discard any of their special treasures, and wouldn’t pass on anything without their permission. It
wasn’t until the third and final afternoon that they noticed some of their possessions had disappeared. My
seven-year-old expressed alarm that her normally overflowing toy box was now only half full—but she
couldn’t identify anything that was missing. I assured her I’d let her see what was immediately leaving the
house, and keep the rest in storage for the short-term. We may rotate some of the stored toys back in—but
only if someone asks. Otherwise I’m counting on the “out-of-sight, out-of-mind” principle to kick in.
And the result? Has the burden of too many possessions been lifted from my children’s shoulders? Are they
calmer, more cooperative, better behaved? It’s hard to be sure, but I would say the stress meter in our home
has dropped a few points. I certainly hear “I’m bored” less often. The thinning-out process has left my kids’
toys better organized and more visible to them. They can see their choice of activities and playthings, without
8
being overwhelmed by them. Getting dressed or choosing a bedtime story is also easier, for the same
reasons. And tidy-up time is a lot less stressful for everyone.
I get a rush of satisfaction every time I pass my kids’ tidy bedroom now—a far cry from the frustration and
stress I used to feel. This small success has motivated me to tackle the whole house, one cluttered corner at a
time. It may take a while, but I’m confident the results will be worth the effort. In fact, according to Payne, the
long-term success of my children’s new environment depends on a similar treatment everywhere else: “If the
entire house is cluttered, then your streamlined, simplified child’s room will not last. Some form of homeostasis
among the rooms will develop—either the room will reclutter, or its simplicity will prove your inspiration for
decluttering elsewhere.”
Can we keep this new pared-down approach going over the long run? I certainly hope so. It’s a healthier
model for all of us, and for the planet too. Christmas is coming, and that would normally be a challenge. But
this year we’re setting a three-gift limit, just as the three wise men brought three gifts for Jesus on the very first
Christmas. Each of our children will receive something they want (gold), something for their spiritual or other
growth (frankincense) and something they need (myrrh). If the nativity is not part of your holiday tradition, this
simple rhyme might suit you better: “something they want, something they need,
something to wear, something to read.”
Rachel Dunstan Muller is the mother of five, and a children’s author. Her previous articles
can be found at web link.
Source: Island Parent Magazine
Originally Published: November 2013
Reprinted with permission
Playing With Ice
Ice is not only inexpensive but is also one of the most versatile mediums for play. The possibilities for ice play activities
are endless! Here are a few suggestions:
* Freeze coloured water or place blocks of ice into coloured water for water table
play.
* Try painting on ice.
* Freeze small objects in water filled containers. Children can brainstorm how to
get them out. (hint: salt water works well)
* Freeze dinosaurs or animal figures in cake pans to use in a play scape.
* Freeze jewels for a treasure hunt.
* Freeze water filled balloons to make frozen “eggs”.
* Try freezing different colours of water in layers. It takes time but is worth the
effort.
* Coloured ice on the light table looks amazing!
* Sprinkle rock salt on a block of plain ice to create tunnels into which children can
drizzle coloured water with pipettes or eye droppers.
* Build ice sculptures with ice in varying colours, sizes and shapes. Brush the
surface of the ice with a wet paintbrush then stick another piece of ice to it. Add
Photo courtesy of Bethel Preschool
more ice shapes.
* Make an arctic animal sensory bin with polar bears, penguins, ice cubes, coloured glass, rocks etc.
Frozen Chalk Recipe
Materials needed: cornstarch, water, food coloring or watered down paint
Mix equal parts of coloured water and cornstarch.
Pour into popsicle molds or ice cube trays with craft stick handles (or any small container)
Freeze.
Remove from molds and create! You may want to wear your mittens when drawing with ice chalk!
9
Attention, Parents!
File your
tax return–
The B.C. Early
Childhood
Tax Benefit
The new B.C. Early Childhood Tax Benefit will
be available starting in April 2015. The
amount of benefi t you receive will depend on
your family net income as reported in your
annual tax returns. Filing your 2013 tax returns
and applying for the Canada Child Tax Benefit
could mean more money for you and your
family.
Are you eligible?
The tax benefit will be provided to parents of
children under the age of 6, who:
- Are B.C. residents
- Have a combined family net income between
$0 and $100,000 for the full benefit ($660/year for each child under six)
- Have a combined family net income between $100,000 and $150,000 for a
partial benefit
- File their 2013 tax returns and apply for the Canada Child Tax Benefit
If you currently receive the Canada Child Tax Benefit, then you will be automatically signed up to receive the
BC Early Childhood Tax Benefit, so long as you meet the eligibility requirements and continue fi ling your tax
returns each year.
For more information, visit: www.mcf.gov.bc.ca/childcare/tax_benefi t.htm
or call: 250-387-3332 (Victoria) or 1-877-387-3332 (toll free within Canada).
Don’t miss out - File your 2013 tax return and apply
Major Capital Funding for the Creation of New Licensed Child Care Spaces
Major Capital Funding is available to help with the costs associated with the creation of new licensed
child care spaces. Under this program, non-profit child care organizations may receive up to a maximum of $500,000 and private sector child care organizations may receive up to a maximum of
$250,000 for:

Building a new child care facility including the cost of buying land or a building;

Assembly of a modular building and site development;

Renovations to a building; and/or

Buying eligible equipment and furnishings to support new child care spaces in an existing facility or
as part of the above activities to create new spaces.
The next intake period for applications is January – February 2015
For more information or to apply visit: http://www.mcf.gov.bc.ca/childcare/major_capital.htm.
Congratulations to the YMCA of Greater Vancouver who were awarded funding
during the first intake period to create child care spaces at Gibsons Elementary
School and Sechelt Learning Centre!
10
Sechelt Public Library
Presents a monthly
Storytime
Tuesday Mornings, Nov 25; Dec 23; Jan 27 10:30-11:00am
Sechelt Public Library Community Use Room
Job Opportunity
Serendipity Child Care Centre is looking for a part time ECE. Flexible
schedule. 9-27 hours per week. For more details, call Donelda Brown
604-883-2316 or 604-989-4127.
IMPORTANT NOTICE:
Early Childhood Educator Registry Terminology Change from “Licence to Practice” to
“Certificate”
The Early Childhood Educator (ECE) Registry is the provincial body responsible for certification of
individuals who qualify for an Early Childhood Educator (ECE) or an Early Childhood Educator
Assistant (ECEA) Certificate. To ensure consistency with the Community Care and Assisted Living Act
(CCALA) and the Child Care Licensing Regulation (CCLR), the ECE Registry will be changing the term
‘licence to practice’ to ‘certificate’ effective Fall 2014.
Individuals who currently hold a licence to practice will not have to replace that document with a new
certificate. A current licence to practice will remain valid until its expiry, and a certificate will be issued
upon renewal.
For more information visit: http://www.mcf.gov.bc.ca/childcare/ece/pdfs/terminology_change.pdf
First Aid Renewal
Renewal of First Aid Certificates for Early Childhood
Professionals can be challenging here on the coast in that
courses are not always available when needed.
To help address this issue the Sunshine Coast CCRR is collecting names for future course offerings. If your first aid certificate is due to expire within the next
year please contact us and we will add your name to the list.
11
UPCOMING HOLIDAY EVENTS
Winter Wonderland Christmas Skating
December 24 from 12:00 - 4:00 p.m. Gibsons & Area Community Centre
Come on out and enjoy the holiday spirit: lights, decorations, trees and visits from Santa
will transform the arena into a winter wonderland. There will be time set aside for pond
hockey games with family and friends.
Polar Bear Play Day - New Year's Eve Skating Party
December 31 from 1:00 - 4:00 p.m. Sunshine Coast Arena (Sechelt)
Bring in the New Year with family, friends and skating and wintry decorations!
http://www.scrd.ca/SCRD-Recreation
Gingerbread House Contest
Saturday December 20 Sunshine Coast Arena (Sechelt)
Join the SCRD this Holiday Season by participating in our Gingerbread House Contest!
The contest is open to individuals, families, schools and businesses/organizations.
Sunshine Coast Botanical Garden
Winter Lights—Sundays and Mondays: Dec 7th, 8th , 14th, 15th, 21st and 22nd.
4-8pm These are perfect evenings to share a stroll with loved ones. Walk the twinkly
trail then come indoors for a warm-up and refreshments.
Exploration and Discovery 2013
THANKS TO ALL who attended our
conference this year. Good
workshops, good friends, and good
food made it a joy to attend. Shown
here are some art pieces made in
Judy Olivieri’s Environmental
Awareness Through Art workshop.
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