Welcome!

Parents and children benefit from high quality, universal, inclusive early learning and care and other parent supports  The City of Dryden programs accepts all families, meeting the individual needs of the child and their parents/caregivers.

Our Best Start Hub provides services free of charge to all children and families in the community. Services include self serve lending library, early learning activities, parent information and workshops and links to other community services.

The City of Dryden also operates four licensed child care programs where children learn and play and are cared for in a safe, nurturing, stimulating environment. Our early childhood educators and support staff are delighted to work with you to give your child a fulfilling and enriching experience. 

All of our programs have an open door policy, where we encourage and welcome Parent/Guardians to take part in their child’s day.  There are many areas where you can be involved based on your interest and availabilty. For example, you can accompany the group on outings or get involved in special events. If you have a particular talent or interest, you are invited to share them with the children. Let us know how you would like to be involved.

Please give us a call if you require additional information regarding our programs and we would be happy to assist you.  We look forward to serving you and your family.

Sincerely on behalf of the Staff of the Dryden Children's Resource Centre 


Vanessa Shepherd,
Manager of Children's Services

About Our Department

The Dryden Children's Resource Centre

The Dryden Children’s Resource Department consists of four licensed child care programs and a Best Start Hub. Our inclusive early learning and care programs are developed to respond to the needs of the community and surrounding area and all children and families are welcome to utilize our services.

All the child care programs are licensed by the Ministry of Children and Youth Services and support is provided by our Early Interventionist Team for children with special needs so that all children can participate successfully. Funding is provided by the Province and the Municipality through the Kenora District Services Board (KDSB). Along with all the child care programs in the District and with support from the Kenora District Services Board, we have implemented a Quality Assurance Program to continually evaluate and enhance our services. Comments from our licensing advisor from the Ministry of Children and Youth Services are always very positive and the KDSB Best Start Coordinator has reconfirmed this opinion. Our programs are staffed by individuals dedicated to providing quality services for children and families. The programs’ successes are attributed to the enthusiastic and energetic employees who share their skills and knowledge with each other and the community.

The day is filled with a variety of activities designed to meet a child's physical needs (indoor and outdoor play, nutritious snacks and lunches, rest time, etc.) as well as developmental needs (self-esteem, self-help, social/behavioural, fine and gross motor, cognitive). The program is re-evaluated regularly to reflect changes in the Day Nurseries Act and current ideologies in Early Childhood Education.

Philosophy

The City of Dryden Child Care Programs offer parents a safe, nurturing, stimulating environment where their children can be cared for according to the family's particular needs and schedules.

We believe all children must be treated in a caring, respectful way which encourages independence and fosters personal growth and development. This includes children with any challenges (developmental, physical or behavioural).

Discipline not punishment is used at our centre. Our goal is to respect children while guiding them to appropriate behaviour and eventually self-discipline.

Our Child Care Programs have an open door policy. Parents are welcome and encouraged to be as involved in the program as their timetable allows.

Staff

Our current staff component consists of our management team of Manager of Children’s Services,  and four Supervising/Early Interventionists and twenty-four union and ten contract employees. This includes eighteen Early Childhood Educators, one Family Resource Coordinator, two Family Resource Assistants, one Secretary, two Cooks,  and five Early Childhood Education Assistants. At full capacity the department would require a minimum of twenty-nine Early Childhood Educators and Assistants.

We are all here to serve you and hope your time spent with our program will be a pleasant experience.

Field Trips

Throughout the year field trips are planned to special places of interest. Notice of these outings will be posted in advance and individual permission slips will need to be signed. As well, a general note of permission for field trips will be kept in your child's file allowing us to also take spontaneous walks or outings. We always ensure excellent supervision by increasing adult numbers when leaving our centre and parents are always welcome (and appreciated) to join us on our excursions. If you do not feel comfortable with your child participating in an outing, we will always make alternate arrangements for your child.