Over many years, parents have expressed that a 2.5 hour preschool class was just not long enough!  The Salmo Child Care Society heard that concern, and has increased their part-time program to 4.25 hours! 
 
This change comes with a change to the program name and license-type.  The Salmo Children's Centre Preschool will now be the Salmo Children's Centre Junior Kindergarten, and will now be under a Group Child Care license, rather than a Preschool license.
 
Parents who use the Junior Kindergarten Program will now qualify for the same benefits as those who use the Group Child Care Program, including a daily Parent Fee Reduction rate of $5 (since the program is more than 4 hours long,) and a full-day rate for the Affordable Child Care Benefit for families that qualify.  Some of the criteria for qualification in the Affordable Child Care Benefit program include:  working, looking for work, attending a school or training institution, a medical condition, or a recommendation from MCFD.
 
Our original hope was that, by creating a longer program, we could lessen the burden on our wait lists for the other groups at the Centre.  We are still anticipating this to be true, and are looking forward to seeing how that plays out.
 
The staff and board are excited about the programming possibilities that a longer program offers.
 

Today all of the children at the Centre joined some community members on a walk around the community to raise awareness about the importance of our environment.
The children were asked to notice as many things as they could, that are part of this wonderful Earth we live on.  
Here's their list:
Seeds, people, trees, snow, trucks, garbage truck, garbage, signs, sky, power lines, houses, cars, garbage cans, books, birds, squirrels, foxes, chipmunks, mountains, rainbows, schools, clothes, diapers, blankets, gardens, toys, giraffes, elephants, leaves, tree branch, water, rivers, rocks, sun, airplane, fish, buildings, ice, bunnies, fences, puddles, sticks, bushes, grass, slides, parks, deer, elk, moose, forests, dog, moon, clouds, bears, wolves, eagles, cheetahs, lions, earth, coyotes, bridges, animals, cougars, berries, pools
They are certainly aware of their environment!
Where will this conversation take us? 

What a wonderful way to enjoy being together!

Cathy picked up something at the grocery store. 
What does it look like? 
"It looks like a rainbow!" 
"It looks like a sausage!"  
Then it cracked!
"Now it looks like a nut!"  
"It's so weird."
We cracked it all the way open at noticed the inside....
"I eat it!"
"It's chocolate!"
"It looks like a banana."
"Seeds go in it."  "Peel it."  "Eat it up."
Then some of us tasted it...
"It tastes like fruit!"
"It tastes like raisins!"
It's called a tamarind!

Baking is fun, and full of skill building.
​Many hands make light work!  And fun work!

Service providers and entertainers from around the area came to share their knowledge and talents with local families.  Thank you to the Salmo Lions Club for providing food and beverages, and thank you to the Salmo Valley Early Childhood Advisory Council and the service providers for making our morning such fun!
Special Guests:  Kindermusik and Kyla the Clown

​Sent on behalf of the Affordable Child Care Benefit Program
 
 
Dear Child Care Provider,
 
Parents are now able to apply for the Affordable Child Care Benefit (ACCB) which begins September 1.
 
As a key partner in supporting B.C. families, here is some information for you to support parents:

• The ACCB website has been updated and parents can apply using the new My Family Services online portal. The website also includes an online estimator that allows families to estimate how much they may receive before applying.

• The Child Care Arrangement form has been updated to reflect the ACCB. The previous version of the form will continue to be accepted. If child care arrangements remain the same as reported to the Child Care Subsidy program, a new form is not required. A new form is required only if there are changes to existing arrangements – or for new applicants.
• The Service Provider Portal continues to be available for Licensed providers. Updated ACCB paper claim forms will be available shortly, and paper Child Care Subsidy claim forms will continue to be accepted.
• If you have questions, we will be hosting information sessions the week of Aug 13-16, so please watch your inbox for details.

As always, please feel free to get in touch with the Child Care Service Centre for information at 1-888-338-6622 (option 1).
 
Thank you,
 
The Affordable Child Care Benefit Team

Registration is now open for preschool classes that will begin in September 2018.  Call the Centre at 250 357-9544, or email salmocc@telus.net, or via the contact page on this website. 
​For more information about preschool check out the information on this site!

After acting out the story of Goldilocks and the Three Bears, we did our own walking in the forest.  We found interesting insects, delicious Saskatoon berries, trees that move when we push on them, and sticks that make music when we clap them together or gently tap them on the trees.  This wonderful nature experience provides learning in all four areas of early learning as outlined in BCs Early Learning Framework:  Exploration and Creativity, Well-Being and Belonging, Social Responsibility and Diversity, and Languages and Literacies.  Aren't we lucky to have our beautiful Centre in this amazing area!

Our worms have grown!  Shelley-Anne brought worms to preschool!  How do they feel? What do they eat?  Why do they need water?  After a few weeks in the care of these curious scientists, our worms have sure grown!  Turns out they love to help with the decomposition of our fruit and vegetable peels.  We released them and were left with some beautiful, rich, black soil.