discovery child care in barrie earns international recognition for ...

Cover StoryOntario’s Childcare IndustryDISCOVERY CHILD CARE IN BARRIEEARNS INTERNATIONAL RECOGNITIONFOR OUTDOOR CLASSROOMBy: Andrea HannenBack in 2006, when ChildcareToday first visited DiscoveryChild Care in Barrie,owner/operators Karen and ChrisEilersen had already firmly establishedtheir program as the environmentallyfriendly child care choicefor families in the Barrie area. Theyhad earned a Bell Canada BusinessAward, been officially recognized byEnvironmental Action Barrie, andbeen named “Business of the Year”by the Barrie Chamber of Commerce.At that time, Discovery Child Carewas operating in five locations, twoof which were located in schools.Karen Eilersen is an RECE who receivedher diploma from Seneca College.In 1989, after seven years workingin licensed child care, she begancaring for children in her home andcontinued her professional development.A conference she attendedon the environment and children’shealth was a major turning point forher. She became increasingly concernedabout the impact of environmentaltoxins on children’s health,and about what she saw as the growingdisconnect between children andthe natural world. As she began talkingwith other parents, she realizedshe was not alone in these concernsand the idea for Discovery Child Carebegan to take shape.In 1997, she and Chris had purchaseda two-acre parcel of land neartheir home and began the processof converting and expanding theexisting building to become a fullyequipped licensed child care facility.The large outdoor space allowed thecouple to create perennial and vegetablegardens and set up a compostingstation, so that the children enrolledat the centre could learn aboutgrowing their own food, companionplanting and insect alternatives topesticides, and a host of other environmentallyand socially responsiblepractices. Discovery Child Careopened its Harvie Road location licensedfor 64 and soon expanded toaccommodate 99 children. Within afew short years, the couple opened upanother freestanding location, onceagain on a large parcel of land andonce again focusing on developingchildren’s environmental consciousnessand appreciation of nature.Recognizing that the type of experienceDiscovery Child Care wasoffering children was unique in theBarrie area, the couple formed aseparate not-for-profit corporation in2006. The not-for-profit corporationwas created in response to the launchADCO Members Karen and Chris Eilersenare true pioneers in the field of ecoeducationfor young children.of the provincial Government’s BestStart program and soon entered intoagreements with the local schoolboard to begin offering programs intwo school-based locations. A thirdnot-for-profit location was openedin a church to offer afterschool programming.All three of the not-forprofitprogram’s sites were characterizedby the same thoughtful attentionto detail as the first two, with a heavyemphasis on environmental consciousness,play-based learning, andcontinuous improvement. Together,the five Discovery Child Care sitesregularly participated in a variety ofquality enhancement initiatives.In addition to serving as the ExecutiveDirector for Discovery’s not-“A variety of outdoor structures are needed to facilitate the playbasedlearning experiences that take place in a Nature ExploreClassroom. Chris Eilersen built them all to exacting design standards,ensuring that even the materials used in the structures themselveswould pose no threat to the micro-environment of the centre .”10 ChildcareTODAY • SUMMER/BACK TO SCHOOL 2012