糖心Swag

The Kamloops-Thompson Board of Education looks forward to announcing the opening of the child care centre at Ralph Bell Elementary School, operated by Inquiring Little Minds (ILM), soon.

“We have heard clearly from our families that there is a significant need for more child care spaces. The Board of Education is committed to continuing to support district applications to bring these much needed services to our communities,” stated Board Chair Heather Grieve.

ILM obtained its licensing on Tuesday, October 24, 2023, and is currently in the process of interviewing and hiring staff. We anticipate that the centre will open its doors in mid to late November.

“We are looking forward to serving the children and families of Kamloops and being part of the community,” said Executive Director of ILM, Alisha Neumann.

District Principal of Early Learning and Childcare, Tanya Rogers shared, “ILM offers several programs to choose from to meet the needs of children and families. The child care centre located at Ralph Bell will provide a total of 72 spaces, with 24 designated for infants and toddlers and 48 for 2.5 year olds to school age.”

“We are excited to work with Inquiring Little Minds staff to ensure that our families see the value and convenience of child care on school grounds,” shared Superintendent Dr. Rhonda Nixon.

The 0–5 child care centre provides programming for infant, toddler, and full-day care. The infant program is for children that are 0 to 18 months. It is run on the timetable of the individual infants in care. This allows them to follow the routine they follow at home so they are comfortable during their time away from family. The toddler program is for children 18 months to 3 years of age. The program starts getting the children into a routine and provides confidence for the start of independence. They do this with daily activities, including art, circle time, nature explorations, and social interactions, as well as toilet training. The full-day care builds on children's natural desire to learn new things and become self-reliant.

“The program is focused on integrating principles from the Early Learning Framework into age-appropriate and fun activities, such as arts and crafts, social emotional learning, literacy and mathematics activities,” shared Assistant Superintendent Grant Reilly. “The program will encourage natural relationship building, peer socialization, sharing, taking turns, and working in groups.”

Parents/Guardians who are interested in accessing child care may submit their child’s information to the ILM online waitlist form. More information is available on the ILM website:. If you have questions about current space availability, please send an email to inquiringlittleminds@gmail.com.