October 16th, 2018

Today, October 16th, we celebrate Early Childhood Educator (ECE) Appreciation Day, a day where we recognize the commitment, hard work and passion of our early childhood educators. More than 550 educators went to work this morning to greet and care for 8,400 students in the Waterloo Region District School Board. To witness our littlest learners get excited about going to school is remarkable, and it is because of the positive relationships and inclusive environment our early childhood educators create in and outside of the classroom.

ECE Appreciation Day is a day dedicated to showing our appreciation for early childhood educators in Ontario. The theme for this year is, “Champions for Children,” developed by the Ontario Coalition for Better Child Care to acknowledge the essential role that they play in the lives of our youngest learners and their families.

Our students are fortunate to have dedicated staff contribute daily to their overall development and well-being. Through play-based and child-centred teachings, our early childhood educators bring age-appropriate programming that promotes each child’s physical, cognitive, language, emotional, social and creative development. The partnership between our early childhood educators and teachers strengthens the core responsibility we have as a board to help our students succeed and reach their highest potential in a safe, equitable and inclusive learning environment.

We would like to thank all of our ECEs for the important work you do and the contributions you make. Thank you for teaching and nurturing our early learners in the critical development stages of life, for preparing our students for life-long learning and emotional well-being, and for creating a space where each student can experience a sense of belonging.

Please join us today as we celebrate the important work our early childhood educators do as they lead the way for our students – each and every one.