Category Archives: Families

My Story, A Few Other Stories, and a Book Review

I started my career as a helper at my sister’s daycare, the Frontenac Club Day Care in Kingston Ontario. I had just graduated from Guelph University and was looking for work at the same time my sister needed help to get her daycare ready for licensing. Before I knew it, I was putting hooks on the newly installed cubbies and greeting the first children enrolled at her newly-renovated centre which opened in 1983.

Around the same time, I applied for funding to start the Integration Programme at the Frontenac Club Day Care and I became the first Resource Teacher to work there. As such, I was responsible for the integration of 4 children with special needs; 2 of the first 4 children had Down Syndrome.  

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Cozy up and read to your child!

The cooler November weather has arrived. Thanks to daylight saving time (#beingsarcastic), darkness falls upon us much earlier, and invariably, our children’s routines shift. Let’s make the most of it by cozying up with our “favorite little one” and read together.

Sounds utopic?!? Totally. But there are ways to make the most of reading books with your tired baby, your busy and wiggly toddler, or your bossy preschooler. Here are some suggestions to share your love of books and read with your little one!

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Get Your Child Ready for School with Social Language Skills – How to Make Friends

By Roxane Bélanger, M.O.A., SLP-C, Reg. CALSPO
Speech Language Pathologist,
First Words Preschool Speech and Language Program of Ottawa and Renfrew County

Get your child ready for daycare or school by teaching them basic social skills grounded in language. Language and social thinking skills are crucial to a child’s success in building strong relationships with others, especially when you are going back to daycare or school after a pandemic year with limited social opportunities and virtual schooling. 

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Read to Kids to Promote Language Development!

To stimulate your child’s language, read books and tell stories to your kids. Foster a love for reading by including books and storytelling in your daily routine, every single day!

1. Promote language by reading books to your child

Reading is one of the best activities that you can do with children of any age. Reading books and talking about them helps children develop language skills. 

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Transition to School

Resource Consultants at CISS are fortunate to support parents with transitioning their child to school. This year, when mentioning the word “enrollment” more parents than previous years have been questioning whether their child should begin their journey to school. We empathize with parents that the uncertainty of what September will bring can be daunting. We recognize that this year is definitely more overwhelming than most for families to work through the transition to school process. But overwhelming doesn’t mean impossible!

We are here to support you. In addition to our newly improved Transition to School Toolkit, we’ve created a tip sheet addressing common transition to school concerns. Please see the links below to related articles and resources and connect with your Resource Consultant to begin the transition to school conversation.

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Take Turns with your Child to Build Strong Communication Skills

Communication starts at birth. Parents who talk to their baby, observe, follow, and play with their children play a crucial role in supporting communication development. One important skill is turn-taking. Turn-taking skills are an integral part of communication in young children.

What exactly is “turn-taking” skills?

Turn-taking skills can be compared to the ultimate “ping-pong” communication game.  It involves the back-and-forth interaction between two people, between you and your child.  Turn-taking skills are the foundation to healthy attachment and communication skills.  Turn-taking skills are built into “serve-and-return” interactions that are so important to build a child’s brain. When you and your baby are actively engaged and practice taking turns during sound play imitation, a peek-a-boo game, chatting, you are laying the foundation for later conversation. 

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Outdoor Winter Heavy Work Activities for Kids

Providing deep proprioceptive sensory input through heavy work is a great way to calm your child’s body and there are lots of different heavy work activities that your child can do.

But maybe you’re looking for something new for your child to do since it’s winter?

This list of winter heavy work activities for kids to do outdoors in the snow is a great starting point if you are looking to sneak in some extra sensory diet activities this winter. So bundle those kids up and head outdoors for these simple, yet effective heavy work ideas!

Here’s a list of 20 fun ways for kids to sneak in some heavy work while playing outdoors in the snow:

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Strategies to Help Your Child Speak Clearly

By Roxane Bélanger, M.O.A., SLP-C, Reg. CALSPO
Speech Language Pathologist,
First Words Preschool Speech and Language Program of Ottawa and Renfrew County

During the pandemic, many parents and educators are wondering how to support children who are learning to speak and use new sounds. Wearing a mask and accessing therapy services can cause concerns for parents with a child presenting with speech sounds difficulty. Many tools and strategies are at your fingertips.

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