Our Kids & Company Halifax centre is located on the Halifax Harbour, precisely on the historical site of the 1917 Halifax explosion. What makes our centre unique is that we were the very first Kids & Company location in Nova Scotia! Our centre is always filled with smiling faces, both from our children and our fantastic educators. We have 8 classrooms and can accommodate children ranging from Infants to Primary. We are located across from the Halifax Shipyard, close to the bridges and Dartmouth and our children love it. Most of our children are very well versed about ships and it makes our daily conversations very lively and unique.
We have parking in the front of the building with Kids and Company signs and we also have a gravel parking lot on the corner of Barrington Street and Hanover Street. The gravel parking lot also has Kids and Company signs.
Meet the Director
I am Maria Fillmore, the Centre Director of the Kids & Company Halifax location. I graduated from Jane Norman College as a level 2 ECE in 2015. I have worked in child care for over eight years and at Kids & Company since 2015. I have always loved working with children. Watching them learn, grow and explore amazes me. I have loved working with every age group of children throughout my time at Kids & Company. The diverse programs and the support provided are a few of my favourite things about working here. What makes our centre unique is that we were the first Kids & Company location in Nova Scotia!
At Kids & Company, we work with your family to ensure that the transition is a smooth one. Before your child’s first day, we’ll provide information on what to expect. We’ll create an integration schedule that is right for your child and every day that your child is in the classroom, you’ll receive a daily report that lets you know how your child’s day was. You’ll also be able to see him or her on our in classroom web cameras. The Centre Director will even send you an email before the end of the day if your child has a special “wow” moment that day.
Toddlers learn best in the context of relationships within small groups. There are fewer distractions and children’s activities are more focused. In Kids & Company toddler classrooms, our small groups allow very young children to make connections, form caring relationships, and learn to understand other children.
All two-year-olds examine everything they see, hear, feel and observe in an attempt to make sense of the world around them. In our preschool programs, Kids & Company teachers interact, observe and interpret the interests of preschool students to encourage further discoveries by planning activities and investigations that expand your child’s learning.
Kids & Company runs comprehensive kindergarten programs designed for children who are 4 or 5 years old (junior and senior kindergarten age) to prepare them for Grade 1. Using emergent curriculum techniques to adapt to the children’s’ interests and skills, we set a foundation of early literacy, numeracy, artistry, and the construction of relationships and ideas. Kindergarten programs are integrated into full-time child care to provide convenience and continuity.
The backbone of curriculum at Kids & Company is an emergent or cue-based approach that allows students to lead their own discoveries and learning. Emergent curriculum is a modern education philosophy that moves away from pre-set daily lesson plans in exchange for facilitating learning opportunities in thoughtful ways as children’s interests and skills are observed. It is the leading method for early childhood development in North America. Educators must be well-trained to identify interests and build appropriate invitations to learn about the world through experimentation, art, imaginary play, music, literature, movement and more. Gently guiding with probing questions and encouraging the pursuit of ideas, teachers cover age-appropriate concepts in ways that spark curiosity and excitement in a child.
