Unicorn Children’s Centre
Moncton, NB
2015 National Inclusive Education Award recipient
The entire staff of the Unicorn Children’s Centre – director, program supervisor, enhanced support workers, aides, support staff, and educators – share the honour of receiving a 2014 National Inclusive Education Award.
Unicorn Children’s Centre is an exceptional early learning center. Every child there is accepted and included unconditionally in the daily program. At Unicorn, inclusion is not just a policy, it is an inherent part of everyday practice. All children are embraced and celebrated for who they are as individuals.
The staff at Unicorn takes the time to build relationships with the children and their families in order to create what is called “relationship-based inclusion.”
The members of the centre’s early learning team continually work collaboratively with families and community partners to create a circle of support that surrounds the child during their early learning experience. They also go a step further to broaden this support by working closely with local schools to embrace and prepare for the child’s transition to Kindergarten.
According to Marie-Marthe Collette, a Speech-Language Pathologist with the Talk With Me program, every child who has attended this center has learnt from example to appreciate their peers for all they can do and offer, rather than for what they are not able to do. That is the definition of inclusion.
Another mark of the dedication to inclusion shown by the staff at the Unicorn Children’s Centre is the fact that they are continually seeking ongoing professional development opportunities in their community and within the province, often committing their own time to enhancing their knowledge in the field of early childhood education.
NBACL congratulates the staff of the Unicorn Children’s Centre on their 2015 National Inclusive Education Award, and thanks them for their commitment to furthering inclusive education practices in New Brunswick.
