A Typical Day at Rainbows
The playroom is buzzing with excitement. Today some of the girls are setting up a restaurant, and tables and chairs are being arranged. Menus are being written and discussions are taking place about which items should be included and how much they should cost. Who should operate the cash register? Who should serve? Who will be the customers and who will be the staff?
Play-based learning provides a natural opportunity for a wide spectrum of lessons as the girls explore ideas, negotiate roles and play. Numeracy and literacy are embedded in so many of their activities and their self-generated play. From tallying up a customer’s bill or scribing a menu, there are also nutrition, cooperative, organizational and social lessons being learned in operating their restaurant. At Rainbows, we try to follow the girls’ lead and weave skill and relationship building into everything we do. Children learn best when they feel safe, are happy and are playing.
Play is really the work of childhood. It’s how children learn.
— Fred Rogers
The Three Levers
Developing relationships
Building Empowerment
promoting a sense of belonging
These three levers guide all planning and programming at Reaching for Rainbows. The girls observe the positive interactions between the volunteers and staff and this modelling helps them to develop their own relationship skills and behaviour.
It’s not just the friendships between the girls that are important in the playroom. As the staff and volunteers enthusiastically join in the play and activities in the playroom, the girls learn to relax, venture into areas where they might have been hesitant and overcome hurdles that have kept them from participating fully. By watching others approach a problem or situation differently and successfully, they are able to envision other ways to do so themselves. Through this mentorship, they radiate friendship; empowering our girls, and helping to foster a deep sense of belonging.
Four Gorgeous Years
Reaching for Rainbows has been called the gold standard in children’s programs in Prince Edward County.
Our success has much to do with the number of years our girls have been immersed in our program. They join us when they are six and stay with us until they are nine. This duration of time together is an opportunity to truly help make a difference. The sense of achievement and accomplishment that is expressed by the girls and their families shines in our girls’ stories below.
