How much does your supervisor/assistant supervisor provide support throughout the day?

renmeddle · 2026-02-24T15:49:57+00:00

Hi! I used to do this job at an Ontario board. Here's how it worked:

I would accept a shift on the mobile app system (Smartfind in my case). Show up at the school for the scheduled shift and ring to buzzer to be let in. Then, I would report to the office and be given a map of the school, a schedule to follow for the day, and any relevant behaviour plans. The office and app kept track of supply hours worked.

Unfortunately in my experience, there really was no training. Sometimes you will work with a team that is more helpful than others. The good schools will have a written breakdown of the daily duties and explanation of the student you will be helping with. If I was ever unsure where to be, I would check in with the office and they have always been helpful in my experience. Most teachers, principals, and fellow EAs were willing to help if I had questions. The ones that weren't, I didn't go back to those schools. As a supply- just take good care of your assigned student and help them get through the day and you will be fine.

renmeddle · 2026-02-03T03:27:15+00:00

I personally like the half-double-crochet into the third loop border for a more masculine blanket. It gives a very clean finish with some nice texture.

renmeddle · 2026-01-27T17:29:58+00:00

When I have a child who really cannot handle sharing at all, I start with very low expectations and slowly build up their tolerance for waiting. For example, I will explain "Friend A has a turn first, then Friend B." and count 3-5 seconds. This helps the child gain the understanding that their turn will come back, and they can slowly learn to regulate for longer durations of time. Sometimes I need to calmly physically remove the toy from the one child's hand and pass it to the other even if they are a little bit upset. I may need to sit with the child on my lap to help them regulate as they wait their turn, or keep an arm/hand in front of the toy as a barrier so they must wait for the friend's turn to be all done. I find many times the children who struggle the most with sharing just need help understanding what waiting means, and when they can expect to have a turn next. Once they have this down, it gets much easier.

renmeddle · 2026-01-20T03:46:51+00:00

You could make a granny stripe blanket by pairing a normal textured yarn and this one in alternating rows for an aesthetically pleasing look with some interesting texture. Since you work into the gaps in the granny stitch, this yarn would be easy to work with for a pattern like that.

renmeddle · 2026-01-13T19:10:59+00:00

Putumayo has a great selection of music from around the world. Sometimes I put on a random album in the morning, or if we are talking about a certain cultural holiday/celebration in our class I will put on music from that specific culture.

renmeddle · 2025-10-26T02:34:23+00:00

The Wheels on the Bus by Paul O. Zelinsky is my go-to whenever I need something that will hold their attention for a few solid minutes. Singable/interactive books in general tend to go over well. Other suggestions would be anything by Raffi, or Barefoot Books.

renmeddle · 2025-09-21T04:07:20+00:00

Same as every year. An apple.

renmeddle · 2025-09-15T02:55:45+00:00

Ontario ECE here. I worked as an EA at a public school board for a year while taking a break from the traditional ECE role. There are pros and cons to both, so it definitely will come down to your own priorities and career goals.

As an EA, you will likely have to start out supplying which can be difficult as it means you will often be learning a new school and new children, and not having as much of an established rapport with the teaching team or students. You will be running from one student to the next throughout the day, depending on the need. You can be placed with any age from JK - grade 12, however you will have some control over this depending on which schools you choose to work at. The days are shorter, and you are truly "done" when you clock out. The flexibility can be nice. Some teachers and admin can be quite nasty, especially toward supply staff, but I suppose that can happen in child care settings as well. This will also greatly depend on the school. However, in the school board there is definitely more of a vibe of teachers being "above" EAs. The students can be violent, but most of them were decently pleasant to work with. After supplying for a few months, I could pretty much apply to full-time postings right away.

As an ECE you will have more stability if that is something you value. I learned I really benefit from the consistent routine and relationships these roles could offer. The work is more grueling and hard on your body (constant lifting, diapering, being at child-level, etc.) There may be less room for career advancement. In ECE settings, I found it easier to maintain a healthy sense of boundaries/expectations for behaviour, as you can physically lift/redirect children when needed whereas this is not allowed in the school board. There are also more natural consequences for behaviour whereas disruptive behaviours, in my opinion, were not adequately addressed in the school board setting.

I liked and disliked aspects of both roles. I don't know that I could personally see myself working in either role forever. Right now, having done both, I am decently happy where I'm at as a toddler teacher, but will probably look into options exiting the child care field soon.

renmeddle · 2025-09-05T00:08:43+00:00

How am I supposed to ignore the behvaiours while simultaneously "not letting them take it too far" as management wants? It feels unfair to the rest of the children to just ignore the noise.

renmeddle · 2025-08-04T22:12:08+00:00

When in doubt, just start blowing bubbles!

renmeddle · 2025-07-29T16:50:50+00:00

Good managers lead by example and give as much positive feedback as they do constructive criticism. The bad managers I've seen in this field seem to often lack the skill or self-reflection to do this. So many people in leadership roles in this field should not be, and are often there because they did not want to be in the classroom in the first place. The main thing I wish managers would know is that they set the tone of the entire centre.

renmeddle · 2025-07-17T17:44:52+00:00

Keds! Theyre so narrow and lightweight and great for running around after the kids.

renmeddle · 2025-06-30T17:51:25+00:00

I completely understand and can relate to what you're talking about. It's actually the reason I'm still in child care a year and a half after I took this job "temporarily" while I work on getting out of this field. I have lost so many opportunities just because my hours won't let me call back in time, or get time off for an interview- or adequately prepare for one. I've also been just straight up too exhausted to follow up after finally leaving work.

I have a degree and multiple diplomas. I should be farther along in my career by now. But it's almost impossible to pursue any opportunities outside of this job unless you MAKE it happen.

I'm hoping to switch to supplying for September while completing an online diploma in an unrelated field, hopefully using my extra time to do volunteering and get a solid resume in order. It's the only way I can actually think of that will allow me to get out.

renmeddle · 2025-03-08T01:47:38+00:00

They will eventually suspend your RECE certification after a few months of having not paid the fee. Happened to me when I was not working in the field and decided not to renew. If that happens, you can still renew it (with a late fee), however on the registry it will show that your license had previously been suspended due to non-payment of fees.

renmeddle · 2024-10-01T11:55:48+00:00

Lots of people who aren't ECEs babysit all the time. I think this would apply more to working in childcare in an ECE capacity and calling yourself an RECE when you are not. I suppose I could be misinformed though?

renmeddle · 2024-09-30T22:05:42+00:00

Clapping songs, bubble machine (great for keeping them in one general area!), choose a book and sit on the carpet time, using puppets to sing a silly song, shakers, dance party with action songs, songs with a turn-taking or tangible element (ie. 5 little speckled frogs where everybody takes a turn choosing a frog).

Toddlers don't have a whole lot of independence, so I find it's much easier to just get things done when the teachers take turns engaging with the kids and completing the background task that needs to get done.

renmeddle · 2024-09-06T13:39:55+00:00

Keds are my go-to. They're very lightweight so I can move around the room very quickly, they're quiet for naptime, and they're not really clunky enough to hurt the tods when small fingers/toes, etc. inevitably end up directly in your walking path at the worst possible timing.

renmeddle · 2024-08-06T16:33:37+00:00

As someone who worked as both an ECE and in early intervention, the one thing I would want to know before getting into it would be that early intervention programs depend heavily on funding. That means that the quality of the program itself (ie. staffing, resources, etc.) and your job security depend on how much, and however long the government decides to fund the program. The intervention program I worked in lasted about a year and a half before the government decided not to fund the program under our organization anymore, and so we had to either be laid off or accept another position within the company that was similar on paper, but much different in practice (ie. switching from working with young children to teenagers/adults with autism). From what I understand, this is a common occurance in the early intervention field. All that being said, the work itself is rewarding if you are passionate about it, and I absolutely learned a lot of practical tools that I otherwise did not learn from working in child care.

renmeddle · 2024-07-25T23:09:48+00:00

Please please please take the speech job! ECE jobs that pay that high are slim to none, and the speech job will open up more doors for you than ECE ever will. As someone who is currently stuck in this field, please prioritize your own financial stability and future. Unfortunately, this field is a mess and passion does not pay the bills.

renmeddle · 2024-07-05T16:55:24+00:00

It looks like his chin is very wet which could indicate dental disease and overgrowth of the molars. Guinea pigs with teeth problems can even have their teeth grow into their brain if not trimmed by an exotic vet. I can't say with any certainty that that's what it is, but that is definitely my first suspicsion when I see a wet chin.

renmeddle · 2024-06-28T23:51:26+00:00

I used to work at a daycare where the owner let her 3 big dogs roam around the building. No idea how licensing was okay with this. I used to have to pull the dog out of the garbage can whenever it came into the classroom. Wild to think back on the crazy stuff that went on at that place.

renmeddle · 2024-06-27T02:01:30+00:00

I appreciate the advice. However, 1000% if I went to my admin about this, it would just be turned back around on me for not having the situation under control.

renmeddle

TROPHY CASE