The Early Learning Centres Program

CDI operates five Early Learning Centres. Our Centres are located in diverse communities across Toronto and are licensed by the Ministry of Education. We maintain specific health, safety,fire and programstandards outlined in the Child Care and Early Years Act, CCEYA and the Toronto Operating Criteria. Each Early Learning Centre has a service agreement with the City of Toronto Children’s Services department to provide subsidized child-care spaces for families in need of assistance. 

Our Early Learning Program provides young children with a positive learning experience in an inclusive, child-focused play-based environment. Our Directors and teachers are Registered Early Childhood Educators and Early Childhood Assistants. Our program provides a balance of teacher-directed activities and child-initiated play and exploration. We welcome and encourage parent involvement and have an active Parent Advisory Committee (PAC) in each of our Centres.

EarlyON Child and Family Centres

CDI operates two EarlyON Child and Family Centres (CFC), Parkdale-High Park EarlyON Child and Family Centre and 100 High Park EarlyON Child and Family Centre. All services are free of charge.

Toronto Children’s Services is responsible for the planning and administration of EarlyON services, following guidelines set by the Ministry of Education. EarlyON CFC provide an environment that engages parents and caregivers in order to strengthen adult-child relationships, support parent education and foster healthy child development. The Centres provide free drop-in and registered programs for parents, caregivers and children under the age of six. The Centres’ mandatory core services, as outlined by the Ministry of Education, are:

• Engaging Parents and Caregivers

• Supporting Early Learning and Development

• Making Connections for Families

EarlyON Child and Family Centres are staffed with Registered Early Childhood Educators who respond to parent/caregiver concerns, and make referrals for more specialized services as required.

For further information about our Early Learning Centres, or EarlyON Child and Family Centres, please contact the Centres directly:

Fraser Mustard Early Learning Centre
82 Thorncliffe Park Drive
Toronto, ON M4H 1K3
416-421-7676
Email
Map
Serving the Thorncliffe Park community with 88 spaces for children from infancy to age 4 and the Kindergarten Before and After Program.

Parkdale Early Learning Centre
119 Close Avenue
Toronto, ON M6K 2V2
416-535-6116
Email
Map
Serving the Parkdale community with 49 spaces for children from infancy to age 4.

Wellesley Early Learning Centre
495 Sherbourne Street
Toronto, ON M4X 1K7
416-928-9900
Email
Map
Serving the St. Jamestown community with 62 spaces for children from infancy to age 4.

Windermere Early Learning Centre
103 The Queensway
Toronto, ON M6S 5B3
416-763-2734
Email
Map
Serving the Queensway/Windermere Ave. community with 57 spaces for children from infancy to age 6.

Parkdale-High Park EarlyON Child and Family Centre

The Parkdale-High Park EarlyON Child and Family Centre offers a variety of free programs and services for parents, caregivers and children under the age of six. Programs and services include:

• Early learning and literacy programs
• Parenting programs such as Mother Goose and Nobody’s Perfect
• Public Health led prenatal programs and parenting education programs
• Access to a Toronto Public Health nurse

Our latest program calendars can be found here.

CDI operates Parkdale-High Park EarlyON Child and Family Centre in partnership with West Neighbourhood House. Our community partners include:

• Creating Together
• More Than Child’s Play
• Queen Victoria (Public School) Partners
• College Montrose
• 4 Villages Community Health Centre (Early Years 2 Program)
• Parkdale Community Health Centre

All services are free of charge. Families are referred for more specialized services as required.

Parkdale-High Park EarlyON Child and Family Centre is located in in the Dundas West and Keele neighbourhood at 2918 Dundas St. West. For information, please contact 416-762-3700.

Child Care Support Team
CDI delivers consultation services and other support services to licensed childcare centres in Toronto under the “Every Child Belongs”(ECB) service model. The goal of the ECB model is to support inclusion within childcare centres so that every child has access to childcare in their community that offers inclusive, developmentally appropriate early childhood experiences. 

Child Care Consultation Services

Child Care Consultation services provide support for staff caring for children under the age of 12 with extra support needs in licensed child-care programs. Child Care consultants collaborate with child-care program staff and parents/guardians to identify the child’s strengths and needs, and to develop individualized goal plans and strategies to support the child’s development and participation in the program. Consultants visit the child-care centres on a regular basis to monitor needs and progress; they may also recommend additional services and resources. Referrals are made by the child-care programs after obtaining parental consent. Child Care consultants also support their assigned child-care programs to build inclusive environments through training and program consultations. These services are also known as Resource Consultation services, delivered within the Toronto Children’s Services Every Child Belongs service framework.

Looking for information about a Toronto Children's Services subsidy? Click here.