A Little About Me...

My name is Priscilla Gatley and I am a Registered Early Childhood Educator from London, Ontario. I have been working in the field for three years, but that is not where my journey with childcare began. I am the oldest of seven children in my family, so I have LOTS of experience with young children. I grew up watching my siblings, and have always really enjoyed setting up provocations for them to play with (even though I didn't know they were provocations at the time.)

I went to Fanshawe College and graduated from the Early Childhood Education Program, then was immediately hired on by a local childcare company. I had previously worked with them through multiple school placements, a summer internship, and supply educator work. Their philosophy on childcare is what has helped to shape the way I interact with children and facilitate their learning, along with other resources such as the Reggio Emilia approach. I am a strong believer in using multiple resources and perspectives to create your own approach to working with children, and parenting them (nothing is set in stone as "the right way!")

I currently work with Toddlers (18 months to 2.5 Years), but I have past experience working with Infants (0-18 months) and Preschoolers (2.5 years and up.) I absolutely LOVE working with toddlers! In the past I heavily focused on play that supported nurturing dispositions in toddlers as a stepping stone to ignite empathy. Although this is something I still support with my toddlers, my current focus is viewing Children as Citizens.

Through this blog I hope to share my thoughts with you on different topics relating to childcare, development, and professional learning.