Maple Tree Preschool

Who we are

Maple Tree Preschool Non-Profit is dedicated to fostering the holistic development of children in our care through play and inquiry-based learning, while encouraging the same growth and development in our staff. We strive to create a positive community of support where every child, family, professional, and community partner feels a sense of belonging, well-being, engagement, and expression.

Our vision is to provide quality, responsive care in the essential formative early years to invest in our future community – supporting and fostering a love of lifelong learning and holistic growth for all.

We operate four sites and have 37 staff.

Implementing the Pedagogical Leadership Program

We have had a Pedagogical Leader since 2017. Over the years the position and focus has evolved - from part-time to full-time, from balancing multiple roles to intentional focus within one role, from concentrating on educators to redefining the role of the Team Leader, from trying to support everyone to empowering Onsite Pedagogical Leaders – we continue to dream and transform moving forward. With the Pedagogical Leadership Program we made to the Manager of Program Quality (Pedagogical Leader) position – with a new focus on Team Leaders, Onsite Pedagogical Leaders, and continuous professional learning.

Onsite Pedagogical Leaders were chosen through internal posting and interviews with those interested in this new leadership opportunity. Changes to systems and processes were made to transform time and space for ongoing support. Because we had previous experience with a Pedagogical Leader, the Pedagogical Leadership Project was an opportunity to disperse and empower leadership with Onsite Pedagogical Leaders. Onsite Pedagogical Leaders first focused (and continue to focus) on building relationships and trust. Through ongoing reflections, coaching and experimentation, Onsite Pedagogical Leaders continue to learn, grow, and evolve within their role.

Our Pedagogical Leader Positions

Our Pedagogical Leader is a full time, permanent position. They were previously known as Manager of Program Quality, and is now known as, Early Learning and Leadership Mentor. They do a weekly rotation throughout all four sites. While onsite for the week, the Pedagogical Leader conducts a coaching session with the Team Leader, a coaching session with the Onsite Pedagogical Leader, a coaching session with the Early Intervention Coordinator, and spends quality time in program living alongside the educators.

During the Pedagogical Leaders coaching sessions, they generally perform a check-in, discuss goals, discuss what support in program looks like and reflects on initiatives and practice. While spending quality time in program, early learning professionals have the opportunity to show and share what they are working on and discuss successes they are living.

Our Onsite Pedagogical Leaders receive 2 hours per week dedicated to their pedagogical leadership role – 1 hour is dedicated to spending time out of ratio in another program living alongside educators and 1 hour out of ratio for pedagogical prep time (writing documentation, self-reflecting, researching, participating in a coaching session with the agency wide Pedagogical Leader, and collaborating with the site Team Leader).

During the rest of their time, Onsite Pedagogical Leaders work in ratio in their respected program, where they take on an ongoing mentoring role with their room partners using the lens of pedagogical leadership.

How our Pedagogical Leaders support our staff

Pedagogical Leader

The Pedagogical Leader takes a leadership role with the following responsibilities:

Coaching and supporting Team Leaders
Coaching and supporting Onsite Pedagogical Leaders.
Coaching and supporting Early Intervention Coordinators.
Collaborating with the ED to plan and facilitate monthly Pedagogical Leadership Committee Gatherings with all Onsite Pedagogical Leaders.
Collaborating with the ED to plan and facilitate monthly Leadership Team Meetings with Team Leaders.
Provoking thinking, sharing resources and sharing successes through the Homeroom App.
Supporting and offering continuous professional learning opportunities throughout the year.
Engaging in new possible initiatives throughout the year.

Onsite Pedagogical Leaders

Onsite Pedagogical Leaders live alongside early learning professionals at their site during program hours. They engage in the following:

Spending quality time in program
Mentoring and modelling
Giving hands on support (i.e., helping early learning professionals with the physical environment, supporting with children and group dynamics etc.)
Prompting reflections, having conversations about pedagogy and being a critical friend
Observing alongside and with early learning professionals
Discussing needs and/or challenges, brainstorming solutions, possibilities, and talking about next steps
Engaging in the role of a thinking partner
Celebrating successes and getting to know each person’s journey.
Offering feedback and observations

How our organization supports our Pedagogical Leaders

The Executive Director supports the Pedagogical Leader by:

arranging that this position is full time and permanent.
giving freedom and flexibility with schedule; the Pedagogical Leader has ownership of their time and work
being a thinking partner for the Pedagogical Leader
collaborating with the Pedagogical Leader on new initiatives.
supporting, encouraging, and allowing time for monthly coaching and collaborative reflection time between the agency’s Pedagogical Leader and the City of Greater Sudbury, Children Services Section partner.
supporting, encouraging, and allowing time for monthly Pedagogical Leader Gatherings with CGS and other community Pedagogical Leaders.

The Organization supports the Onsite Pedagogical Leaders by

offering the Onsite Pedagogical Leaders a system and time to allow this work to happen
allocating one hour per week to spend time in another program out of ratio.
allocating one additional hour per week for pedagogical prep time out of ratio.
financially investing in having a team member available at every centre that covers prep time, pedagogical leadership time and coaching sessions.
offering monthly coaching sessions with the agency wide Pedagogical Leader.
allocating time for them to attend monthly Pedagogical Leadership Committee Gatherings where they have an opportunity to connect and reflect as a group with the ED, agency wide Pedagogical Leader and the other Onsite Pedagogical Leaders. This group also utilizes the Homeroom App to continue to reflect and network throughout the month.
allowing time to collaborate and work in partnership with the site Team Leader to support the team.
offering a monetary incentive during Year 1 of the project.

Impacts we've seen from the Pedagogical Leadership Program

Positive Workplace Culture

Staff Retention of 84%.
Intentional investment in creating positive workplace cultures.
Focusing on early learning professionals’ well-being.
Working through a strength-based lens.
Teams openly communicating, questioning, and sharing perspectives is normalized.
Teams have a safe space to be vulnerable, experiment with their practice and feel comfortable asking for help.
Mistakes are embraced and welcomed as an opportunity for growth,
Collaboration and community are embraced.
Leaders spend quality time connecting with their teams.
Our shared vision is coming to life.

Empowering Leadership

Leading bravely and becoming change agents.
Advocating for the importance of play-based learning and the Early Years.
Moving from dwelling on problems to imagining possibilities.
Having courageous conversations that come from a place of love.
Encouraging others to explore their practice rather than defending it.
Empowering the voice of others.
Being transparent and vulnerable.
Fostering a growth-mindset and openness to change.
Connecting with intentional practice and reflecting on our “why”.
Questioning the “that’s the way we’ve always done it” mentality.
Challenging the status quo and disrupting habitual ways of being.

Support and Appreciation

Engaged and motivated early learning professionals.
Leading with love.
Everyone’s hard work is valued, recognized, praised, and appreciated.
Educators feel seen, valued, and heard.
More intentional time spent alongside early learning professionals.

Reframing Professional Learning

Leaning into side-by-side support and reflection.
Prompting reflection and being thinking partners with early learning professionals.
Making collaborative observations and wondering about play and interactions of children in program.
Recognizing professional learning that lives in everyday practice.
Focusing on creating collaborative and self-reflecting communities.
Continuous growth and transformation of practice and programs.