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Observation nursery

Room: GA-1.125

The Observation Nursery is located on the 1st floor, Room GA-1.125 of Concordia's Grey Nuns Annex Building. It includes a nursery room, an observation room and a parent seminar room.

Who we are

Our Philosophy

At Concordia University's Observation Nursery we attempt to give Roots and Wings to your child by providing a secure, nurturing environment full of interesting, stimulating materials to explore.

The 'Roots' of this experience are acquired through the development of a strong sense of self by recognizing each child as a unique individual with special needs, desires, and abilities. We establish a collaborative environment with routines that give children a sense of security.

Children sprout 'Wings' at our nursery separating gently from their parents and becoming independent persons with their own identities. Children have many opportunities to choose activities for themselves, to decide what they want to do and how they are going to do it. We encourage children to do as much for themselves as possible, giving them as much independence as they are ready for. They are encouraged to dress themselves (with our help if needed) and to assist at clean-up time.

What we do

Laboratory School

The Observation Nursery is part of the Department of Education at Concordia University. It is a model school with an enriched program that promotes the growth and development of young children. At the moment, two education courses use the nursery on a regular basis. Tuesday mornings, students in the observation course (Educ 297) spend a good deal of time watching the nursery in action.

The education department has a commitment to shared parent-teacher participation in the education of their children. On Thursday mornings, the Parenthood Studies course (Educ 264) helps students to increase their sensitivity to the role of parents. Each class, the students spend a part of the morning in the observation room watching the children as they play. There is an one hour seminar led by a university instructor, where parents and students discuss their observations of the children.

Parent Discussion Group

As this program is designed for parents who wish to be involved in their child's education, one parent (or both) must be willing to participate in the Thursday morning sessions.

Documentation & Curriculum Development

In the Observation Nursery, the teachers use observational techniques, photographs, video-and-audio-recordings, and authentic work samples to document children's learning processes. The curriculum is an emergent one, where projects are the main instructional method. Documentation panels are used to inform parents and student teachers about children's project work. The panels are also an invitation for parents to become involved in children's learning experiences and serve as visual representations of children's learning.

Where we are

Nursery Room

The Observation Nursery is located on the 1st floor, Room GA-1.125 of Concordia's Grey Nuns Annex Building, 1215 Saint Mathieu Street, near the Guy-Concordia Metro. It includes a nursery room, two observation rooms and a parent seminar room.

Observation Room

The observation room is a small room with one way glass allowing for the unique opportunity of observing without being seen.

Parent Seminar Room

Every Thursday morning, there is a discussion period for the parents in the parent seminar room. Parents, with a qualified instructor and students discuss various issues related to child rearing.

Join us

Program length

The preschool runs from the middle September to the end of May, four mornings a week (Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday) from 9:00 to noon.

Age of Child

The program is designed for children between the ages of 3 to 5 years old. Your child must be 3 by September 30th.

If you are interested in taking part in this program with your child, please download:

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