Meet Lee-Anne & Her Dream

Lee-Anne's Little Ladybugs provides a program that focuses on many aspects of children's learning and growth. Kindergarten readiness is at the heart of this learning as it is the job of an early childhood educator to set children up for success for when they make the big transition into elementary school! With younger children it is important to set the foundational blocks of what will later be called kindergarten readiness – this includes building confidence, fostering independence, and learning interpersonal skills. As children grow and move through the stages of early childhood, more layers of kindergarten readiness are learned and added onto these foundational blocks.

Lee-Anne's Little Ladybugs is a licensed multi-age program which means that there will be up to 8 children enrolled ranging in age from around 12 months to 5 years old. This small classroom size provides each child with more one on one time than they would receive in a facility with a large classroom size thus helping children achieve a deeper level of growth.

Lee-Anne's Little Ladybugs doesn't focus on one specific philosophy but rather pulls the best parts of many philosophies together to create a range of in-depth learning. For example, in terms of arts and crafts, children will be offered a blend of both process art opportunities and typical step by step craft opportunities that are seen in an elementary school classroom so that children can explore their creativity in line with typical 'ECE' values but also have the skills to follow directions when building a product art piece that they'd be asked to do in a kindergarten classroom. Other activities offered will include but not be limited to: science experiments, sensory experiences, cooking and baking experiences, academic learning related to the alphabet, numbers, colours, etc., music activities, gross motor games, and a daily circle time that includes felt stories, reading books, rhymes, movement songs, etc.

Who is Lee-Anne? Lee-Anne is an Early Childhood Educator with a university diploma in 'Early Childhood Education & Care' with specializations in infant and toddler care as well as diverse abilities. Lee-Anne has been in the field for over 10 years – some of that time spent in the field has been in the capacity of an Early Years Coordinator for the prevention team of an indigenous based child and family services sector. Prior to starting Lee-Anne's Little Ladybugs, Lee-Anne worked as an Early Childhood Educator in a local childcare centre for well over 3 years.

Lee-Anne's mother, Mary-Anne, has ran a Family Childcare in Nanaimo since Lee-Anne was 9 years old which is what inspired Lee-Anne to enter into this profession. Lee-Anne was born in Alert Bay (British Columbia) but spent most of her time growing up in Nanaimo. She still spends much of her spare time in Nanaimo with her mom, dad, brother, and two tween nieces.

Lee-Anne loves to engage in anything artistic, playing piano, baking, and, in her earlier years, even skydiving! More recently, Lee-Anne loves to spend time with her partner Dean, who is employed in the military, and their maine coon kitten "Elvis Presley."