Please read the Enhanced School and Child Care Screening memo from the Ministry of Health.

The restrictions are in effect from Saturday, December 26, 2020 to Saturday, January 23, 2021 for the HKPR District Health Unit region.

Child care will remain open for the duration of the Provincewide Shutdown period. This includes child care offered in licensed centres and in home-based settings.

What You Need To Know

Approaching the Entrance & Screening

To approach the entrance ALL family members and visitors MUST:

• maintain a physical distance of at least two metres from other families and visitors.
• wear a mask or face covering that covers their mouth, nose and chin.

Families are NOT permitted inside for daily active in-person screening effective immediately. The screener will greet you as quickly as possible – please do NOT open the entrance door.

Child Care Needs

It is important that you confirm your child care needs with the office as soon as possible to allow us to schedule staff and providers accordingly. We understand that some families may be facing reduced or cancelled work hours because of the shutdown. Please communicate your needs and changes to us today.

Centre Before & After School Program

The centre before & after school program is being paused for the remainder of the school year. The situation will continue to be monitored and the feasibility to offer the centre school-age summer program in 2021 will be given consideration in the coming months.

Important Resources

Province

The information contained in the document, Provincewide Shutdown, December 21, 2020, is intended to communicate a summary of information about measures proposed to come into effect in Ontario or in areas of Ontario at 12:01 a.m. on Saturday, December 26. The material is not legal advice and does not purport to be or to provide an interpretation of the law. In the event of any conflict or difference between this summary information and any applicable legislation or regulation, the legislation or regulation prevails.

Ministry of Education

1. Child Care Impacts of Time-Limited Public Health Actions – Memo
2. Appendix A – Addendum to Child Care and Before-and After School Program Guidelines
3. Appendix B – Complete List of Eligible Workers

Thank-you for your continued support and understanding. Cook’s wishes you a very merry Christmas & happy holiday season!

The bulk of expenses are covered by the fees we collect for our services and some funding from the Province. To assist with covering the increased costs not supported by fees and funding, it is necessary to raise some of the fees effective January 1, 2021.

Please review the new fee guides:

• Cook’s Home Child Care Agency 2021 Fee Guide
• Victoria Park Child Care Centre 2021 Fee Guide

Payment Options Changes – Important

The option for paying once per month will no longer be available effective January 1, 2021. All families will be switched to payment transactions on the 1st and 15th of each month beginning January 1.

Those currently paying once per month will be asked to sign a new payment agreement form.

Annual Administration Fee Due January 1

Please note that the annual administration fee will be due from all families on the January 1st pre-authorized debit transaction. Exception: new families who paid the fee in October, November, or December 2020 are exempt.

Thank you for your continued support!

Cook’s provides an updated Parent Handbook at the beginning of each calendar year.

The 2021 version includes information relating to Covid-19, the change to the preauthorized payment options, the fee guide, and so much more.

Please take some time to become familiar with the information provided and use your handbook as a helpful reference.

In the near future, hard copies will be supplied to home child care families through your provider and centre families may receive a copy during screening if you wish.

Here are the links to the 2021 handbooks:

• Cook’s Home Child Care Agency 2021 Parent Handbook
• Victoria Park Child Care Centre 2021 Parent Handbook

At the beginning of each calendar year, we ask all families to confirm that the information we have on file for your child remains current.

Please take a moment to complete the Annual Information Form at the link provided. The pdf can be filled in and submitted when opened.

If you wish to view your child’s current application, please let us know and arrangements will be made to allow that to happen.

This year Cook’s will be participating in the Scholastic Reading Club program. Reading every day is the best way for children to become independent readers.

New this year: your order will now ship to your home and you can order online whenever you want at scholastic.ca/clubshop

When you checkout, please enter the class code RC241403. When you use the class code, Cook’s earns 20% of the value of the order in rewards and you get free shipping on your order of $35 or more*. The rewards earned can be put towards books, digital teacher resources, and more!

Here’s to a great year of reading!

JOIN OUR ZOOM MEETING

https://zoom.us/j/92367089781?pwd=R3JwMXgxQXNIbDFUeUNsQi9oMXZ6UT09

The agenda is available at this Dropbox link: https://www.dropbox.com/s/44aw1kkf9k5jyda/2020%20Agenda%20-%20AGM%20November%202020.pdf?dl=0

The minutes are available at this Dropbox link: https://www.dropbox.com/s/3kfci7e9fq0cbtu/2019%20Minutes%20-%20AGM%20Sept%202019.pdf?dl=0

The financial statements are available at this Dropbox link: https://www.dropbox.com/s/3xncl7m9kalgyd1/Financial%20Statements%20-%2031%20MAR%2020%20-%20signed.pdf?dl=0

Families, educators & community members are welcome to join!

Cook’s AGM is being held on Thursday, November 12 at 7pm

Register to Join our Zoom Meeting
https://zoom.us/j/92367089781?pwd=R3JwMXgxQXNIbDFUeUNsQi9oMXZ6UT09

Families, educators & community members are welcome to join!

• 2020 AGM Agenda
• 2019 AGM Minutes
• Audited Financial Statements for year ending March 31, 2020

The Ministry of Health has provided a new tool to support decision making about whether a child should attend child care (or school).  The link to the document is below for your information.

https://www.dropbox.com/s/57bhyh9kxil4cqa/Screening%20Children%20v1.0%202020-10-01%20FINAL%20EN%20AODA%20-%2001%20Oct%202020.pdf?dl=0

Please keep it as a reference because this is what Cook’s will be using to screen and monitor children’s symptoms.

New Covid-19 Screening Tool Highlights

Does your child have any of the following new or worsening symptoms? Symptoms should not be chronic or related to other known causes or conditions.

1. If you answer “YES” to any of the symptoms below:

• Your child should stay home to isolate immediately.
• Contact your child’s health care provider for further advice or assessment, including if your child needs a COVID-19 test or other treatment.

• Fever and/or chills  (temperature of 37.8°C/100.0°F or greater)
• Cough (more than usual if chronic cough) including croup (barking cough, making a whistling noise when breathing).  Not related to other known causes or conditions (e.g., asthma, reactive airway).
• Shortness of breath (dyspnea, out of breath, unable to breathe deeply, wheeze, that is worse than usual if chronically short of breath).  Not related to other known causes or conditions (e.g., asthma).
• Decrease or loss of smell or taste (new olfactory or taste disorder).  Not related to other known causes or conditions (e.g., nasal polyps, allergies, neurological disorders).

2a. If you answer “YES” to only one of the symptoms below:

• Your child should stay home for 24 hours from when the symptom started.
• If the symptom is improving, your child may return to school/child care when they feel well enough to do so. A negative COVID-19 test is not required to return.
• If the symptom persists or worsens, contact your child’s health care provider for further advice or assessment, including if your child needs a COVID-19 test or other treatment.

— OR —

2b. If you answer “YES” to two or more of the symptoms below:

• Your child should stay home to isolate immediately.
• Contact your child’s health care provider for further advice or assessment, including if your child needs a COVID-19 test or other treatment.

• Sore throat (painful swallowing or difficulty swallowing).  Not related to other known causes or conditions (e.g., post nasal drip, gastroesophageal reflux).
• Stuffy nose and/or runny nose (nasal congestion and/or rhinorrhea).  Not related to other known causes or conditions (e.g., seasonal allergies, returning inside from the cold, chronic sinusitis unchanged from baseline, reactive airways)
• Headache that is new and persistent, unusual, unexplained, or long-lasting. Not related to other known causes or conditions (e.g., tension-type headaches, chronic migraines).
• Nausea, vomiting and/or diarrhea.  Not related to other known causes or conditions (e.g. transient vomiting due to anxiety in children, chronic vestibular dysfunction, irritable bowel syndrome, inflammatory bowel disease, side effect of medication).
• Fatigue, lethargy, muscle aches or malaise (general feeling of being unwell, lack of energy, extreme tiredness, poor feeding in infants) that is unusual or unexplained.  Not related to other known causes or conditions (e.g., depression, insomnia, thyroid dysfunction, anemia).

Thanks for your support and understanding while all of us respond to new directions and information.  We appreciate it!