POSITION SUMMARY
The Registered Early Childhood Educator (RECE) is the heart of the Child-Minding Program. In a house where every family is navigating a medical crisis, this role creates something rare and necessary: a space where children get to be children. The Registered Early Childhood Educator designs and delivers trauma-informed, play-based programming that meets children where they are developmentally, emotionally, and culturally and gives caregivers the relief of knowing their child is genuinely seen and cared for while they are at the hospital or managing the other demands of life at Ronald McDonald House Southwestern Ontario. The Registered Early Childhood Educator reports to the House Manager, Ronald McDonald House, Southwestern Ontario. The setting is extraordinary, the population is exceptionally complex, and the stakes are high in a way that most childcare environments never experience. The Registered Early Childhood Educator who excels in this role brings deep developmental knowledge, warm relational presence, and a grounded understanding of trauma.
Status: This is a new position that is currently vacant
Position Type: Full-time – 1 year contract, with the potential for renewal
Artificial Intelligence: AI-supported tools may be used in parts of the selection process to help evaluate applications, however, our HR system itself does not include any AI functionality. All hiring decisions are made by people.
Compensation:
To ensure fair and equitable pay, placement within the wage range will be based on your experience, skills, and qualifications relevant to the role. Hiring wage range: $25 - $27 per hour
Benefits include dental and extended health, 3 weeks paid vacation, 10 sick days, 2 wellness days, and flexible scheduling options.
KEY RESPONSIBILITIES
Program Delivery:
- Design and facilitate scheduled, trauma-informed, play-based programming for children ages 2–12 years. The population of resident families changes daily, and the ages of children attending any given session will vary. The Registered Early Childhood Educator assesses who is in the room each day and adapts programming in real time to meet the developmental needs of the children present. It requires genuine flexibility and the ability to restructure a planned session at the last minute without losing its therapeutic intent. Sessions are grounded in trauma-informed care principles and aligned with Ontario's How Does Learning Happen? (2014) pedagogy.
Environment:
- Maintain a safe, predictable, welcoming activity environment that supports emotional regulation, peer connection, and genuine joy. Prepare and set up the activity space before each session; clean and reset after.
Planning and Documentation:
- Develop written weekly activity plans documenting session theme, planned activities, developmental goals, materials required, and age-range adaptations. The daily attendance is unpredictable; plans must include flexible options across the 2–12 age range rather than assuming a fixed group composition. Maintain session observation notes as a record of program delivery and adaptations made.
Family Engagement:
- Build respectful, authentic relationships with families. Communicate with parents and guardians clearly and consistently about the program's purpose, structure, and what their child engaged with in each session.
Administration:
- Maintain required administrative records: attendance logs, consent forms, screening documentation, and incident reports.
Observation & Referral:
- Recognize signs of acute distress, developmental concern, or child protection risk. Adhere to Ronald McDonald House Southwestern Ontario's Protecting Children and Vulnerable Persons & Child Safeguarding Policy at all times. Follow Ronald McDonald House Southwestern Ontario's established referral pathways to clinical supports (Child Life, Social Work, Mental Health Nurse program, and Community Mental Health Partners). Fulfill mandatory reporting obligations under the Child, Youth and Family Services Act, 2017.
Student and Volunteer Oversight:
- Provide day-to-day oversight of the Child-Minding Program student placements and volunteers during sessions. This includes orienting students and volunteers to the program, supervising their involvement in activities, and ensuring they do not work unsupervised with children at any time. The Registered Early Childhood Educator is responsible for completing required student placement documentation and reports, and for meeting regularly with student placement coordinators from partnering post-secondary institutions to support the student's learning objectives and placement requirements.
Team Participation:
- Participate in regular supervision with the House Manager, team debriefs following significant incidents, and professional development activities required by the College of Early Childhood Educators and Ronald McDonald House Southwestern Ontario.
Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion:
- Embed DEI principles into all aspects of operations and programming, fostering an inclusive and equitable environment.
- Champion diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives in all mission-focused activities of RMH-SWO.
QUALIFICATIONS / KNOWLEDGE REUQIRED
Education & Experience:
- Early Childhood Education Diploma from a recognized Ontario college or equivalent
- Current registration in good standing with the College of Early Childhood Educators of Ontario — use of the protected title RECE is required for this position
- Demonstrated understanding of trauma-informed practice principles, adverse childhood experiences (ACEs), and pediatric medical traumatic stress
- Experience in healthcare, hospital-adjacent, or high-needs family service settings preferred
- Formal training in trauma-informed care principles preferred
Skills, Knowledge & Abilities:
- Relational presence: Connects warmly and quickly with children and families who are mid-crisis and meets people where they are on their worst days.
- Emotional Regulation Support: Skilled in co-regulation; reads distress without reacting to it; de-escalates without dismissing. Understands that behaviour is communication.
- Developmental Flexibility: Adapts programming in real time based on who is in the room today versus what was planned last week. Comfortable designing for and pivoting between the needs of a 3-year-old and a 10-year-old in the same session when required.
- Cultural Responsiveness: Programs reflect the full diversity of Ronald McDonald House Southwestern Ontario's families; they do not assume family structure, language, or cultural background.
- Ethical Clarity: Understands professional scope precisely; knows when to refer and does not delay; fulfills mandatory reporting obligations without equivocation.
- Self-Awareness and Resilience: Recognizes secondary traumatic stress in themselves; maintains professional well-being as a tool of the role; uses supervision.
- Familiarity with sibling support programming or pediatric psychosocial care models preferred
- Additional language skills reflecting the Ronald McDonald House Southwestern Ontario family population (Arabic, German, French, Spanish) is considered an asset
Other Requirements:
- Current Criminal Reference Check and Vulnerable Sector Screening are required prior to the start date
- Current Standard First Aid and CPR — Pediatric (minimum)
- Clear two-step TB test
WORKING CONDITIONS
Ronald McDonald House is a safety net for families and strives to help alleviate the isolation and stress families feel when they have an ill or injured child. All staff must display care and compassion, possess emotional maturity and discretion, and respect the dignity and rights of guests, volunteers, and other staff members. Keeping confidentiality is of the utmost importance
Hours of Work: Wednesday – Saturday 8:00am – 4:30pm
Travel: Occasional travel may be requested
Ronald McDonald House is a family centered brand and deeply values the lives of its employees inside and outside of the Ronald McDonald House. We offer a competitive pay, 4-day work week, comprehensive benefits and a generous vacation package. Ronald McDonald House is committed to principles of anti-oppression and employment equity. We strongly encourage members of Indigenous, ethno-racial, LGBTQ+, Francophone, immigrant, refugee, differently abled, and other equity-seeking groups to apply and self-identify. If accommodation is required during the hiring process, please inform the hiring manager or committee once you have been selected for an interview. We thank all interested applicants, but only those selected for an interview will be contacted.
Pay: $25.00-$27.00 per hour
Benefits:
- Dental care
- Employee assistance program
- Extended health care
- Flexible schedule
- On-site parking
- Paid time off
Work Location: In person
