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City’s 10th Kids & Company centre opens in Rosedale

It’s about 2 p.m. at the Rosedale Kids & Company Centre, which opened the day before, and — for a daycare — it is eerily quiet.

“The children are having their nap,” director Ashleigh Strybosch says.

The other childcare staff are using the down time to tidy up the mats, tables, chairs, toys and playing stations in the large and small rooms that take up two floors in the Rosedale Presbyterian Church building on Mt. Pleasant Road at South Drive.

Kids & Company location
LATEST LOCATION: The new Kids & Company centre has a large space in the Rosedale Presbyterian Church building at 129 Mt. Pleasant Rd.

The  centre opened on Nov. 15, the 10th Kids & Company centre in Toronto, with two more scheduled to open over the next year. In fact, there is already one close to Rosedale on Bloor Street East.

The new location is expected to handle up to 50 children, mostly from the Rosedale area plus a few from other overflowing centres, Strybosch says. So far, 10 have registered but the school is expected to fill up very quickly.

She describes the school’s educational philosophy as being “child-led,” letting children learn through activities they enjoy.

The company’s motto is “Where work and play come together” and its website says “Through play, all areas of development are fostered.”

And the kids do seem to enjoy their time there. Once they’ve roused from their nap they are eager to show their toys to a photographer and are easily engaged in fun activities by staff.

Ribbon cutting for Kids & Company
OPEN FOR WORK AND PLAY: The Rosedale Kids & Company Centre officially launches on Nov. 15 with the ribbon being cut by, from left, centre director Ashleigh Strybosch, Reverend Seaton Brachmayer of the Rosedale Presbyterian Church, company CEO Victoria Sopik, and Toronto area director Anna Green.