Right now in Westman, there are very limited options for private early intervention therapy options. It is unknown at this time if there are any accredited ABA service providers available, however, there is a private Floortime service option.
Newly constructed and located in downtown Brandon is the Westman Child Development Centre (WCDC); an early intervention centre that offers a variety of programs for children 8 years of age and younger and their families. This centre is the realized vision of Owner/Executive Director, Wendy Steede, who has over 17 years of experience working as an Autism behavioral interventionist, Behavioral Consultant, Floortime therapist, Special Education teacher, and Autism and Early Intervention Specialist. The WCDC programs currently include a licensed preschool, private Floortime and Child Development sessions, a social skills group, Triple T Parenting programs, parent night outs, and a weekend “stay and play” program.
The Laugh N’ Learn preschool is a licensed inclusive preschool program for all children between the ages of 2 and 6 years. Sessions run from 8:30 am to 12:00 pm and from 1:00 pm to 4:30 pm from Monday to Friday. The preschool is open year-round and parents may register their child for as many or as few sessions as they like. Every child participating in the preschool program is provided with individual programming tailored to their developmental needs and the center maintains an enhanced adult to child ratio at all times.
| Laugh N’ Learn Preschool general schedule format: 8:30 am to 8:45 am – welcome and free play 8:45 am to 9:00 am – sensory regulation/stretching/circle time 9:00 am to 9:30 am – discovery centres 9:30 am to 10:15 am – free play/social and play skills development 10:15 am to 10:45 am – clean up and snack 10:45 am to 11:30 am – small group and individual teaching 11:30 am to 12 pm – gross motor play and structured gross motor games The same schedule applies in the afternoons as well. Each month the preschool focuses on a different theme and the circle and discovery centres reflect that theme. |
Private Floortime and Child Development sessions are available for children 8 years of age and younger. The WCDC specializes in working with children with Autism, Global Developmental Delay, and Down Syndrome, as well as a variety of other special needs. However, a diagnosis is not necessary for services and any family that has a concern about their child’s development can register for private Floortime and/or child development sessions. Both one-on-one and group sessions are available depending on the needs of the child.
The social skills group is available for children ages 5 to 7 years who have been diagnosed with high-functioning Autism or other delays in social skills. Sessions run in 8-week time blocks and a maximum of four children can attend at one time. The purpose of the group is to teach a variety of instrumental social skills and social perspective taking skills. Each session will focus on a specific combination of skills and include structured teaching activities as well as facilitated play time to generalize the skills learned. The group runs on Mondays and Thursdays from 4:30 pm to 5:30 pm.
| The social skills group uses brief structured discussions, as well as a variety of fun art projects, pretend play, gross motor and fine motor games, snacks, etc. to teach social skills. Skills are taught as follows: Curriculum Week 1: Turn taking and “Whole body listening” Week 2: Asking questions about others and Zones of regulation Week 3: Labeling emotions and flexible thinking Week 4: Review Week 5: Labeling social situations and predicting and dealing with emotions in self and others Week 6: Asking for help and problem-solving a variety of alternative solutions Week 7: Commenting and complimenting and reading body language Week 8: Review |
Prices are reasonable. However you may want to look into possible funding options through CDS (private contract respite care only with the parent night outs – contact your Case Manager for details), private healthcare benefits through your employer (contact your benefits provider to find out what their policies are), or certain charities (e.g. Variety Special Needs Program).
Aside from the age requirements, there are NO requirements needed to sign a child up for any of the programs offered by the WCDC. There are also currently no wait lists for any of the programs either, which means you can start taking advantage of the amazing programs offered at any time!
“I have seen over and over again that children with special needs who receive early, intensive, and specialized services can make incredible progress! Through Westman Child Development Centre, I wanted to be able to offer children with special needs in the Westman area the opportunity to access those needed services that were not currently available. Often children with special needs are provided with early and specialized services, but services are often not intensive enough for what our children need. Westman Child Development Centre strives to provide that. I also wanted to ensure that families and children had access to a place where development could be encouraged for all children and that no child would fall behind because of lack of space, toys, or knowledge about typical child development. I wanted to create a place where all children could reach their full potential and all families felt supported.”
Wendy Steede, Owner/Executive Office of Westman Child Development Centre, on what inspired her to create the WCDC.
Click here to go to the Prairie Spectrum description of the CDS Child Development Program
Click here to go to the Prairie Spectrum description of St.Amant & Early Learning Program