Karlin Mann: Building the Foundations for the Future

Some footage used in this video was filmed prior to the pandemic and may not depict social distancing measures.

Transcription – Karlin Mann- 2021 Prime Minister's Award for Excellence in Early Childhood Education

[Photo, with voice over. Photo: A woman and children standing looking a gingerbread man. Music playing.]

My style with children is to really just try to connect with them on a personal level. Learn about their interests and find out what they are all about.

[Fade to white with a medium shot of woman, smiling, on the right side of the screen, with the following words appearing, line by line, on the left: Karlin Mann, Oak Street Nursery School, Winnipeg, Manitoba. Music playing.]

[Cut to photo, with voice over. Photo: Kids painting pictures of sunsets with Karlin looking on.]

"I like to joke around. I use a sense of humour. That's usually my approach is just to have fun, joke around, get to know them and see who they are. So that I can offer them challenges and a program that works for them."

[Cut to Karlin in the interview setting.]

"Each child develops at their own pace. And in their own way. And being able to meet them where they're at. And sort of being able to provide them with opportunities that they can feel a challenge, but at the same time successful. One of our main goals is always to work on their confidence and their self-esteem so that when they are faced with a challenge that they aren't afraid of it and that they're willing to take it on. And I think that sort of sets the kids up for success. And that's sort of what makes a program successful too."

[Fade to black and then up to Karlin in the interview setting.]

"We had a lot of families who had like a stay at home parent all the time. So part-time programs worked for them. And as the years went by we were finding that more families were needing full-time care, more dual-income families. And so part-time programs weren't really working for them. So what we did was we sort of collaborated with our neighbouring school and designed a program where we would pick kids up from the neighbouring school. And then they could stay for a longer chunk of time, but it still worked within our license. We're pretty proud of that because is sort of filled a gap for parents who couldn't find full daycare because there's so few spaces available in our province."

[Fade to black and then up to Karlin in the interview setting.]

"My advice to an aspiring teacher would first be to enjoy it and do it with all of your heart. And I sometimes think of teaching as being a sales person. And you sort of have to sell what you're trying to teach. So the more enthusiastic that you are, and the more interested in it that you are the more interested that students will be."

[Music stops. Fade to black, with the Government of Canada FIP and then the Canada Wordmark appearing in white.]

Year: 2021 — Province: Manitoba
Certificate of Excellence Recipient

Oak Street Nursery School
Nursery School
2 to 6 years
Winnipeg, Manitoba

Quote

“Karlin has led our school through a number of visionary changes that have had a significant impact not only on the school but also on parents and on the community. She carried out a full review of the school curriculum and philosophy, she oversaw renovation of the space, she gave the school a new public identity through rebranding, and she was the force behind long-term funding viability. Karlin has likely protected the school from closure.”

Colleague

Philosophy of care

For Karlin, early childhood education is about offering all children inclusive opportunities to explore the world around them, and support as they navigate and fit into our world. It is about observing and assessing each child and getting to know them well enough to meet their individual developmental needs. It is also about providing activities where they can practice their cognitive, social, physical and emotional skills and use those moments to build their confidence and self-esteem.

Support of child development

Over the last 13 years Karlin has instilled a classroom environment of exploration, acceptance, independence, and inclusion. Following a Reggio-Emilia inspired philosophy, children begin their year learning and talking about themselves and their families. Openness and unconditional acceptance are a given, and differences are celebrated. This introduction provides them with familiar subject matter and eases them into their new environment.

In the classroom, children are exposed early to literacy and numeracy concepts. Vocabulary is introduced naturally, for example through finding everyday objects. The inclusion of literacy and numeracy skills in the curriculum allows children to explore without the pressures to meet developmental milestones.

Involvement with parents, families and the community

Innovative thinking led Karlin to engage Oak Street Nursery School as a partner with the University of Winnipeg as a founding member of the ToyBox project in 2018. ToyBox provides freely accessible tools and strategies for developing early literacy and numeracy skills in young children, in addition to wellness tips for parents. The program connects with families around Manitoba, many of whom are lacking resources and opportunities for early childhood education. The aim is to provide simple, at-home activities for parents to do with their children, in an effort to address gaps in school readiness. This initiative has been a great success, increasing knowledge exchange between University researchers, ECE children, school educators, and frontline staff at the school. This project is at the forefront of innovation in early childhood education in Manitoba.

Manitoba recently implemented a new funding model for nursery schools that provides equity across all programs, resulting in up to an over 200% increase for programs like Oak Street Nursery School. Karlin has been advocating for an equitable system for a number of years and provided direct consultation to Manitoba Families on this matter. Her contribution has been a key element of the changes we are now seeing. She is a big part of the vitality and sustainability of early childhood education in Manitoba.

Get in touch!

Oak Street Nursery School
255 Oak Street
Winnipeg MB  R3M 3P7
204-488-1133
Email: oakstreetns@mymts.net