The Child’s Path Approach

  • Child’s Path provides affordable, high-quality early learning and childcare for children six weeks to five years of age. We are very different from a “daycare” or babysitter because we strive to build a foundation of education and wellness for children in our care.
  • Sliding fee scale scholarship assistance is offered to low-income families attending our programs.
  • Child’s Path uses the highly-regarded Reggio Emilia approach to education. Each child is heard and encouraged to talk, critique, compare, problem-solve, and work independently as well as with others. In short, they are taught to think in a fun, creative way and enjoy the process of learning. There is a focus on art and nature.
  • We aim to care for the whole child and strive to fulfill many of a child’s social, psychological, educational, and physical needs. We do all this in a warm, inviting atmosphere where children are educated by a caring staff of the best and brightest teachers.

Success Benchmarks

Children that met or exceeded growth targets in the following developmental domains last year:

96%

Social/Emotional

98%

Physical

96%

Mathematics

Parent Workshops

Parents are a child’s first teacher, and we strive to engage families to ensure their children’s future success. We offer monthly parent workshops on topics that parents express an interest in. Topics include:

  • Positive Discipline
  • Promoting Early Literacy Skills
  • What You Need to Know for Kindergarten Registration
  • Fostering Self Esteem
  • Establishing Routines
  • Building Independence
  • Learning through Play
  • Early Math Skills

Healthy Meals/Healthy Minds Program

Last year Child’s Path provided over 85,000 healthy, nutrient-dense meals free-of-charge to the children in our Santa Barbara and Moorings programs and engaged their parents on the importance of nutrition. Children require healthy and nutritious meals and snacks to maximize their learning potential. Well-nourished children perform better at school, learn good lifelong food habits and are prepared for kindergarten and beyond.

Healthy Meals/Healthy Minds Program Partners