Glen Vienneau
Northern News Services

Yellowknife (Oct 27/00) - As Tammy Hewitt chops pieces of cantaloupe, the kitchen is the closest she gets for quiet time at the day care.

"There's never a quiet time to sit down...there's always something to do," Hewitt said.

Preparing snacks and meals for the children is just among the many duties for the teacher at the Kids First Child Development Centre.

Looking after the infants is her main priority when the centre opens at 7:30 a.m., something she has done for the past four years.

"I teach the walk, the talk, the do's and don'ts."

While Hewitt cleans and tends to the infants' needs, other staff are busy with older children with games, crafts and story telling.

Those are activities that provide "a lot of hands-on play" which helps children improve hand-eye coordination.

With older children, Hewitt makes education fun by taking them on outings whenever the weather permits.

That may involve fields trips to the riding stable or to the airport.

"As long they enjoy coming to the day care every day, that's what counts,"

Although, her days can be hectic, the many good days make up for the few bad ones in between.

"The kids make my job worthwhile," said Hewitt.

"You have to have a big heart and lots of patience to do this job."

But, no matter problems develop during the day, such as a child experiencing teething, it all ends for her at 5:30 p.m. when the parents drop by to pick-up their children.

"You get to a point where you go on holidays and you have 29 kids that you have left behind...and you start to feel that withdrawal.

"You have to come back and see all of your kids."

They may not be her children, but she admits after spending so much time with them, they become just like her own.

Parents depend on her to inform them about their child's progress, especially when walking their first steps or saying their first words.

"Every day, when the parents come, they get a full report on how their child's day was,"

At the same time, Hewitt is also able to advise parents about any concerns they may have at home.

"They come to us because they know we deal with their kids all day long."

On the other hand, parents support Hewitt and other staff in return, as the centre is a non-profit organization.

In the evenings or weekend, volunteer parents do the grocery shopping, repairs, fund-raising, carpet and floor cleaning.