First Years Child Care jobs

Child and Youth Care Worker (Full-Time)

Location: Edmonton and surrounding area.

Schedule:

• Day (7:00 am - 3:00 pm) 6 days on, 3 days off rotation.

• Evening (3:00 pm - 11:00 pm) 6 days on, 3 days off rotation.
  
• Overnight Awake (11:00 pm - 7:00 am) 6 days on, 3 days off rotation.

Before you read on…

• This is not just a shift on your schedule.
• This is a role where a child’s trust, joy, and sense of safety depend on you showing up, fully present.
• If you’re simply looking to add another job to your roster, this is not the right fit.
• But if you are ready to laugh, play tag, shoot hoops, set healthy boundaries, and be a steady, caring presence through the hard days and the good ones, keep reading.

Why Your Transparency Matters

Our goal is to provide excellence in service for the children we provide care for and build a team with the comfort, knowledge, and skills to truly make a difference. This work will test your patience, stretch your creativity, and demand your accountability. But it will also give you the chance to make a lasting impact in the life of a child who needs it most. When expectations are clear from the start, we can prevent unexpected disruptions, which can be heartbreaking for the children and the team.

What Success Looks Like

• A child smiles because they feel you genuinely care.
• They invite you into their world, whether that’s basketball, video games, or simply a quiet walk.
• You set respectful boundaries: “Internet time is done for today,” and they know you mean it, firm but fair.
• You help them navigate complex emotions with patience, empathy, and consistency.

A Day in the Life

• Build trust through playful engagement and mentorship.
• Guide youth through crisis in challenging situations by using role modelling, encouragement, and crisis intervention strategies.
• Support them with your presence, engagement, and accountability.
• Create moments of joy, whether that’s organizing a game, cooking together, or teaching life skills.
• Document daily activities and observations with attention and care.
• Collaborate with Program Supervisors to support individualized therapeutic plans.

Behaviour Management Comparison

Please note: The Child & Youth Care Worker (CYCW) role is significantly different from a daycare or childcare position.While both involve supporting children, the purpose, approach, and level of responsibility in a CYCW role are unique and specialized.

What Behaviour Management Looks Like in a CYCW Role

In this role, you will be working with children and youth who often have complex behavioural, emotional, and trauma-related needs. Behaviour management is not about basic supervision, it is about understanding the underlying causes of behaviour and responding in a therapeutic, relationship-focused way. Key aspects include:

• Providing individualized, trauma-informed care tailored to each child's history and needs.
• Supporting children and youth who may display behaviours such as aggression, resistance, withdrawal, or emotional dysregulation.
• Actively building trusted, meaningful relationships that help promote healing and stability.
• Teaching coping skills, modelling healthy boundaries, and providing consistent emotional support.
• This work is intensive, relational, and specialized, requiring empathy, patience, and the ability to understand behaviour as communication.

How This Differs From a Daycare Setting

A daycare environment typically focuses on group routines, play-based learning, and general supervision.
Behaviour management usually involves guiding children through common developmental challenges such as sharing, turn-taking, and following simple rules.
Additionally:

• Children in daycare generally come from stable home environments with minimal trauma-related behaviours.
• Care is short-term and group-based, rather than deeply individualized.
• The role emphasizes routine and safety, not therapeutic intervention or long-term relationship building.

What You Bring

• A deep passion for supporting youth with complex behavioural and emotional needs.
• Patience, compassion, and the ability to stay calm in tough situations.
• A balance of playfulness and structure, you can laugh, run, and play, but also hold firm boundaries.
• Knowledge (or willingness to learn) around trauma-informed care, wholistic well-being, and child development.
• Experience in youth care, working with complex behavioural needs, social work, or related fields is an asset.

Your patience already shines, having taken the time to read and reflect on this opportunity. Give yourself the space to truly consider whether you are ready to open your heart, and to commit to a life-changing role for both you and the youth, if you are, we would love to hear from you.

Compliance Regulated Requirements

• Own a reliable 4-door vehicle to transport the individual(s).
• An active Alberta Class 5 Driver's License.
• A clear Alberta 3-year Driver's Abstract (3 years driving experience is not required).
• A current Standard/Intermediate First Aid with CPR Level C (Canadian Provider in person, or blended).
• $2 Million Alberta Auto Insurance Liability coverage.
• Clear Criminal Record with Vulnerable Sector Check obtained within past 5 months.
• Clear Intervention Record Check obtained from Children Services within past 5 months.

Regulated Physical Requirement

To perform this role, the employee must be able to:

• Remain active, alert, and engaged while supporting youth in daily activities, including swimming, biking, sports, games, and community outings.
• Meet the physical demands of the role, including:
  • Walking and standing for extended periods.
  • Kneeling, crouching, bending, reaching overhead, twisting, pushing, and pulling.
  • Occasionally lifting or moving items weighing between 10 and 50 lbs.
• Work in a variety of environments, including indoor settings with varying temperatures and lighting, as well as outdoors in different weather conditions.
• Respond calmly and confidently to challenging, unpredictable, or emotionally heightened situations while maintaining awareness of your surroundings.
• Maintain a compassionate, patient, and professional approach, even during physically or emotionally demanding shifts.
• Adapt to the changing needs of youth, remaining attentive, responsive, and actively involved throughout your shift.

The PERKS!

Permanent Full-time employees receive:

• Health, dental, vision, and travel benefits.
• Employee and Family Assistance Program.
• Group RRSP matching after one year of active full-time employment.
• We are partnered with ZayZoon, an employee benefit that gives you instant access to your wages ahead of payday.
• Career growth opportunities in a growing, award-winning organization.
• Innovative technology to assist in your daily routine of providing care.
• Mobile App. access technology.
• Cornell University TCI Training (Therapeutic Crisis Intervention).
• Ongoing training & professional development.
• A collaborative and diverse organization supporting you through your journey in making an impact in the lives of youth, so you never feel alone!

We thank all applicants for applying; however, only candidates selected for an interview will be contacted.

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