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A crash course in daycare

Daycare is now a fact of life for many Canadian families but for most of the past century it's been the subject of fierce debate. Turn-of-the-century day nurseries were considered little more than "child farms" by many, while politicians of the 1950s blamed juvenile delinquency on daycares and "crèches." More recently a debate has swirled around the merits of universal daycare versus traditional parenting. CBC Archives looks at the changing face of daycare, from its charitable beginnings more than a century ago to the ongoing fight for a federally funded system.

Many people still think of daycare as little more than glorified babysitting, but not Peter Jordan. The host of the CBC's It's A Living spent a day working in a day-care centre where he had to contend with separation anxiety, naptime and how to remove a kid from your legs.
This CBC Television clip follows Jordan as he learns a thing or two about the life of a daycare. 
. Unlike Peter Jordan, a worker in a government-licenced daycare typically requires a degree in Early Childhood Education (ECE). Private or unregulated daycares operate under provincial health and safety laws but are not required to employ ECE-trained workers.


. A veteran CBC producer and host, Winnipegger Peter Jordan is best known for his long-running series It's a Living. The show began in 1995 as a segment on CBC Television's Midday. Buoyed by its popularity with viewers, the segment graduated into its own series in 1997.

. The show, which ran for seven seasons, featured Jordan trying his hand at a wide variety of jobs including animal chiropractor, baby photographer, cattle rancher, and a spoof of the 1996 Olympic Games in Atlanta called "The Redneck Games."
. Jordan was born on Feb. 16, 1952, in Winnipeg and boasts a master's degree in religious studies. Prior to It's a Living he hosted a popular variety show called The Rocki Rolletti Show which featured a spoof rock and roll band with Jordan as lead singer.

. Jordan has also won two Gemini awards for Best Host.
. 2003-2004 was the final season for It's a Living. Since then Jordan has continued to write, host and produce documentaries and features for television. He also reports on various human interest stories for Canada Now in Winnipeg.
. Though he appears in this clip to be befuddled by the prospect of working with kids, Jordan and his wife have two sons of their own.

. To learn more about Winnipeg's daycare system, go to the additional clip "Raising our children in basements".  
Medium: Television
Program: Midday
Broadcast Date: Jan. 25, 1995
Host: Tina Srebotnjak
Reporter: Peter Jordan
Duration: 5:08

Last updated: June 8, 2012

Page consulted on December 21, 2012

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