Our Educators

Blue Heron

Marley Cummings (she/her) (co-owner) is a Montessori Preschool Educator from Vancouver Island who has been working with children for 10 years. She completed her Montessori Preschool training in 2014 and received her Early Childhood Educator Diploma with a specialization in Inclusive Care (Special Needs Educator) in 2019 and her Infant and Toddler specialization in 2021. She has worked in a variety of school settings, from large private institutions to small in-home daycares. Through this experience, Marley has discovered what really works for children and what needs to evolve in order to continue offering best practice in education.

Marley is committed to the families and shares her knowledge and insight into the child’s world with home caregivers. Marley has had experience working with children from all walks of life, and she has always been able to connect, support them on their personal journey to reach their goals, and provide unconditional acceptance and love.

Marley is also a multi-talented educator, who brings life and excitement into the classroom through sharing her passion for verbal story-telling and performance. She has taught classes of the arts for children and enjoys incorporating this element with weekly opportunities for the children including dance, music, theatre, and multi-media art. Marley shares her knowledge of the French and Hul’qumi’num languages with children in the form of games, songs, and stories.

Nestlings

Kayla Kemp (she/her) (co-owner) was born and raised on the island. It brings her great joy to watch children explore the world through natural discovery of their environment, while following their inner guide. With her love for gardening, sewing, and baking, she is always eager to find a way to incorporate her hobbies into the children’s daily learning.

Kayla has been providing care for children ages 1-5 for the past 15 years. She graduated from Camosun College in 2010 with a certificate in Early Childcare Care and Education.  In 2017 she received her credentials in Montessori Early Learning through Age of Montessori. In 2021, Kayla completed her Montessori Infant and Toddler training. Prior to starting Blue Heron, Kayla was an educator at a large Montessori private school for 8 years. During this time she took on many different roles such as classroom assistant, CASA directress, and pre-school directress. Through this she has experience in time management, classroom management, scheduling, and curriculum planning. During her time as a classroom assistant she has worked alongside children with higher needs such as Down’s Syndrome, Autism, and learning differences.

Her love for each child and their family is always shown by creating strong personal relationships that include open communication. She sees each and every child as their own special being and is always observing them to help foster their interests and support their needs.

Blue Heron

Heather Blackie (she/her) has been working with children for her whole life. She has a
long-standing passion for the Montessori system and encouraging child-led learning and
learning through play.
Heather grew up in the UK and has lived in Canada since 2015. She has worked with
many different children’s groups and as a foster carer for young people at risk.
Heather has worked and traveled in some of the most interesting parts of the world
including providing humanitarian relief after disasters. She loves the outdoors and
exploring nature. She likes to bake and loves trying out new recipes. She loves music
and especially enjoys the spontaneous performances made by children. She loves
animals. She tries to live sustainably and loves gardening and making beautiful things.
When she’s not at work, Heather loves spending time with her family and exploring the
beauty of Vancouver Island, in particular Port Renfrew.

Blue Heron

Hello, my name is Caelan Sinclair (she/they) and I was born in Southern Ontario, but I spent most of my formative and adult life here on Vancouver Island. I received my ECEA credential through Pacific Rim Early Childhood Institute in the summer of 2024, fresh off the heels of graduating from the University of Victoria. Through the University of Victoria, I completed my undergraduate degree in Psychology. In the latter half of my degree, I specialized and focused a large amount of my academic attention towards courses in child development and neurodiversity, especially when I had the privilege of learning about both at the same time. In my time before working in childcare, I provided one-on-one support and care to children with developmental disabilities like ADHD, Autism, and other learning difficulties. Growing up in a neurodiverse household myself, I learned just how critical it can be for a child’s success to build and cultivate learning spaces that are warm, loving, and supportive as a means of uplifting all children unconditionally. I strongly believe in meeting a child where they’re at and letting our youth drive as much of their development as they can, building their self-esteem based on their own values and perceptions, rather than solely from external validation. One thing I have learned across my experience as an educator or support worker is that learning is an infinite experience, if you have the humility to take in the lessons around you. I have just as much to gain and learn from my relationships with children as they do from my guidance. The greatest joy and fulfilment I receive from life is by continuing to learn and develop my expansive view of the world, the development of our youngest populations, the power and importance of strong community, and myself.

I have the great pleasure of joining such an inclusive and deeply thoughtful community here at Blue Heron and I especially look forward to the connections I will build with my coworkers, the children, and their families. In my free time outside of the classroom, I am a musician and fiber artist. I spend a lot of my afternoons crocheting critters and gifts for loved ones, as well as strumming the strings of my ukulele at local open mic events.

Blue Heron

Courtney Rathbone (she/her) is an ECE who has been working with children for three years. She has a passion for encouraging learning where the child takes the lead in their learning, and she is there as a conduit of guidance and support. Nothing brings her greater joy than watching a child express pride in something they have overcome, made, fixed, invented, and/or been fascinated by. Culture and diversity are at the heart of who she is as a person. She was born in South Africa, grew up in the UAE, and has lived in Canada now for 14 years. She thrives on learning about cultures, places, and varying outlooks on life. One of her favourite parts of the job is creating connections with the families and learning about their life’s stories and seeing those influences on their children’s growth and development. A few fun facts about her are that she loves to travel and she used to work on a cruise ship (Spain, Jordan, and New Zealand are three of her most favourite destinations so far). She loves to cook and her most favourite form of cooking is taking all her leftovers and seeing what she can make with them. Lastly, she loves almost all genres of music and enjoys playing them for the children to see what different kinds of music inspire within them.

Nestlings

Emily Nanibush (she/her) is an Early Childhood Educator that specializes in infant-toddler and inclusive care (special needs education). She completed her Montessori teacher training for Infants and Toddlers in 2022. She moved to Vancouver Island in 2020 and enjoys exploring and being outside. Emily loves incorporating nature in the classroom and spending time outside with the children.

Emily has experience with all different age groups, her experience includes teaching in a kindergarten classroom, preschool classrooms, and infant-toddler classrooms. She enjoys the different aspects of early learning with all age groups. Emily treats each child with love and respect and believes that children learn best through play.

She believes that the infant-toddler age is a profound stage of development in which the foundation of character is built. Emily enjoys teaching the love of learning and encouragement of exploration. 

In her free time, Emily loves photography, being creative, going for walks and bike rides. She is committed to incorporating activities based on each child’s interests. 

Nestlings/Blue Heron

Amanda Vonk-Minot (she/her) has worked in the childcare field for the last 8 years in a variety of different roles. She earned her Early Childhood Educator certificate in 2022 after doing her training at Pacific Rim Early Childhood Institute. She is currently in her final year of an undergraduate degree in Psychology with a minor in Art Education.
Amanda’s most recent position was as an art instructor for children and she is a hobbyist painter, potter and sculptor in her free time. She is excited to explore more Montessori based art practices and activities.
She really enjoys being able to build bonds and connect with each child and family and values their individuality. Her favourite part of the job is watching the children learn and be excited about the world around them.

Nestlings

Kirandeep Kaur (she/her) has a diploma in General Education (arts) from Langara college in Vancouver. Further, she got her Early Childhood Education Assistant (ECEA) from Coastal college in Surrey. She has worked as an ECEA for more than 2 years. Currently, Kiran is pursuing her ECE studies from Pacific Rim College in Victoria and is completing her final practicums.

Kiran has been providing care to different age groups. She believes that strong partnerships with families are key to a child’s success, and she values open communication and collaboration. She has learned from her experience that each child is unique, and she strives to tailor her approach to meet their individual needs. Her goal is to encourage curiosity, independence, and creativity, helping children develop the skills and confidence they need to thrive.
Other than this, Kiran loves music, reading, shopping and travelling. She loves to spend her days off exploring different places.

Nestlings

Adrienne (Ro) Durand (they/them) recently received their ECEA certificate and continues taking courses online at UBC to achieve their ECE diploma. Ro has been working in private childcare since beginning their ECE courses and is overjoyed to branch out into a new area of the childcare field. Ro has a Bachelor’s degree in fine art (drawing & painting) with a minor in social sciences. Ro is always looking for ways to incorporate their visual art experience into their practice and help children express themselves creatively. As a former Montessori attender, Ro is passionate about the benefits of child-led education. Ro is interested in sharing their love of literature with children. Ro prides themselves on being sensitive, compassionate and caring. Their goal is always to make sure every child they work with feels seen and heard by doing their best to understand the child’s perspective. Ro loves music, animals, enjoying nature, reading, crafting and appreciating music.

Nestlings

Nicoly (Nicky) Dal Piazze (she/her), a Brazilian educator, has been residing in Victoria for five months. Holding a Bachelor’s degree in Pedagogy alongside a specialization in Neuropsicopedagogy, focusing on literacy and dyslexia, she brings experience working with children ranging from 6 months to 9 years old, with a particular emphasis on infant development.

During her second year in the pedagogy program, from 2018 to 2019, Nicoly worked as an educator assistant at a local childcare center in her hometown. In this role, she cultivated a nurturing and intellectually stimulating environment for children aged 6 to 18 months, under the mentorship of experienced educators.

Certified in Early Childhood Education Assistance (ECEA) since 2023, Nicoly is currently pursuing further professional development through enrollment in the Early Learning and Care program at Camosun College, expected to be completed in December 2025. Additionally, she is seeking certification in Montessori education, aligning with her educational philosophy.

Nicoly advocates for children to take an active role in their learning process and values nature, imagination, and creativity as essential components of child development. Energetic, curious, nurturing, and dedicated, Nicoly ensures each child feels motivated and secure in their educational journey.

In addition to her professional endeavors, Nicoly is fluent in Portuguese, her native language, enabling her to engage children through songs and games. In her free time, she enjoys cooking, practicing meditation and yoga, and taking long walks on the beaches surrounded by nature.