SPARK!
The SPARK! program is designed to support families in their efforts to raise children who feel confident, competent, and excited about learning. The SPARK! program is implementing the Thrive! Birth to Five Program ©, which is designed to build connections -
• Between families and children
• Between research and our everyday experiences with young children
• Between families and their unique culture and community
The evidence is very clear: Families are the ones who have the most influence over their young child’s learning, and supportive communities can help families raise their children. Together, we can create the relationships that support each other, and will create the kind of community that we want to raise our children in.
In the program, families reflect on how children learn and grow. We discuss the latest research on brain development and education, and we give practical ideas to support the child’s learning and growth at each age and stage of development. Together, we look at the things that influence children. It is the small things we do for our children – the shared smiles, talk, and stories, that add up to have a BIG influence on who they grow up to be. Each time families attend, we discuss fun new strategies and ideas to help families talk, read, play and learn together.
Parents and caregivers attend each class with others who have children that are the same age. During the class we hear what other families in our community have enjoyed doing with their children. For ninety minutes each fall, winter, and spring we gather together to think about the research, hear new ideas, learn about developmental milestones, and celebrate our children’s growth. Free childcare is provided on-site. The British Columbia Early Learning Framework provides the structure for the material that is covered, and all the subgroups of the framework will be considered during the course of each year. This allows families to become
familiar with this framework, and offers a springboard for discussion and reflection.
SPARK! classes are held in the elementary schools on the Sunshine Coast, in the mornings, afternoons and evenings. SPARK! is also held in the Aboriginal Education Building of the Sechelt First Nation, located on Sechelt Nation Band Lands, and is taught by a teacher of Sechelt Nation heritage with training in Aboriginal Education.
During the SPARK! program families are given materials and toys that they can take home. These materials are developmentally appropriate, and will equip parents with a continual stock of new supplies to fuel their fun times at home with their child.
School District No. 46 (Sunshine Coast) is working with the Imagination Library and Invest in Kids in order to bring books to the homes of children under the age of five who live on the Sunshine Coast. The SPARK! Program is the official registration site for the Imagination Library. Families who attend the SPARK! program are offered the opportunity to have an age-appropriate book mailed directly to their home in their child’s name once a month.
By pairing the Imagination Library with a family support program such as SPARK! parents receive valuable information on ways to engage their young children when sharing these books together.
Learning happens naturally, through the experiences, relationships and joy that families share with their children.
Come join us. Let’s create communities where our children Thrive! - Birth to Five…and BEYOND!
To register, phone (604)885-6787 or email:
register4spark@sd46.bc.ca
For more information, contact Kirsten Deasey, Early Learning Coordinator at (604) 740-7949 or by email at
kdeasey@sd46.bc.ca