Program Manuals

Manuals:

3 Stars and a Wish (click to open pdf)

3 Stars and a Wish is a project that creates the opportunity for existing oral traditions in the local community to be used as tools for improving literacy.

Each of the 6 to 8 one-hour sessions includes:

  • Activities designed to help promote oral storytelling and literacy skills for children
  • Literacy activities for parents and children to do together
  • A healthy snack

3 Stars and a Wish connects a child and a parent to a mentor. With the mentor facilitating the sessions, parents are encouraged to share a personal or family story that they feel would be valuable for the child. It is then put into writing by the child.

Parents and children are encouraged to offer a wish for each other which is written both in the primary language of the family and in English. These stories are printed and published into a book that is distributed to the participants at a final book launch.

C4F Book Bags (click to open pdf)

A Book Bag is a family literacy tool that brings reading to life, and encourages reading in a fun and safe way. It is a great way for children and adults to read together. Book Bags are not for sale; they are made by and for the community.

What goes into a Book Bag?

  • A good quality storybook
  • Props, scenery and characters to connect the story
  • A non-fiction book to support the storybook
  • Reading tips and activity ideas for parents and teachers
  • Word or number games based on the story
  • A contents page
  • An audio recording of the story (with written consent from the author)

Sharing Book Bags with parents, siblings, friends, Grandparents, teachers, childcare providers, baby-sitters and any one else who spends time with children is an educational and fun experience that can develop into a lifetime habit. Book Bags are an opportunity to introduce a wide range of books to your child and to provide an opportunity for children to identify with the joy of reading and for parents to actively support their children.

Uzazi Pamoja (click to open pdf)

Uzazi Pamoja: an inter-generational community project and support group for newcomer families, nurturing language and learning, and fostering bonding through parent-child interaction.

Uzazi Pamoja is a program designed for newcomer families with toddlers and/or preschoolers.  Sessions focus on the challenges of parenting in Canadian culture and child development for parents, while literacy activities and a healthy snack using at least two food groups are offered for children. Uzazi Pamoja strives to provide these resources in an environment that is safe, fun, and accessible to all.

Each session includes:

  • Activities designed to help promote appropriate emergent    learning and literacy skills for children
  • Activities designed to help parents develop skills necessary for parenting in a new culture
  • A healthy snack
  • Helpful messages about literacy, attachment, healthy eating, safety and parenting
  • Rhymes and literacy activities for parents and children to do together
  • Activities intended to be fun family stress reducers
  • Opportunities for participants to get to know one another and their community
C4F Wiggle Giggle Munch Manual FINAL (web) (click to open pdf)

This handbook is designed to give as much information as possible to enable you to run a Wiggle, Giggle & Munch program in your community. It was revised in 2019.