COLWOOD STRONGSTART BC CENTRE OPEN FOR PRESCHOOLERS

VICTORIA – Parents, caregivers, children, teachers and Sooke school district staff are celebrating the official opening of the Province’s StrongStart BC early learning centre at Colwood Elementary, Education Minister Shirley Bond announced today.

“We are helping children in the Colwood area gain the skills they need to be ready for success in school,” said Bond. “Every time I visit a StrongStart BC centre I am impressed by the enthusiasm that is shown for this new program. It is certainly providing new opportunities for children and their families right across the province.”

StrongStart BC is a free drop-in early learning program for preschool-aged children accompanied by a parent or caregiver. A qualified early childhood educator leads activities, including stories, music, and arts, to help children grow linguistically, emotionally and socially, and become comfortable in a school-like setting.

All of B.C.'s 60 school districts have been offered the opportunity to participate in the StrongStart BC program. The Province has committed $43 million for 400 centres by 2010. StrongStart BC centres also help fulfil government’s election platform and throne speech commitments to use underutilized school district space as centres to deliver early-learning services.

The Sooke school district has received $47,000 for the Colwood Elementary StrongStart BC centre. This includes $20,000 to prepare the Colwood Elementary in-school space, including renovations and the purchase of new equipment and learning materials and $27,000 to fund this year's operating costs, including staff, professional development, supplies and healthy snacks.

“The new StrongStart BC centre at Colwood Elementary is a positive addition for children in the West Shore area,” said Sooke board of education chair Wendy Hobbs. “We are pleased to work with the government on giving our children the tools they need for success in school.”

The StrongStart BC centres are helping the Province reach its goal of making B.C. the best-educated, most literate jurisdiction on the continent.

In addition, the Province has created the Early Childhood Learning Agency, which is currently conducting a feasibility study on offering all-day kindergarten for five-year-olds and optional all-day early learning programs for children aged three and four by 2012.

Since 2001, government has invested more than $145 million in new literacy initiatives, including pre-literacy and early learning programs such as almost $12 million to operate the kindergarten readiness program Ready, Set, Learn and $2.7 million for the ActNow Literacy Education Activity and Play (LEAP BC) program that encourages literacy, physical activity and healthy eating in preschool-aged children.

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Media contact:	Public Affairs Bureau Ministry of Education 250 356-5963

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