The Afterschool Program
The Afterschool Program is an after-school program for Urban Native Children from ages 6-10 years of age. The funding for the initiative came from the Greater Vancouver Urban Aboriginal Strategy.
The After School Special provides tutoring, safety, life-skills and recreation in order to support these children in their community. The daily routine consists of homework assistance, a healthy snack, planned activities and free play.
Our ongoing work with families residing in our housing has highlighted the need for a free after school program that will provide young children an opportunity to engage in a variety of fun, challenging a safe ways to develop self-esteem, a sense of responsibility and life-skills.
The program also contains a mentoring component where the children can form long-term relationships with Elders in their community. The relationships with Elders enable the children to develop a strong sense of cultural pride and belonging. At Vancouver Native Housing we believe these qualities create strong communities. Our long-term goal is to develop safe, healthy, cohesive communities that are sensitive to the culture of all First Nations. |
