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Home / Programs / Children and Youth / The Kid Kit®
Empowering parents to strengthen their understanding of child development and learn new ways to play with and support their child.
For more information or to make a referral, contact: Rebecca Jansen, Associate, Children & Youth
The Kid Kit® is a powerful tool that supports the positive development of social skills, communication skills, motor skills, pre-literacy and general knowledge, and emotional regulation through play.
The program provides vital early childhood development resources for parents to use with their children to increase bonding, early learning, responsive interaction, and positive development.
In turn, children are better prepared for the social aspects of starting school and can focus on academics. And we know that success in school can help kids stay in school until graduation, which helps build stronger, stable futures.
There are five different Kits, one for each developmental stage from birth to five years of age. Each Kit contains activity cards that describe “how” to play with your child and “why” a particular activity is necessary for development as well as all the toys, books, and craft supplies to complete the activities.
Thanks to the ongoing support of donors, Kits are distributed free of charge to designated programs within agencies and organizations that provide services for young children and their families along with home supports. In 2022, 2,161 Kits were distributed across the region.
The Kits are distributed free of charge to designated programs within agencies and organizations that provide services for young children and their families. Intended Outcomes:
The Kid Kit® was first developed and delivered in Edmonton through a community partnership in 1998. Thanks to the generous funding from Alberta Children’s Services in 2015, The Kid Kit was updated with the latest research on brain development, new books, toys, and strategies and is now an ongoing resource offered by United Way of the Alberta Capital Region.
As of 2022, 20 partners distribute Kits, including three Indigenous-based agencies, two newcomer-focused, and one Francophone.
Books by Indigenous authors, chosen in collaboration with the Centre for Family Literacy and Indigenous community input, have been added to each Kit. Each book’s theme reflects Indigenous worldview, aligning Indigenous Knowledge with the developmental stages of each Kit.
“We loved these kits in our community, they were a very interactive and helpful tool to work and communicate with the caregivers and children in our community…they were very appreciative and excited about what was in them. A lot of the time the responses were so powerful, it is exciting to use a tool that engages parents/grandparents/aunts/uncles and caregivers to interact with their children.” – Service Provider
An advisory committee including representatives from Alberta Health Services, Centre for Family Literacy, Alberta Home Visitation Network Association, Early Childhood Development Support Services, and Alberta Children’s Services provided ongoing guidance and expertise, including significant contributions to The Kid Kit® re-development and online training.
A special thank you and appreciation to the Zupan Family, whose generous donation has made this program possible.
A training manual and a series of training videos are available to support service providers’ capacity to use The Kid Kit® in their work with families.
211 Alberta provides information and referral services, connecting people to a full range of essential social, health, and government services in the community
Alberta Health Services provides important information about childhood immunizations, safety, everyday care, parenting, growth and development, and common health concerns.
By donating your time, you’ll be getting early childhood development tools and resources into the hands of kids and families in need, setting them up for success before they even reach school.
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