The superintendent of the Kamloops-Thompson School district says 40 kindergartners at Arthur Hatton Elementary School will benefit from an expansion of the Seamless Day Kindergarten pilot when it gets underway in January 2022.

Rhonda Nixon tells NL News she is excited as it will help students excel in all aspects of their development.

“We actually have before and after school care for our current kindergarten students at that school. So if you’re a parent, your child will be actually in a school from morning until you pick them up in the afternoon with people who you get to know and who care and know and understand early childhood,” she said.

“So it is a really good opportunity for our school district.”

As part of the pilot program, SD73 has hired two Early Childhood Educators who will provide before and after school care in the kindergarten classroom in addition to working with the teacher to support student learning while school is in session.

Nixon says Arthur Hatton was chosen as there was interest from that school to pilot the program the way it was intended to be set up.

“Mike Johnson, who is currently principal there, he is very excited to have the early childhood educators in his school, not just before and after school, but also for the 40 students in between in the school day,” Nixon said.

“You need someone who will champion the program, who really wants the staff to be in their school to make them part of the community and so the idea here is that while we’re starting in one school, hopefully what we learn in that school can be transferred to others and this might be a model we try to explore in other locations.”

The Seamless Day Kindergarten pilot program was first launched by the provincial government in four schools though with this expansion, it will now be in 25 schools across various districts. The program makes use of existing classrooms, outside of school hours, and does not require new rooms or buildings.

“Too many parents still don’t have access to the before- and after-school care they need,” Katrina Chen, B.C.’s Minister of State for Child Care said, in a statement. “Using existing classrooms means we can create new spaces quickly, and it will make it easier for busy parents to get to work and have peace of mind knowing their kids are cared for and learning, all in one spot.”

The provincial government says this pilot is part of the 10-year ChildCare BC plan that meets the growing child care needs in communities across the province.