Leah Snider, Assistant Director & Lead Teacher

Leah is a Registered Early Childhood Educator (RECE) with an honours B.A. from Western University, honours diploma in Early Childhood Education from Fanshawe College, and honours diploma in Autism and Behavioural Science from Fanshawe College. For the past decade she has been working and learning alongside families as an educator, behavioural consultant, and instructor therapist.

Leah’s time working as a classroom educator within childcare centres and schools, and experience providing Intensive Behavioural Intervention (IBI) and behaviour consultation within the private sector has brought a great respect and understanding for the differing needs of families. Through her years working with children, teens, and young adults across the neurodevelopmental rainbow, she has seen just how families can thrive when they are seen, heard, and supported. When a child’s abilities, strengths, and needs are identified, and they can see just how special, valuable, and appreciated they are, that child can flourish!

As the Assistant Director at Spark Education Services, Leah works with children and families, supporting families with executive function and academic skill building, and reading, writing and math remediation. Her passion is to provide individualized, strength-based, and evidence-backed teaching, that honours children’s gifts and abilities. While teaching, Leah likes to promote a whole-child growth mindset, helping children embrace their unique talents and achievements, find their confidence, and build a positive attitude towards learning. She is enthusiastic about establishing a genuine connection with each student and creating a safe space for all where they can feel comfortable and happy to learn as they learn best. Ultimately, her goal is for children to find joy in learning and have fun coming to sessions!

Outside of Spark Education Services, Leah also works as a Community Behavioural Consultant, helping families to decode behaviours, build socialization skills, and find healthy ways for children to express themselves.

A life-long learner, Leah is passionate about learning new skills and updating her knowledge. Her additional training includes: Children’s Mental Health and Trauma certification, The Science of Reading, TeaTree Tells, VB-MAPP and ABLLS-R , Kids Have Stress Too!, and Second Step. Leah is a registered member of the College of Early Childhood Educators and the National Institute for Direct Instruction (NIFDI)

In her free time, you’ll find her singing (she is a trained opera singer!), exploring the outdoors (she loves animals!), and watching Disney movies, as she is a big kid at heart. ♥