Services

Direct Instruction (DI)

DI is intensive academic intervention that centers around carefully planned out and controlled instruction using a prescribed curriculum. The learning increments are small to ensure that students master what they are working on. For this reason, students follow a slow and steady trajectory. DI is one of the most explicit and structured academic interventions available. Teachers follow lessons that remediate specific skills and advance slowly. Instructional scaffolding is built into the program to provide intense support to start and then gradually withdraw as the student gains skills. Data is gathered every session to highlight achievements, guide programming and identify additional areas of need. DI meets children exactly where they are at and builds on everything they can already do. Direct Instruction is not a ‘quick fix’. Programming decisions are guided by a child’s skill level, not their grade level, and for this reason they experience success from the very beginning. The philosophy behind DI and the shared belief of our teaching team is that EVERY SINGLE CHILD can learn if taught properly. You can read more details about DI here.

Educational Consultation

All students and families have access to educational consultation while receiving DI. This can include communicating with the classroom teacher, IEP Consultation or coaching for IPRC meetings. These services are also available to students and families not receiving DI services at an hourly rate of $200. In most cases, Educational Consultation will include both the Director and an additional member of our teaching team. We value bringing the most well-rounded expertise and guidance to our discussions. We begin the process with an intake call to determine the best next steps. The intake call is free of charge.

Executive Functioning Coaching

If your child has ADHD, there is a good chance they would benefit from learning about strategies to do things like stay organized, manage time, regulate their emotions, maintain and/or switch focus and prioritize tasks.

We offer weekly or bi weekly support with an Ontario Certified Teacher who will get to know your child, their strengths and weaknesses at school and about the way their current classroom works. Using their school work, we can support your child in understanding how their brain works and what strategies will help them not only do better at school, but also advocate for the things they need to achieve their potential in an academic environment.

Please contact bdangerfield@sparkeducationservices.ca to talk about what you are looking for and how we might be able to support.

Putting the FUN in Executive Functioning – Executive Functioning Group

Together with the Help Hub, we offer this engaging group for students in grades 6-8 to learn about and practice practical strategies and tools that:

improve their flexibility
teaches them how to plan
helps them be more organized at school and at home
builds skills for better regulation of feelings, behaviour and thinking

The curriculum is evidence-based and designed specifically for students at this age group who have executive functioning challenges. The group usually runs for 6-weeks and costs $130 / weekly session. The cost of the group is often covered by extended health benefit plans and OAP funding.

Please contact info@sparkeducationservices.ca for more information about our next group.

Inspiring Mathematical Minds

One of the traits most associated with achieving high levels of math is a growth mindset. Yet, in so many math classrooms, math is presented as a performance subject. You either get the answer right or wrong, and this leads to a fixed mindset in students who find math difficult, as well as those who don’t. When you listen to experts (like Conrad Wolfram) on the skills that people will need for the jobs of the future, it’s “people who can ask good questions, set up models, analyze results, and interpret mathematical answers’ (Jo Boaler, 2016). The jobs of the future will need people who are able to think mathematically and do what computers can’t. In this group we work on math problems in creative, visual, and inquiry-based ways. Students will leave with a strong understanding of math concepts, such as algebraic thinking, pattern recognition, reasoning, stronger number sense, and improved confidence that they can and/or continue to achieve math at a high level. Sessions will focus on challenging problems that encourage deep, creative thinking and reflect the “real” work of mathematicians. Students will work on problems collaboratively, learn to justify their thinking (reasoning), explore mathematical concepts visually, and learn that math is more than computations. By the end of the sessions, students will have a deeper understanding of the role mathematics plays in understanding the world and will feel more confident tackling their math work in the classroom. This group is designed to provide ALL math learners with a boost; both the students who don’t feel confident in their math abilities and those that do. Wherever your child is on their math journey, the lessons will challenge, excite, and inspire them to think differently about mathematics.

Bridging Support

For students who are neurodiverse, the school day and busy classroom environment can sometimes present significant challenges. For students who have temporarily taken a break from school, we offer 1-on-1 support to both help them maintain a partial academic routine, continue to build skills and support them in transitioning back to school successfully. This programming is highly personalized and always involves working closely with the student and their family. For more information about how we might be able to support your child, please contact bdangerfield@sparkeducationservices.ca

1560 Queen Street East, Unit 202, Toronto, ON

info@sparkeducationservices.ca