Bee Me Kidz has shifted to a portable format during Level 3 when kids and their families can't meet in person. Image: Bee Me Kidz
During Level 3, Bee Me Kidz is offering a portable version of their popular Saturday at the Hive program which operates at schools in Saint John and at Milltown Elementary in St. Stephen.
Executive Director Missy Bewick said ‘Bee Me Kidz In-A-Box’ includes a fun activity that helps kids with their social emotional learning and includes a lesson for their parents.
“We also do a child’s lesson and our lesson also get sent home at school. We do another lesson that they would have learned at school. So this week they would have learned about ‘yet’. They can’t do something yet. They have fun activities to reinforce that,” Bewick said
Under normal circumstances, the Bee Me Kidz program works with almost 2, 000 kids at five schools in Anglophone South.
Success of St. Stephen Program
Milltown Elementary School in St. Stephen added Bee Me Kidz last September.
Missy Bewick said the school has been incredible.
“Even when we are not able to offer our Saturday program and there are some kids in the school, there is still teaching of our lessons, they are making sure the children are still doing the activities because they see the value. They see the change it’s made within the school community,” Bewick said.
Bewick said the program at Milltown Elementary has been able to bring in friendship and support for families that may not have had it before.
Bewick said offering the boxes in place of the regular program shows they care.
“Just because we can’t be there in person, we want to make sure they understand, we are still there for them. Our center leaders call our families each week just to check in. For some families, it will be the only happy call they get each week so we want to make sure if they are struggling we can provide them with different resources,” Bewick said.
She adds it’s also important to listen and to speak with their families about adult things.
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