Over one million Canadian children are at risk of NOT being prepared for kindergarten because their families struggle with conditions of poverty and low levels of literacy.

The HIPPY childhood development program addresses the diverse needs of these families to maximize the educational potential of their pre-school children.

HIPPY Canada is about helping parents learn how easy, fun and rewarding it is to teach their children at home.

HIPPY Canada Video

Press Release

May 1, 2013, 9:29 p.m. EDT

Minister Kenney Announces Funding for Newcomer Integration Through HIPPY Program

OTTAWA, ONTARIO, May 01, 2013 (Marketwired via COMTEX) -- Newcomers who participate in the Home Instruction for Parents of Preschool Youngsters (HIPPY) Program will benefit from $2.6 million in new funding over the next three years, Citizenship, Immigration and Multiculturalism Minister Jason Kenney announced yesterday at a reception hosted by the United States Ambassador David Jacobson.

"Though programs like HIPPY, our government is giving newcomers the best chance possible to integrate into Canada and contribute to a prosperous society," said Minister Kenney. "The government has had a strong affiliation with the HIPPY Program for many years and is proud to help immigrant parents in their vital role as their child's first and most important teacher."

The HIPPY Program has a strong track record of assisting with settlement and integration of newcomers. It helps parents to be a child's first educator by improving their own literacy skills and fostering active participation of new Canadian families in Canadian society.

The HIPPY Program was developed in Israel in 1969 as an evidence-based, community-driven program. Since it set up shop in Canada in 1999, HIPPY has expanded its operations and now does remarkable work in 15 communities across the country. Over the past 13 years, HIPPY Canada has reached out to more than 6,000 newcomers as well as Aboriginal and other Canadian families.

Citizenship and Immigration Canada's settlement allocations for provinces and territories outside of Quebec have almost tripled from less than $200 million in 2005-2006 to about $600 million for the current fiscal year.

Follow us on Twitter at www.twitter.com/CitImmCanada

Photos of Minister Kenney are available.

Building a stronger Canada: Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC) strengthens Canada's economic, social and cultural prosperity, helping ensure Canadian safety and security while managing one of the largest and most generous immigration programs in the world.

Contacts:

Alexis Pavlich
Minister's Office
Citizenship and Immigration Canada
613-954-1064

Media Relations
Communications Branch
Citizenship and Immigration Canada
613-952-1650
CIC-Media-Relations@cic.gc.ca

Scaling High Impact

March 26, 2013, Vancouver, B.C.

Scaling High Impact provided a solid theoretical grounding in performance management; leading-edge examples from Canadian and US social sectors; and concrete tools and skills for strengthening your performance management work.

The event was attended by service providers, representatives from all levels of government, and funders who are striving to improve and navigate effective social and economic impact in their work with communities.

Speaker PowerPoint Presentations:

Social Impact Bonds by Ian Gill, Principal, Cause+Effect
Demonstrating Value by Bryn Sadownic, Program Manager, Evaluation & Community Impact, Vancity Community Foundation
Tools for Performance Management by John Bianchi, Senior Solutions Specialist, Social Solutions
The HIPPY Canada Experience by Debbie Bell, CEO, HIPPY Canada & Susanne Nahm, Information Management Coordinator, HIPPY Canada
Performance Management in the USA Public Sector by Matt Schubert, General Manager, Public Sector, Social Solutions

Lives Changed

“Strengthening communities, helping parents, helping children”.

That`s what the HIPPY program is for.

As parents we do put a lot of time and energy into preparing our children for their schooling and future, and rightly so, we do indeed need to equip our children with skills to prepare them for this future. It is our collective responsibility as we guide and mold the leaders of tomorrow.

We all know that they have started their remarkable journey towards achieving this goal with the help of the many tools, developed materials, curriculum and books provided by the HIPPY program.

This program not only helped me as a parent to educate my children at home but also introduced a good idea about the Canadian Curriculum. I was able to overcome the language obstacles and merge easier with the community with the help of the information provided by my home visitor about the community services and events and also during the HIPPY information sessions on career preparation, volunteer opportunities and many other informative sessions that we attended at HIPPY.

This program helped my daughter Dania to develop and improve her learning skills through the different activities that we used to work together every day, retelling the story and drawing her favorite part which was an important step in reading and writing, shapes, colors and counting, different science activities where she had the chance to compare between materials, objects and sizes and as we all know this is important to develop our children`s critical thinking.

That`s not all but it`s just amazing to see how much a little child can learn in a year.

Our thanks and appreciation goes to the HIPPY program. All the home visitors, and the coordinators, and the lecturers for the fantastic role that you have all played to facilitate this program.

These were my heartfelt emotions. I want HIPPY program to be proud of its graduates. I will do my best to demonstrate to everyone outside that we didn’t graduate with improved English language only, but with a family like bonding with all of the Hippy program staff. Thank you to my home visitor for all your time and commitment to me and my child Dania, thank you to my site’s coordinator for your coordination and guidance.

Finally I would recommend that this program be more popular to new immigrants to get the chance to enroll and benefit from it.”

Suzan Khalil, HIPPY Mom

GIVING: How Each of Us Can Change the World

Bill Clinton
"I wish there were HIPPY programs in every community with a significant number of single mothers or poor, undereducated parents. Anyone who has ever been to a HIPPY graduation ceremony and seen the pride and self-confidence of both parents and children would agree. Even if you are not a parent of a preschool aged child, you can take the lead in bringing HIPPY to your home town, volunteer to be a home visitor, or support them with money or other services." (Clinton: 2007, p. 73)



Debbie Bell, executive director HIPPY Canada, Miriam Chandia, Britannia home visitor and Robin Green, Aboriginal Consortium coordinator meet Bill Clinton on November 1, 2007 in Vancouver, BC.

HIPPY Patrons

His Excellency, the Right Honourable David Johnston, C.C., C.M.M, C.O.M., C.D, Governor General of Canada, and Her Excellency, Sharon Johnston





HIPPY Canada gratefully acknowledges our funders and donors for their generous support.









(Anonymous donor)