Earlier this week, more than 20 teachers gathered at Schou Education Centre in Burnaby to mark the end of another successful year - and only a few of them can walk or talk.
These "teachers" were the 22 babies who worked with more than 500 children in Burnaby schools since last fall through the Roots of Empathy program.
The celebration on Wednesday brought together the babies, parents and educators from around the district who helped facilitate the visits to local schools.
But as this year's program draws to a close, organizers are already looking ahead to next year. In particular, the program needs families with babies being born this summer, in June, July or August.
Roots of Empathy is an award-winning program that provides empathybased programming for children.
Babies are matched up with an elementary classroom and then, with a parent, visit that classroom roughly once a month throughout the year.
Children get the chance to learn about a baby's needs, their development and to interact with the baby by singing and talking, guided by a trained Roots of Empathy instructor.
The Roots program, along with its younger-age program Seeds of Empathy, have both been shown to reduce levels of aggression among children and raise social and emotional competence and increasing empathy.
The program, which was first launched in 2006, is currently delivered to school children from kindergarten to Grade 8 across Canada, in Seattle, New Zealand, the Isle of Man, Northern Ireland, the Republic of Ireland and Scotland.
In Burnaby, it's been running at local schools for more than a decade.
Burnaby families with babies being born this summer in June, July or August can apply to take part in the program next year, starting in the fall at a number of local schools, by contacting organizer Doreen George at 604-664-8716.
For more, see www. rootsofempathy.org.
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