Level Up offers neighborhood youth creative programs that publish youth voice — especially youth whose voices are not often sought out or are marginalized. We do this by engaging youth in publication of newspapers, magazines, and more. Every youth that participates in these programs will grow in confidence, cultivate a growth mindset, and develop their future aspirations. Our staff uses trauma-informed, antiracist, and culturally competent practices to build a safe and inclusive learning environment.
Level Up is offered in partnership with Spokane Public Schools to engage 3rd-5th graders at Holmes Elementary, Audubon Elementary and Garfield Elementary, Title I schools within and around the West Central neighborhood. These programs are made possible through the generosity of sponsors and donors.
Level Up programs take place from 3 to 5 p.m. throughout the school year. Read on to learn more about our curriculum, our school partners, and volunteer mentoring in Level Up!
OUR CURRICULUM
A year of Level Up is organized into three publication projects that engage students in investigative journalism, artistic expression, and community-building. In each project, staff and volunteer mentors guide and support students in identifying playful, impassioned ideas and developing them into powerful, tangible expressions of student voice.
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October - December
Students learn investigative journalism by exploring topics that affect their lives at home, at school, and in their neighborhood. They practice developing inquiries, interviewing others, researching information, and sharing their findings with their community. Throughout the project, volunteer mentors help students find reliable information, confidently interview adults, and compose their writing.
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January - March
Students explore visual art mediums, build confidence in learning new skills, and practice self-expression. They learn new skills in drawing, storytelling, painting, photography, sculpture, and more! Volunteer mentors help students imagine and work towards their end products, celebrate changes they make along the way, and find joy in their identities as young artists.
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April - May
Students share events, activities, and resources for the Summer. They research and practice Summer fun and use what they learn to provide their community with ideas for play and opportunities to come together while school is out of session. Volunteer mentors help students connect with research and community leaders, write and make art about what they learn, and experiment with new ideas for creative play!
OUR SCHOOL PARTNERS
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Wed/Thu/Fri starting Oct 8
3-5 PM
2600 W Sharp Ave
Spark Central has partnered with Holmes Elementary to provide after-school programs in the West Central neighborhood since 2017, when we worked with Holmes Heroes to publish our first two editions of the West Central Express newspaper. In 2021, Holmes was one of two schools to begin hosting Level Up, expanding our newspaper programming to explore art, STEM, and other creative ways to play and learn together! In October 2024, these Heroes will be able to Level Up for three days each week in a pilot expansion of Level Up.
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Wed/Fri starting Oct 9
3-5 PM
222 W Knox Ave
Garfield Elementary is the latest school to partner with Spark Central to host Level Up, with programming expected to begin in October 2024. Most Garfield Grizzlies will join their neighbors from Holmes Elementary at Yasuhara Middle School when they reach 6th grade. We’re deeply excited by the creativity Level Up’s Grizzlies and Heroes will share when they rise together as Yasuhara Phoenixes!
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Tue/Thu starting Oct 8
3-5 PM
2020 W Carlisle Ave
Audubon Elementary partnered with Spark Central in 2020 to pilot Level Up and became one of two schools to begin hosting the program in 2021. Audubon Eagles fly home to the West Central and Emerson-Garfield neighborhoods, as well as to apartment complexes like Sisters Haven near Spokane Falls Community College. We love soaring to new heights with these creative students!
JOIN US - BECOME A MENTOR
Level Up students love their volunteer mentors. If you enjoy spending time with 8-11 year olds, they want to meet you! Mentors receive training from Spark Central to help encourage and develop Level Up students’ creativity and build positive, playful relationships with them. Expertise in writing, visual art, and other subjects explored in the program are not required - all you need is a desire to share yourself with these cool kids!
If you’re interested in learning more about being a mentor or want to sign up to volunteer at one of our school sites, press the button below to contact our Level Up program staff.
SUPPORTING SOCIAL-EMOTIONAL GROWTH
Level Up speaks with youth about their emotions using the “Zones of Regulation” - a social-emotional learning framework taught in the Spokane Public School System. Volunteer mentors in Level Up become well-practiced in this language. Incorporating the Zones of Regulation into daily routines empowers youth with skills for self-advocacy and self-soothing. Students in Level Up’s After School Club have access to a Regulation Zone area to use when their emotions become “yellow,” “blue,” or “red.” In the Regulation Zone club members can read, draw, make magnetic poetry, soothe their senses with modeling clay, fidgets, the ever-popular kinetic sand, or just turn down the sound with noise-canceling headphones. Most students who use the Regulation Zone return to the program in the “green” (“ready to learn”) zone.
Image © Think Social Publishing, licensed from zonesofregulation.com.