Explorez tous les épisodes du podcast Sparking Conversations on Culturally Responsive Childcare

What assumptions about play might we be carrying without realizing it—and who gets left out when we expect play to look a certain way? 

In this episode, we sit down with Alison Rinas, Manager of Inclusive Childcare at KidsIncluded, and Shay Saxton, Early Learning Inclusion Navigator at KidsIncluded, whose work focuses on creating inclusive, relationship-centred early learning environments where children experience belonging. Alison and Shay explore how our own experiences, cultures, and ideas about childhood can shape what we consider “meaningful” play—and why reflecting on those assumptions is an important part of inclusive practice. They discuss the vulnerability of examining bias, the value of reflecting alongside trusted colleagues, and how shifting our perspective can help us recognize different types of play. 

Listeners will walk away with practical ways to question their assumptions and strategies to create environments where children with different abilities can play, move, and communicate.  

Mentioned in episode: 

• KidsIncluded – A non-profit that works alongside families and community partners to deliver early learning inclusion support and strengthen skills. To learn more, click here.  

• Self-reflection – The internal process of examining your own thoughts, feelings, and behaviours. To learn more on how educators can reflect on their own biases and assumptions, check out the Resource Hub.  

What can children’s play teach us about who they are and what matters to their families? 

In this episode, we sit down with Amaka Amadike, faculty member at Bow Valley College and Executive Director of Between Cultures Foundation, to explore how culture shapes the ways children play, connect, and make meaning. Drawing on more than 20 years of experience across different countries and communities, Amaka shares stories of children bringing languages, family practices, and traditions into their play. We talk about why educators do not need to be experts in every culture—but do need to stay curious, ask respectful questions, and create space for children and families to share what is meaningful to them.  

Listeners will walk away with practical ways to notice culture in everyday play and build stronger partnerships with families so children can see their identities valued in early learning spaces. 

Mentioned in episode: 

• Between Cultures Foundation – Calgary-based nonprofit dedicated to advancing equity and inclusion for Black, immigrant, and racialized children and families in early childcare settings. To learn more, click here. 

• Cultural Iceberg – A visual metaphor that shows the visible and invisible aspects of culture. To learn more, click here. 

• Piaget’s Stages of Cognitive Development – This theory describes how children’s thinking abilities develop across four stages. To learn more, click here. 

• Vygotsky’s Theory of Cognitive Develop – In his theories, Vygotsky emphasizes the role of social interactions and culture in learning. To learn more, click here.

What can we learn about children’s thinking when they play? 

In this episode, we sit down with Dr. Ozlem Cankaya, Associate Professor in Early Learning and Curriculum Studies at MacEwan University, to explore the connection between play and children’s cognitive development. Dr. Cankaya shares how pretend play and loose parts can support language, problem-solving, self-regulation, and flexible thinking. We also talk about how play looks different across cultures and why educators need to observe closely to decide when children need uninterrupted time, a new material, or a little more guidance.  

Listeners will walk away with a deeper understanding of what children are learning through play and practical ways to observe, support, and extend play without taking over the experience. 

Mentioned in episode:  

• Cognition – The mental process of developing, processing, and using knowledge.  

• M.C Esher’s Water and Sky Painting – To see the painting Dr. Cankaya used in her undergraduate research, click here. 

• Loose parts play – Open-ended  objects that children can move, combine, build with, and transform in many creative ways. 

• Loose parts play and STEM skills – To read Dr. Ozlem Cankaya’s full  research paper Loose parts play encourages spontaneous science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) behaviours click here.

How do you create a childcare system that truly supports culture, diversity, and belonging?  

In this episode, we sit down with Rebecca Leong, an early learning leader with over 20 years of experience and a strong focus on educator well-being and children’s rights, to explore what culturally responsive practice looks like when differences show up in the everyday. 

Together, we reflect on how leadership, mentorship, and reflective conversations can create safer spaces for educators to explore their own identities. Rebecca shares honest stories about discomfort, growth, and the importance of building systems that support curiosity, kindness, and authentic cultural learning—not just for children, but for the workforce itself. 

Listeners will walk away with practical insight into how to start meaningful conversations, support educator well-being, and create environments where both children and educators can bring their whole selves to the work. 

Mentioned in this episode: 

• Rupertsland Institute – Métis Early Learning and Child Care Training. Visit website here.   

• ARCQE Conference – Learn more here.  

• FLIGHT Framework – Alberta’s Early Learning and Care Framework. Access here.  

• Spark Trainings – Visit the Spark website to learn more about Introductory Modules, our video series, and the In-Depth Spark Guide Training for Program Leaders.  

If you’re curious to learn more about culturally responsive practices and want to access the free Spark guide, resource hub, and trainings, and more check out www.sparkguide.ca ✨   

Que signifie soutenir les enfants tout en renforçant une langue et une culture ? 

Dans cet émission, l'animatrice invitée Meghan Perrin s'entretient avec Kirsten Wallace, directrice de la prématernelle La Capucine à Calgary et professeure au Campus Saint-Jean, au sujet de l'apprentissage précoce dans le contexte minoritaire francophone de l'Alberta. 

Ils explorent la double mission des éducatrices.eurs francophones : prendre soin des enfants tout en cultivant l'identité francophone dans toute sa diversité. Kirsten partage des stratégies pratiques pour créer des espaces accueillants, établir des partenariats solides avec les familles, soutenir la réflexion des éducateurs et créer des environnements où les enfants et les parents se sentent en sécurité pour prendre des risques en matière de langue et d'appartenance. 

Les auditeurs repartiront avec des idées concrètes pour ancrer une pratique culturellement adaptée dans la curiosité, les valeurs communes et l'établissement de relations courageuses. 

Mentionné dans l'épisode :  

1. La Capucine – pour en savoir plus, cliquez ici. 

1. Storypark – Application de communication et d’engagement familial, pour en savoir plus, cliquez ici ici. 

Si vous souhaitez en savoir plus sur les pratiques adaptées à la culture et accéder gratuitement au guide Spark, au centre de ressources, aux formations et à bien d'autres choses encore, rendez-vous sur www.sparkguide.ca/fr ✨   

What if navigating difference wasn’t a problem to solve, but an invitation to learn? 

In this episode, we speak with Deanna Mendoza, an award-winning early childhood educator and Coordinator of the Care for Newcomer Children Program at the Edmonton Newcomer Centre, about the everyday realities of navigating cultural difference in early learning spaces. 

The conversation explores how assumptions—often unspoken—can shape planning, interactions, and celebrations, and what becomes possible when curiosity replaces judgment. Deanna reflects on the importance of ongoing learning, listening to families as individuals, and creating environments where educators feel encouraged to bring their own experiences and questions into the work. 

Listeners will leave with practical ways to pause, check assumptions, and approach difference with openness—so early learning spaces can grow into places where families feel at home, educators feel supported, and children experience true belonging. 

Mentioned in this episode: 

• Care for Newcomer Children Program – To learn more, click here.  

• Learning Stories – a reflective documentation approach that centers children’s experiences. More about Learning Stories on the Flight Framework website. 

If you’re curious to learn more about culturally responsive practices and want to access the free Spark guide, resource hub, and trainings, and more check out www.sparkguide.ca ✨   

What changes when we treat children’s languages as strengths? 

In this episode, we speak with Andrea MacLeod, a researcher on multilingual families and bilingual development, about early learning in minority language contexts and the powerful role childcare plays in shaping how children and families understand themselves. Together, we reflect on how children build bridges with their languages and cultural knowledge and how program-level commitments and everyday practices can signal whose knowledge and voices are valued. 

Listeners will come away with practical ways to reframe multilingualism as a strength, support families through transitions, and create early learning environments where children and families never have to leave parts of who they are behind. 

Mentioned in this episode: 

• Multilingual storytelling – To learn more about the work of the Multilingual Families Lab and access resources for Growing Up Bilingual, click here.  

• Family Manifesto for Early Learning and Childcare – a strengths-based tool and conversation starter to learn from families as knowledge holders. To access the Family Manifesto, click here. 

• Supporting Ethnocultural & Multilingual Families: A Video Series – Gain insight into the experiences of ethnocultural and multilingual families and learn how to build strong, trusting relationships that promote belonging. Access the video series here.  

If you’re curious to learn more about culturally responsive practices and want to access the free Spark guide, resource hub, and trainings, and more check out www.sparkguide.ca ✨   

What becomes possible when leadership is grounded in collaboration rather than hierarchy? 

In this episode, we speak with Adine Shuchuk, Executive Director of Jasper Place Family Resource Centre, about how thoughtful, values-based leadership can uplift educators and strengthen culturally responsive practice. 

The conversation explores how slowing down, centering shared values, and creating intentional spaces for reflection can transform staff meetings into communities of practice. Adine shares how pedagogical mentors, collaborative decision-making, and “doing with, not to” approaches help create environments where educators feel safe, heard, and supported to learn together. 

Listeners will come away with practical ideas for fostering collaborative leadership—using values to guide difficult conversations, designing inclusive learning spaces for staff, and nurturing professional communities where cultural responsiveness and quality care grow side by side. 

Mentioned in this episode: 

• Jasper Place Family Resource Center – To learn more, click here. 

• FLIGHT Framework – Alberta’s Early Learning and Care Curriculum Framework. To learn more, click here. 

• Access Support and Participation (ASaP) – Professional learning series that builds upon educators’ skills and confidence using the Pyramid Model framework. To learn more, click here. 

• Spark Guide – A guide to culturally responsive childcare and early learning for educators and program leaders. To download or learn more, click here. 

If you’re curious to learn more about culturally responsive practices and want to access the free Spark guide, resource hub, and trainings, and more check out www.sparkguide.ca ✨   

What do we do when a child names a difference, and we’re not quite sure how to respond? 

In this episode, we sit down with Jasvinder Heran, Executive Director of the  Intercultural Child and Family Center in Edmonton, to explore the moments that make educators pause, feel uncomfortable, or second-guess their words. We talk about slowing down, centering safety and approaching moments of difference with curiosity rather than judgment. Together, we explore how courageous conversations with children—and with each other—can shift us from fixing to understanding, and from fear to connection. 

Listeners will walk away with practical ways to pause, listen more deeply, and practice culturally responsive care rooted not in having the “right” response, but in presence, reflection, and relationship. 

Mentioned in this episode: 

• Intercultural Child and Family Centre – To learn more, click here. 

• Family engagement resources (coming soon!) – Flexible and practical tools for educators to strengthen relationships with families and learn about their unique family culture.  

• Third space – a space, separate from home (first place) and work (second place), where people gather to connect, relax, and build community. To learn more, click here.  

If you’re curious to learn more about culturally responsive practices and want to access the free Spark guide, resource hub, and trainings, and more check out www.sparkguide.ca ✨   

What if childcare spaces could tell the stories of families? 

In this episode, we talk to Jody Merrick, from the Terra Centre in Edmonton, an early learning leader who shares her experiences shaping childcare spaces with families, not just for them. Through reflection and lived experience, the conversation explores how listening deeply to families can transform walls, spaces, and everyday choices into powerful expressions of belonging, identity, and community. Jody shares stories of small, intentional decisions that had big impacts—and how spaces can begin to feel truly alive when families see themselves reflected within them. 

Listeners will come away with practical insight into how suspending assumptions, prioritizing relationships, and creating time for reflection can help educators and leaders build more culturally responsive, community-rooted early learning spaces. 

Mentioned in this episode: 

• FLIGHT – Alberta’s early learning and care framework that centers relationships, reflection, and responsive practice. To learn more and download Flight, click here.  

• Terra Centre for Teen Parents – Learn about Terra Centre here. 

• Bent Arrow Traditional Healing Society – To learn about Bent Arrow’s cultural offerings, visit their website here.  

If you’re curious to learn more about culturally responsive practices and want to access the free Spark guide, resource hub, and trainings, and more check out www.sparkguide.ca ✨   

What happens when we stop trying to be the expert and start getting curious instead?  

Our first guest is Naheed Mukhi, a parenting and early childhood curriculum developer and champion for culturally responsive childcare. This episode asks educators and leaders to consider: What shifts when curiosity guides our work? And how does early learning become a shared space of care, partnership, and possibility? 

We invite listeners into a thoughtful dialogue about sharing the work with families—as experts and holders of cultural wealth—and creating environments where many ways of knowing are welcomed.  

Mentioned in this episode: 

• Cultural Wealth: A model by Dr. T.J. Yosso that reframes communities as holders of knowledge, experiences, and strength. To learn more, click here.  

• MCHB, the Multicultural Health Brokers: An Edmonton co-operative of cultural brokers with the goal of enhancing the health and well-being of families, fostering community-building and thriving, and actively contributing to society. To learn more, click here.  

• Family Manifesto for Early Learning and Childcare: A strengths-based tool and conversation starter to learn from families as knowledge holders. To access, click here. 

Welcome to Sparking Conversations on Culturally Responsive Childcare! This podcast invites listeners into honest conversations about culture, belonging, and inclusion in everyday practice. 

Hosted by Sarah Andrews and Thea Luig, members of the PolicyWise team that created the Spark Guide, each episode features educators, program leaders, and cultural experts across Alberta sharing real stories, reflections, and practical ideas. 

Whether you’re new to Spark or looking for fresh inspiration, this podcast is here to support you!