**This post has been sponsored by Spark! to bring you this experience. All opinions are 100% our own!**
My son and I recently visited a local spot filled with magic and creative inspiration in Dallas. SPARK! is a hands-on learning and total creative immersive environment. Your kids will love it and so will you.
SPARK! is a non-profit and their mission is to ignite the spark of creativity inherent in all children. And they’re launching two new after-school programs – the Creator Studio and the Music Program. Follow SPARK! to keep up with the latest on these programs. An open house for Creator Studio will be held during Sunday open hours beginning in November.
At SPARK!, they define creativity as a sense of wonder that invites exploration and the discovery of new possibilities. This is apparent when you walk through the space. There is art and inspiration everywhere you look. There are paintings and mosaics on the floors, hand-painted butterflies made from soda cans, repurposed metal work throughout the space, and so much more.
My son and I were both in awe during our recent visit to SPARK! I had no idea the building I have walked by dozens of times included the 6,000-foot Climb, Crawl, Slide Sculpture. He must have thanked me for taking him to SPARK! about 10 times on our way home. And the next day he was still talking about how much fun he had. Words can’t do SPARK! justice. I can’t wait to take him back during SPARK! public hours. Open hours are 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturdays and noon to 5 p.m. Sundays.
SPARK! serves children in second grade through high school with programs that build problem-solving skills, raise self-esteem, and promote academic growth. More than 13,000 children participate in SPARK! programming annually, more than 40 percent of whom are from low-income homes. SPARK! offers week-long camps, after-school programs, group field trips, and open hours during the weekend. They also offer private events. This place is #birthdaypartygoals, y’all.
Creator Studio will provide middle school and high school students a collaborative workshop environment where they can use various tools and technologies to build, invent, create and problem solve. The program combines the equipment of a MakerSpace, technology of a computer lab, and the materials of a tinker studio. Did I mention this is FREE?! Be sure to follow SPARK! to keep up on the latest for Creator Studio open house starting in November on Sunday’s.
Students participating in Creator Studio will be trained to use analog and digital tools, attend skill-building workshops led by professionals, artists, artisans and engineers, and engage in projects they choose based on their strengths and interests.
The six-week SPARK! Music Program runs November 5 through December 10. It takes place 5:30 p.m. to 7 p.m. on Mondays and is geared toward children ages 7 and up. Participating students will take part in active listening sessions, learn to play and create unique instruments, and record their own music. This program is $225 and drop-ins aren’t allowed for the Music Program.
Don’t miss out on the wonderful gift SPARK! is offering young people at a time when creative learning opportunities are disappearing from schools. I’m already counting down the years until my youngest will be old enough to go with me and my son on our creative adventures at SPARK!
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