Families in Motion
Chilliwack, British Columbia
Barbara Bate

Introduction

Families in Motion is a community-based, multi-cultural family literacy program situated in the heart of the Fraser Valley, approximately one and a half hours east of Vancouver. A close knit community known as the Green Heart of the Valley, Chilliwack and surrounding rural area have a total population of over 60,000. The Families in Motion program for adults and their three- and four- year old preschool children includes an adult component, a child component and parent and child together time. Families (up to 20 adults and 20 children) meet twice a week for three hours per morning in multiple community facilities. The project began in September 1992 with the establishment of a community advisory committee now known as the Chilliwack Family Literacy Council.

In September 1997, Families in Motion marked its fifth successful year of delivery service, a service which takes direction from the program’s mission statement: “As a learning program, Families in Motion recognizes parents as their children’s first and most important teachers, by serving as a foundation for lifelong learning, and by valuing the cultural diversity and strength of the family.”

Program Development and the Chilliwack Family Literacy Council

When Chilliwack first received federal/provincial cost-shared funding for a family literacy project, the mandate was to develop a family literacy advisory council, investigate the need for family literacy, and design a model family literacy program for its communities. With some guidance the Council took shape quickly growing to over twenty members in three months. The original committee members represented the following groups: parents, students, Human Resources Development Canada, Canadian Forces Base Family Resource Centre, Chilliwack Community Services, Chilliwack Landing Preschool, Chilliwack School District, Chilliwack Times Newspaper, Fraser Valley East Literacy Association, Fraser Valley East Regional Library, McCammon Elementary School, Ministry for Children and Families, Skwah Indian Band, Sto:lo Nation, Upper Fraser Valley Health Unit, University College of the Fraser Valley. The advisory committee met regularly each week as needed to accomplish its mandate.

The group wasted no time in deciding how to proceed. Since Chilliwack had no formal community programs addressing literacy development through the family, and since many community agencies were represented at the table, the need for family literacy programming was obvious to the Council. They felt comfortable foregoing the usual needs analysis step and started learning as much as they could about family literacy. Time was set aside to study and discuss the goals, principles, models and issues relating to family literacy. Not surprisingly, the Council quickly developed a working knowledge of the new field.