Kootenay Family Place in Castlegar celebrated National Children's Day Tuesday with story telling from CBAL, vendor booths, child screening, and snacks.
"For National Children's Day, the early intervention team is doing an ages and stages screening," said Michelle Pierce, West Kootenay/Boundary Supported Child Development program manager. "We have parents who have some concerns about their child's development: Maybe my child has a speech delay, or maybe my child isn't walking yet and I'm worried about it. Sometimes it's new parents and they just want to make sure their children are meeting their milestones so we do an hour appointment and do a screening and answer any questions and make referrals if needed."
Pierce said if families have concerns they can always contact Kootenay Family Place and get set up with a consultant for a screening, although there are wait lists for therapy services.
"So it's really important to get screenings done so if there's a concern and your child does need therapy you can get put on that wait list for service," she said.
Aside from the screenings, there were plenty of other things going on at Kootenay Family Place.
"Columbia Basin Alliance for Literacy (CBAL) was here and they did story telling and had a book give away," said Pierce. "There were arts and crafts, food and cake, and we had a trade fair here with toys, books, and other things for parents as well as information on dental hygiene."
For more information or to sign up for a program call Kootenay Family Place at 250-365-8448.