Hidden Sparks is a nonprofit organization whose purpose is to help children with learning differences reach their full potential in school and life. Hidden Sparks develops and supports professional development programs for Jewish day schools to help increase understanding and support for teaching to diverse learners.  Founded in February 2005, Hidden Sparks’ goal is to increase the capacity of Jewish day schools to address the varied needs of children with learning difficulties, particularly children whose struggles might otherwise elude identification. Hidden Sparks’ philosophy and programming reflect the belief that all children learn differently and that the most effective way to help those with learning difficulties is to design programs that help all children in the school. With the goal of building long-term capacity within schools, Hidden Sparks focuses on providing teachers with the tools and teaching strategies to better understand and teach children with social, emotional, and learning differences, as well as to nurture a cadre of trained experts.  Ultimately, schools will be able to deepen the ways and systems in which their professional staffs understand and teach diverse learners.

Hidden Sparks programs include:

The External Coach Program (ECP)

ECP offers school-based training, coaching, and mentoring in understanding and teaching to diverse learners. A Hidden Sparks Coach works with school faculty on a weekly basis.

The Internal Coach Program (ICP)

The Internal Coach Program (ICP) trains a member of the school faculty to become a resident expert in diverse learning styles.

Hidden Sparks Without Walls (HSWOW)

The Hidden Sparks Without Walls program brings audio and online classes, at no cost, to educators nation-wide. These hour-long classes are offered live during the evenings, educators access the courses from the comfort of their own homes. Participants who do not have Internet access have the option of joining by phone only. SCALE Training for Administrators Hidden Sparks offers training for the educational leadership of its participating schools. No Child Left Behind Funded Programs: Hidden Sparks offers in-school coaching services to New York City non-public schools in partnership with Catapult Learning and HigherSchool.  Eligible schools may use their Title funding to access these services.