“Nearly 1 million Canadian children — about 30% — are not reading at grade level, putting them at risk for long-term literacy challenges.”
— United for Literacy, “Child Literacy in Canada”
LitSpark Youth was founded in Ottawa in Fall 2024 by a group of high school students who shared a love of reading, along with a deep awareness of how many children never get that same chance. As young immigrants, we experienced firsthand the power of books to build language skills, foster confidence, and open doors to new opportunities. But we also saw the barriers, such as limited access to books, that keep literacy out of reach for so many in our communities.
In order to solve this problem, we began by organizing local book drives to collect and redistribute books to families and schools in need. This inspired us to create a free, youth focused language-learning app that would support early literacy in a fun, interactive, and culturally inclusive way, making reading more accessible to children no matter their background or resources.