Bringing New Ideas to Enrichment: Nexplore at SPARC 2026
At Nexplore, we believe the best enrichment experiences combine fun, creativity, and purposeful learning. That’s why attending the SPARC National Conference 2026 in Arizona was a valuable opportunity for our team to exchange ideas, explore innovative approaches, and discover new ways to make summer and auxiliary programs even more engaging for children and families.
Staci, our Director of Sales & Marketing, and Nomi and Elizabeth, our Regional Relationship Managers, participated in workshops, professional learning sessions, and interactive activities focused on strengthening summer programming, sharing best practices, and building meaningful experiences that inspire children to learn through exploration.
Learning Through Play and Hands-On Experiences
One of the highlights was the Bob the Builder workshop with Bob Rojee, Senior Advisor at SPARC, where Nomi explored hands-on, interactive learning activities and how creative experiences can encourage student engagement. The session reinforced the importance of designing enrichment opportunities that invite children to participate, experiment, and discover new ideas.
Nomi and Staci also joined a SPARC Burst featuring the Art of Play workshop and the Rush Hour game. This activity demonstrated how games can make learning both fun and purposeful by encouraging logical reasoning, strategic thinking, planning, persistence, and problem-solving.
When children work through a challenge, test different solutions, and learn from their mistakes, they develop skills that extend beyond the activity itself. These playful experiences help build confidence, spark curiosity, and make learning memorable.
Creativity That Makes Learning Memorable
Another highlight was Staci’s participation in a partner workshop with Caitlin and Jara from Pinecrest Pop-Ups. Through creative, hands-on activities, including making candy sushi, participants explored how playful experiences can encourage creativity, collaboration, and connection.
Activities like these are a reminder that meaningful learning can happen in unexpected ways. By combining imagination with opportunities to create and participate, enrichment programs can make new experiences approachable, exciting, and memorable for students.
Fresh Ideas for Summer and Auxiliary Programs
Throughout SPARC 2026, the team explored new programming ideas, connected with professionals across the enrichment community, and exchanged perspectives on how to strengthen summer camps and auxiliary offerings.
These conversations and experiences reinforced an important principle: fun and purposeful learning go hand in hand. The strongest enrichment experiences give children opportunities to explore their interests, develop new skills, collaborate with others, and discover what they are capable of achieving.
At Nexplore, we are always looking for ways to bring fresh ideas into our programs while creating experiences that reflect the evolving needs of schools, children, and families.
Continuing to Foster the Joy of Learning
Our time at SPARC 2026 was an opportunity to learn, connect, and find inspiration alongside professionals who share our commitment to meaningful enrichment.
We’re excited to bring these ideas into our continued work developing engaging, hands-on experiences that help students learn through curiosity, creativity, and play.
Because when learning is active, purposeful, and fun, every experience can become an opportunity to discover something new.
