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May
19
Wed
C4F Monthly Meeting @ contact us for details
May 19 @ 1:30 pm – 3:00 pm

Please join us for our monthly meeting!

Jun
11
Fri
Taking WG&M Outdoors! @ Zoom
Jun 11 @ 1:00 pm – 3:00 pm

Please join us for activity ideas & exploring how to embrace outdoor play virtually and in-person!

Jun
16
Wed
C4F Monthly Meeting @ contact us for details
Jun 16 @ 1:30 pm – 3:00 pm

Please join us for our monthly meeting!

Jul
21
Wed
C4F Monthly Meeting @ contact us for details
Jul 21 @ 1:30 pm – 3:00 pm

Please join us for our monthly meeting!

Aug
18
Wed
C4F Monthly Meeting @ contact us for details
Aug 18 @ 1:30 pm – 3:00 pm

Please join us for our monthly meeting!

Sep
15
Wed
C4F Monthly Meeting @ contact us for details
Sep 15 @ 1:30 pm – 3:00 pm

Please join us for our monthly meeting!

Sep
22
Wed
C4F Monthly Meeting
Sep 22 @ 1:30 pm – 3:00 pm

Please join us for our regular monthly meeting!

Oct
20
Wed
C4F Monthly Meeting @ contact us for details
Oct 20 @ 1:30 pm – 3:00 pm

Please join us for our monthly meeting!

Nov
17
Wed
C4F Monthly Meeting @ contact us for details
Nov 17 @ 1:30 pm – 3:00 pm

Please join us for our monthly meeting!

Nov
30
Tue
Gentle Heroes: Men as Nurturing Caregivers @ zoom
Nov 30 @ 1:00 pm – 3:00 pm

Gentle Heroes is a workshop in 3 parts.  It is offered free of charge to downtown agencies working with dads/male caregivers.

Men will develop their capacity to explore and share their own experiences of being around nurturing gentle heroes (grandfathers, elders, community leaders, teachers, fathers) using the senses to delve into these gentle stories.

Storytelling has been part of our cultures for millennia, as entertainment and as a way of sharing knowledge, building attachment, and empowerment. Stories help us reflect on and overcome our challenges and develop skills like empathy, gratitude, and more.

This workshop will develop and enhance our appreciation of diversity.  It will give participants an opportunity and method to communicate their “story”. This is made possible through speaking, listening, reading and writing, art, music, humour, and role-playing, providing a language-rich environment for children, essential for early literacy.  Honouring each family’s culture through storytelling encourages attachment and bonding by giving parents the opportunity to be a significant part of the literacy process as a storyteller.

Dates: Tuesday, November 30, Wednesday, December 1, Thursday, December 2

Time: 1:00-3:00pm

Location: Online via Zoom (participants will be emailed the login details after registering)

Cost: Free to Downtown agencies

 

The Workshop:

Part 1 – Sharing stories and storytelling about men as gentle heroes. 

Part 2 – Stories that develop storytelling skills in dads using folktales where they can gain the confidence of sharing stories with children while having fun and being goofy and active.

Part 3 – Men as gentle heroes connected to personal stories and storytelling.

 

Recommended Participants: 

  • Community leaders and administrators
  • Family support practitioners
  • Early Childhood Educators
  • Child care centre administrators
  • Program leaders and facilitators

Register here

Dec
1
Wed
Gentle Heroes: Men as Nurturing Caregivers @ zoom
Dec 1 @ 1:00 pm – 3:00 pm
Dec
2
Thu
Gentle Heroes: Men as Nurturing Caregivers @ zoom
Dec 2 @ 1:00 pm – 3:00 pm
Dec
9
Thu
Let’s Play Outside! @ zoom
Dec 9 @ 9:30 am – 11:30 am

What:

  • Explore the importance of outdoor play for early childhood development, and how to best support children in their outdoor experiences. This will include discussion topics such as child-led play, loose parts, and risky play.
  • Share our own experiences with delivering outdoor programming.
  • Share and explore ways to incorporate the outdoors in our programming – both in-person and virtual programs.
  • Have fun!

 Who:

Recommended participants include:

  • Community leaders and administrators
  • Family support practitioners
  • Early Childhood Educators
  • Child care centre administrators
  • Program leaders and facilitators

Please note that this workshop is similar to the “Taking Wiggle, Giggle & Munch Outdoors” workshop presented in June 2021, so it may not be useful to those previous participants.

Maximum 12 participants

Register:

Dec
15
Wed
C4F Monthly Meeting @ contact us for details
Dec 15 @ 1:30 pm – 3:00 pm

Please join us for our monthly meeting!

Jan
19
Wed
C4F Monthly Meeting @ contact us for details
Jan 19 @ 1:30 pm – 3:00 pm

Please join us for our monthly meeting!

Jan
20
Thu
Wiggling, Giggling & Munching Through Storytelling workshop
Jan 20 @ 1:00 pm – 3:00 pm
Jan
26
Wed
Tapping into Resiliency Through Storytelling (TRTS)
Jan 26 @ 12:30 pm – 3:30 pm

Storytelling has been around for millennia, not only for entertainment but as a way of imparting education, connection, and empowerment. Stories help us reflect on and overcome our challenges and develop resiliency skills like empathy, diversity, gratitude, and many more. We wanted to discover ways of bringing resiliency and storytelling together, and there has never been a more critical time to do so. Throughout the pandemic, our resiliency has been put to the test. Communities 4 Families’ workshop helps participants reflect and explore the many ways to build on their resiliency skills through the lens of each oral story we share.

Date: Wednesday, January 26 and Friday, January 28

Time: 12:30-3:30pm

Location: Online via Zoom (participants will be emailed the login details after registering)

Registration: Register here

 

Recommended Participants: 

  • Community leaders and administrators
  • Families and caregivers
  • Family support practitioners
  • Early Childhood Educators
  • Child care centre administrators
  • Program leaders and facilitators

Topics: 

  • Benefits of Storytelling
  • Internal and External Resiliency
  • Community as a protective factor
  • Reflecting on personal and community agency

Quotes from workshop participants:

“Although I may read books to the children in my live, I don’t do much time doing oral storytelling. Yet as a child, many of my fondest memories with my parents are when they would tell me their own stories. Whether it be stories about their lives or ones that they imagined themselves. There is something very intimate about an oral story. The engagement between audience and storyteller is enhanced. I definitely want to do more storytelling.” 

“By using animals and specific themes, storytelling allows people to address systemic and cultural challenges without pointing blame at certain groups. This creates a pathway through difficult conversations and within this workshop it allowed us to reflect on personal and communal experiences where we have faced adversity and how to overcome it.” 

 

 

 

Jan
28
Fri
Tapping into Resiliency Through Storytelling (TRTS)
Jan 28 @ 12:30 pm – 3:30 pm

Storytelling has been around for millennia, not only for entertainment but as a way of imparting education, connection, and empowerment. Stories help us reflect on and overcome our challenges and develop resiliency skills like empathy, diversity, gratitude, and many more. We wanted to discover ways of bringing resiliency and storytelling together, and there has never been a more critical time to do so. Throughout the pandemic, our resiliency has been put to the test. Communities 4 Families’ workshop helps participants reflect and explore the many ways to build on their resiliency skills through the lens of each oral story we share.

Date: Wednesday, January 26 and Friday, January 28

Time: 12:30-3:30pm

Location: Online via Zoom (participants will be emailed the login details after registering)

Registration: Register here

 

Recommended Participants: 

  • Community leaders and administrators
  • Families and caregivers
  • Family support practitioners
  • Early Childhood Educators
  • Child care centre administrators
  • Program leaders and facilitators

Topics: 

  • Benefits of Storytelling
  • Internal and External Resiliency
  • Community as a protective factor
  • Reflecting on personal and community agency

Quotes from workshop participants:

“Although I may read books to the children in my live, I don’t do much time doing oral storytelling. Yet as a child, many of my fondest memories with my parents are when they would tell me their own stories. Whether it be stories about their lives or ones that they imagined themselves. There is something very intimate about an oral story. The engagement between audience and storyteller is enhanced. I definitely want to do more storytelling.” 

“By using animals and specific themes, storytelling allows people to address systemic and cultural challenges without pointing blame at certain groups. This creates a pathway through difficult conversations and within this workshop it allowed us to reflect on personal and communal experiences where we have faced adversity and how to overcome it.” 

 

 

 

Feb
9
Wed
Gentle Heroes
Feb 9 @ 9:00 am – 3:00 pm

Gentle Heroes is a workshop offered free of charge to downtown agencies working with dads/male caregivers.

Storytelling has been part of our cultures for millennia, as entertainment and as a way of sharing knowledge, building attachment, and empowering community members. Stories help us reflect on and overcome our challenges, developing skills like empathy, gratitude, and more.

This workshop will also develop and enhance our appreciation of diversity.  It gives participants an opportunity and method to communicate their “story”. This is made possible through speaking, listening, reading and writing, art, music, humour, and role-playing, providing a language-rich environment for children, essential for early literacy.  Honouring each family’s culture through storytelling encourages attachment and bonding by giving parents the opportunity to be a significant part of the literacy process as a storyteller.

Recommended Participants: 

  • Community leaders and administrators
  • Family support practitioners
  • Early Childhood Educators
  • Childcare centre administrators
  • Program leaders and facilitators

 

 

 

 

Feb
14
Mon
Bookmates’ “Sharing Stories, Celebrating Diversity” workshop
Feb 14 @ 1:30 pm – 3:30 pm

Celebrate I Love to Read month with this FREE workshop! We will share diverse children’s books and activities complemented with strategies on how caregivers and professionals can extend literacy concepts to invite children to learn language, culture and acceptance of differences.

Content includes:

  • Sharing stories and literacy extension activities that will allow children and their caregivers to explore concepts in a way that strengthen their understanding of language
  • Supporting and enhancing the fundamentals of family literacy while celebrating diverse cultures, creeds, abilities and genders
    Receiving recommendations for books that are inclusive, cultivate compassion, awareness, and a broader world-view

This workshop is designed for those working with children from 0-6.

Register here

Feb
15
Tue
Reaching In Reaching Out workshop
Feb 15 @ 9:00 am – 11:30 am

NOTE:  For certification, you must complete ALL sessions.

 

RIRO offers evidence-based, resiliency skills training programmes to strengthen well-being and resilience in adults and children through role modeling and relationships.

Since 2002 RIRO has helped fuel resilience and support well-being in adults and young children under 8 years. RIRO teaches childcare and early learning staff and service providers the “3Rs of Resilience” – relaxation and reflection skills to help them respond instead of simply reacting to challenging situations.

 

RIRO 12-hour resiliency skills training programmes:

Teach adults resiliency skills to…

  • Reach IN to develop healthy ways to cope with stress and tough times
  • Reach OUT to find support and offer it to others

Show adults how to help children by…

  • developing caring relationships
  • being positive role models
  • passing along the resiliency skills to them.

Register here

Feb
16
Wed
C4F Monthly Meeting @ contact us for details
Feb 16 @ 1:30 pm – 3:00 pm

Please join us for our monthly meeting!

Feb
22
Tue
Reaching In Reaching Out workshop
Feb 22 @ 9:00 am – 12:00 pm
Mar
1
Tue
Reaching In Reaching Out workshop
Mar 1 @ 9:00 am – 12:00 pm
Mar
8
Tue
Reaching In Reaching Out workshop
Mar 8 @ 9:00 am – 12:00 pm
Mar
10
Thu
Gentle Heroes
Mar 10 @ 9:00 am – 3:00 pm

Gentle Heroes is a workshop offered free of charge to downtown agencies working with dads/male caregivers.

Storytelling has been part of our cultures for millennia, as entertainment and as a way of sharing knowledge, building attachment, and empowering community members. Stories help us reflect on and overcome our challenges, developing skills like empathy, gratitude, and more.

This workshop will also develop and enhance our appreciation of diversity.  It gives participants an opportunity and method to communicate their “story”. This is made possible through speaking, listening, reading and writing, art, music, humour, and role-playing, providing a language-rich environment for children, essential for early literacy.  Honouring each family’s culture through storytelling encourages attachment and bonding by giving parents the opportunity to be a significant part of the literacy process as a storyteller.

Recommended Participants: 

  • Community leaders and administrators
  • Family support practitioners
  • Early Childhood Educators
  • Childcare centre administrators
  • Program leaders and facilitators

 

 

 

 

Mar
15
Tue
Reaching In Reaching Out workshop
Mar 15 @ 9:00 am – 12:00 pm
Mar
16
Wed
C4F Monthly Meeting @ contact us for details
Mar 16 @ 1:30 pm – 3:00 pm

Please join us for our monthly meeting!

Mar
22
Tue
Reaching In Reaching Out workshop
Mar 22 @ 9:00 am – 12:00 pm
Wiggle, Giggle & Munch Facilitator Training
Mar 22 @ 1:15 pm – 3:15 pm
Wiggle, Giggle & Munch Facilitator Training

Register here