Parent Café organizers: Victor Tong, Jasmine Ephraim, Francisco Ferrer, and Kelsey Gottschalk

Books. Doodles. Good conversation. An Auntie April’s well-balanced meal. Where do all of these great things come together to make a wonderful force for early learning and literacy? The answer is the FranDelJa Parent Café, run by Southeast Families United FRC, in partnership with FranDelJa Enrichment Center and Tandem™, Partners in Early Learning.

In the spirit of collaboration, FranDelJa families banded together on Monday, May 9th, to learn, plan, and enjoy a good meal in one another’s company. But, what is a Parent Café? It is a particular meeting where families congregate in small groups for discussion. According to Be Strong Families, a national family support organization, “Parent Cafés engage parents in meaningful conversations about what matters most – their family and how to strengthen that family by building protective factors.” Click here to learn more about Parent Cafés.

The optional childcare organized by Southeast Families United FRC allowed children to move freely in and out of the Parent Café space, enlivening and inspiring workshop content and planning. Families added to meaningful discussion on supporting their own children’s social-emotional growth through storytelling and discussed how to use $2,000 worth of funding to support family-friendly events in San Francisco’s Bayview-Hunter’s Point neighborhood.

The evening began with an engaging art activity. As people continued to arrive and take their seats, parents were asked to draw interpretations of what made them happy as a child. The activity proved to be a great ice-breaker as parents casually shared their ideas with one another. 

After most everyone had settled in, parents participated in a Sharing Stories, Sharing Feelings workshop guided by Kelsey Gottschalk, Community Literacy Specialist at Tandem™, Partners in Early Learning. This workshop focuses on boosting children’s social and emotional understanding through interactive Read Alouds. 

Children & caregivers joined in enthusiastically as Kelsey demonstrated techniques for using an interactive reading experience to help young children develop their social skills and build understanding of emotions.

Family participants then shared feedback on how their participation in the workshop helped them better understand their children’s development. Parent Monisha beamed as she shared, “I always felt like it was my responsibility to teach my child everything. Now I realize my child can guide her own learning experience.”

Monisha reflects on her workshop experience during the Parent Cafe.

After the workshop, attendees brainstormed and discussed how to use a Parent
Action Grant awarded to them by First 5 San Francisco.  The grant is designed to encourage family engagement and leadership within the preschool’s community by funding educational family-friendly, relationship-building events. Ideas included hosting a book fair, creating an obstacle course, and having a picnic or a community scavenger hunt. By the end of the planning session, parents decided to set their next meeting for June 4th for a Paint Night event. Further details and additional family-friendly events are forthcoming.

As the evening came to an end, each child in attendance was encouraged to select a free giveaway book provided by Tandem. Making his way toward the exit door with his mother, one child clutched his new board-book to his chest and exclaimed, “I can’t wait to read this book!”

For more information about this event, contact: Francisco Ferrer at (415) 375-7630.