“Tandem makes you think outside the book.”

On September 7th, Tandem presented to the children’s department staff of Chronicle Books on early brain development, early literacy, and how books and book-sharing can shape school readiness.

“Anyone who works with or has children should take part in the Tandem training!” — Chronicle staff participant.

San Francisco Program Supervisor Kelsey Gottschalk shared Tandem’s strategies for supporting children’s early literacy and language skills with 30 Chronicle Staff members using videos, interactive activities, and research to show the importance of books in a young child’s life. Chronicle Books creates beautiful, engaging children’s books, and their staff already have a strong knowledge of children’s literature and development.

Through this training, Chronicle staff examined the research that tells us why books are so important to child development. They then learned and practiced techniques that teachers use to engage a room full of squirmy three-year-olds and get them ready to read when they enter kindergarten.

“Tandem changes the way you think about engaging with children.” — Chronicle staff participant.

Tandem and Chronicle Books have partnered together in the past, with Chronicle providing free books for Tandem to provide to families and educators, and sponsoring Tandem’s first-annual gala. This training was another step in the development of a deep partnership between two organizations who care passionately about the power of children’s literature to impact children throughout the Bay Area and beyond.

“I’ve been working in early literacy for over seven years and I learned things at the Tandem Training that I never knew about sharing books with children!” — Chronicle staff participant.

Find free downloads and more information on supporting a child to reach kindergarten ready, visit our Resources page. Questions? Please contact the Tandem team at info@tandembayarea.org.