Families Matter believes in investing in the staff working in this important sector. We deliver professional development opportunities as well as host other agencies who are delivering programming for the community. If you are interested in using our location to deliver a program, please call our Admin team at 403.205.5178.

GroupWise: The Art & Science of Facilitating Parenting Groups

Preparing new facilitators in:

  • Creating a positive learning environment
  • The roles and responsibilities of a facilitator
  • The learning needs of parents
  • Experiential and active learning strategies to engage learners
  • Understanding and practicing a learning-focused approach to education
  • Strategies for coping with common facilitation challenges

GroupWise expects participants to Prepare, Practice and Reflect:

  • Prepare for each class by reading assigned materials and answering questions
  • Practice facilitating activities during the sessions
  • Reflect on their learnings and how to integrate the information into their facilitation

GroupWise provides participants with:

  • An encouraging, thought-provoking and supportive learning environment
  • Opportunities to build their confidence.

March 13 – April 24, 2024 (Wednesdays; 9am – 12pm): CANCELLED

NEXT SESSION: TBD

$475/per participant

The Gingerbread Way Program Workshops

Target audience:

  • Professionals working in the Early Childhood Community (daycare providers, early childhood educators, library staff, special needs assistants)

Eligible childcare staff may be able to access Professional Development Funding through Alberta Children’s Services. Please visit their website for more details.

This interactive workshop blends pedagogy and practice for professionals working with young children.  Participants discuss how rhymes, songs, fingerplays, books, and storytelling (oral, dramatic, and with props) support areas of child development, including those outlined in Flight: Alberta’s Early Learning and Care Framework.  They also learn new materials and practice presentation techniques to engage young children, up to 5yrs, and their families.  Participants who take Level 1, or who have experience presenting a variety of materials to children, may take Level 2 to further enhance their storytimes.

 March 5 – 19, 2024 (Tuesdays; 6:30pm – 9pm): CANCELLED

Next Session: TBD

Parent-Child Mother Goose Logo

Parent-Child Mother Goose Facilitator Training (In person/Calgary)

Do you have staff members who work with and deliver programming to young families?

Do you wish to support them in successfully connecting and delivering an early literacy, attachment and relationship-building program in your community?

The Parent-Child Mother Goose program is a group experience for parents and their babies and young children. It introduces the family to the pleasure and power of using rhymes, songs, and stories together. The program encourages healthy attachment, early literacy introduction, and building relationships with other families of young children.

Singing has been shown to generate a sense of positive mood, happiness, and enjoyment. Such positive feelings also counteract feelings of stress or anxiety and help to distract people from internal negative thoughts and feelings. Singing also bonds a child to the parents’ voice and singing for daily transitions and activities helps a child feel safe and predictable. Through singing, the baby’s language comprehension begins.

Parents gain confidence and skills which enable them to create positive family patterns during their children’s crucial early years.  Children benefit from enjoyable, healthy, early experiences with language and communication.

Next Session: TBD