HighScope Training Courses for Parents
The 'Caring Start' Workshops
Caring start is a short course run by you, using resources purchased from HighScope. This is a very popular short course for parents of pre-school children. It takes the form of informal workshops and offers many practical and effective ways of supporting children's learning in the home. We estimate that up to three thousand of these courses are running every year in the UK, the Netherlands and the United States.
The course comprises six sessions:
- What do you want for your child?
- Active Learning
- Learning in the Home
- Planning, Doing, Reviewing - the tools for learning
- Relationships with Children
- Talking with Children
To run the course, you need to purchase a course pack for group leaders. To date, over 1,000 of these easy to use and affordable packs have been sold. Each pack includes:
- An introduction to the HighScope Approach
- A group leader guide with detailed agendas for each session
- Photocopiable handouts
- Workshops photographs
- A certificate, a sample set of parent booklets
- An order form for purchasing additional certificates and the booklets that accompany each session
The 'Hand in Hand' Course
This is another popular and informal workshop course for parents of young children. The course leader works closely with parents and aims to develop their self-esteem and self confidence by focusing on the needs that they have identified for themselves and their children.
Parents are encouraged to look at their skills and abilities positively. They are re-introduced to basic skills and learning in a way that is supportive and inviting, so that they can help their child to make a confident start in learning. The course also aims to raise the expectations for their own learning. The first course will be run by a Hand in Hand Trainer. You can receive training to run subsequent courses. Sessions are designed for groups of 6 - 8 people.
The course comprises of eight sessions covering:
- Where Have We Come From?
- Talking and Listening
- Feeling and Thinking
- Desiring and Doing
- Places and Plans
- Mathematics in Our Everyday Lives
- Reading and Writing
- Where Are We Going?
Together we're Special
Together We’re Special is a course for parents who have children with additional needs.
The course aims to create a warm and supportive working environment for parents, to have an understanding of the range of special needs and to share the importance of active learning in supporting development and learning for all children
The course looks at a range of activities that parents and children can enjoy together, developing play skills, communication and independence along the way!
The course comprises a balance of trainer input, group activities, video clips demonstrating strategies, and many supporting hand outs.
The course comprises eight sessions:
- Helping Children to be Active Learners
- Ideas for first steps in communicating together
- Strategies for playing with your child
- How to support play – what to play with, supporting choices
- Ideas for storing play materials and supporting children through to routine of the day
- Thinking about how to help children express their feelings
- Looking at ways that children can learn skills to resolve their conflicts
- Activities to enjoy and help children learn through music
Step by Step to Literacy
The HighScope Step by Step to Literacy is a course for parents and carers who want to support their children’s language and literacy development. It is made up of eight workshops designed for the parents and carers of young children who are in the beginning stages of literacy development. The aim of the course is to develop the knowledge and confidence of parents and carers in their role as their children’s first educators.
The course pack comprises detailed agendas and material checklists for the eight workshops and additional materials including photocopiable handouts and a video and trainer video notes. The workshops are based on the HighScope philosophy of active learning and provide a balance of participant activities, trainer input, discussion and sharing of experience.
The eight workshops comprise:
- An Introduction – Stepping through the course
- Active Learning - The first steps toward reading and writing
- It’s Good to Talk – How lots of talk can help with reading and writing
- Sharing Books – Experience the joy of sharing books with children
- More Fun with Reading and Writing – Home made games and books that work
- Child Friendly Writing – The natural steps towards writing
- Where Are We Going From Here? – Continuing the journey toward reading and writing
These courses give parents the opportunity to meet in a friendly and supportive atmosphere, to talk about their roles as parents and to share their concerns, ideas and achievements.
Training Courses
Please phone Susan to talk about your requirements and for details of courses on 0191 4287650 or email susan.noble@southtyneside.gov.uk