Family Literacy Projects

Refer a client

Please contact our office for referrals into any of the following programs on (03) 94212392 or [email protected]

Family Learning Partnerships

Empowering Parents: Holistic capacity building through co-design

Co-designed group workshops, short courses and information sessions on a broad range of topics relating to parenting, family literacy, health and wellbeing and employment pathways support for CALD parents. This program supports parents to overcome barriers to participation and offers flexible, family-friendly modes of delivery. Delivered in partnership with a range of local services and funded by the Victorian Department of Education and Training.

Sing Say Learn Play

A weekly Family Literacy Program including Parent-Child Mother Goose with songs, rhymes and stories for CALD parents/caregivers and their children 0-4 years, as well as supervised playtime for children while parents/caregivers connect and learn together. This program incorporates translanguaging: using multiple languages and cultural knowledge as a resource for learning together, and provides an employment opportunity for an CALD community member. Sing Say Learn Play is collaborative program between Carringbush Adult Education and City of Yarra Family, Youth and Children’s Services, funded by the Readings Foundation.

Virtual Parent-Child Mother Goose

Parent-Child Mother Goose is an evidence-based program that strengthens attachment and interaction between parents or carers and their young children, and supports language learning and development through rhymes, songs and stories. We deliver a weekly Zoom session for CALD mothers and children in partnership with City of Yarra Family, Youth and Children’s Services.

Kids’ Own Publishing Projects

Two series of workshops for CALD mothers and children to co-design and create children’s books relevant to the needs, interests, cultures and languages of residents of the housing estates in the City of Yarra. These projects particularly focus on ‘silent books’ for parents who are not literate in any language, and bilingual books in community languages. A partnership with Kids’ Own Publishing.

Pathways for Mothers (Pre-Accredited Learn Local Courses)

Pathways for Mothers is a Vietnamese-English bilingual course that combines Family Literacy activities, English Language learning, Information Sessions from partner services and individual Pathways Support, with concurrent play activities for children. This course is co-delivered with a Bicultural Inclusion Worker from the City of Yarra Family, Youth and Children’s Services, and also engages ACU students in voluntary community engagement placements. This is a Learn Local course funded by the Victorian Department of Education and Training.

Research Collaboration

‘Bridging the Divide – Navigating Early Childhood Education for Newly Arrived Refugee Families’. Collaboration with Dr Anne Keary, Faculty of Education at Monash University, to co-facilitate consultation with 11 Oromo, Arabic and Tigrinya speakers in focus groups in the City of Yarra.

Annual events

Women and Children’s Eid and Christmas Events: delivered in partnership with MiCare and City of Yarra Family, Youth and Children’s Services
Harvest Festival: coordinated by Collingwood Neighbourhood House and Belgium Avenue Neighbourhood House, delivered on the Collingwood Housing Estate in partnership with a range of local services
Messy Play Day: coordinated by the Collingwood Toy Library

For more information about these programs please call 03 9421 2392.

Menu