Education

The Family Partnership Center offers free parenting classes to any Manatee County resident engaged in parenting children from birth to 17 years of age under its Partners in Education and Support (PIES) program. The classes, which are held throughout the community, run from 6 to 16 weeks in length. Most offer free on-site childcare.

Classes currently available under this program are:

AD/HD Parent Workshops - Held the 1st Tuesday of each month beginning October 7th, from 7:00pm to 8:30pm at Kirkwood Presbyterian Church (6101 Cortez Rd. West), these workshops encourage parents of children with AD/HD to share information about which techniques work, and which don't. Sessions are led by a professional facilitator and focus on a variety of topics suggested by parents - with plenty of time for discussion and interaction. Many workshops also feature guest speakers to address specific issues of AD/HD children.

Last Mondays - Held the last Monday of each month beginning in September, from 7:00pm to 8:30pm at Faith United Church of Christ (4850 St. Rt. 64 East), these workshops feature guest speakers and introduce a new topic each month. Sample topics from the current series include, Taking Charge & Getting Respect from Your Kids, Becoming a Media Wise Parent, Teaching Values, Raising Boys Today, and Limit Setting 101.

Musical Motion - An educational playgroup for preschoolers and their primary caregivers, this weekly program begins September 18th and runs through November 20th. The playgroup meets every Thursday morning at two locations in Bradenton. The program is FREE to parents and non-paid caregivers!

No pre-registration is required! Each location is limited to 15 families per session on a first-come, first-serve basis. Just choose the location and time that is most convenient:
9:15am - 10:15am at Community of Christ (5817 33rd St. East)
11:00am - 12:00 noon at Bethel Baptist Church (1805 30th Ave. West)

The Family Partnership Center is also happy to provide customized, on-site parenting classes for community groups, schools, or businesses. These classes, which can range from 30 minutes to several hours, can be targeted to address specific issues such as using the Internet, age groups such as adolescence, or crisis situations such as dealing with divorce. Although there is a charge for these specialized classes, they can be extremely helpful for families dealing with specific parenting issues.

The Family Partnership Center also sponsors English- and Spanish-speaking Support Groups to help parents deal with the day-to-day issues of parenitng. Support Groups enable parents to freely discuss the challenges and joys of child rearing, as well as learn a variety of effective parenting strategies - all among caring, supportive people who are probably dealing with many of the same parenting issues as you.

All Support Groups are held weekly and are led by professional parent educators. They are free, confidential, and provide on-site childcare.

For more information on the PIES classes, specialized classes, or Support Groups, call the Center or Contact Us.