life skills classes

In every program, parents and teens attend life skills classes taught by community experts. Recent class topics have included:

• Abriendo Puertas: Opening Doors - Becoming Advocates for your Kids at School

• Appreciating Unique Personalities and Learning Styles

• Building a Love of Books with your Children

• Child Development

• Children's Books and Reading with Your Children

• Common Core Math for Parents

• Cool Math Games for Kids and their Parents

• Developmental Assets

• Developmental Assets: Building Blocks for your Child's Success

• Early Childhood Development

• Effective Solutions for Your Child's Nervous Habits

• Enjoying Reading and Libraries with your Kids

• Exploring and Discovering Montessori at Home

• Fun Ways to Help Your Children Develop Early Literacy

• Getting Ready for the New School Year

• Getting the Most Out of Your Parent-Teacher Conference

• Helping your Children Develop Literacy

• Helping your Children with their Common Core Education

• How to Advocate for your Child at School; Navigating the School System

• How to Cultivate Positive Attitudes about School in Your Children

• How to Prepare Your Child To Do Well At School

• How to Talk with your Kids to Build Reading Comprehension

• Modeling Positive Behavior at Home and Passing on Your Values

• Opening up Communication with your Child through Play

• Parenting Teens

• Red Flags in Early Child Development

• SEEDS of Early Literacy

• Setting Limits and Stay listening

• Supporting the Education of Children with Special Needs

• Supporting Your Child's Social/Emotional Development

• Tools for Hand-in-Hand Parenting

• Triple P: Positive Parenting

parenting effectiveness and skills support

path to college

• Adult School and College for Parents Moving Forward

• Charter Schools, Public Schools and Your Child's Education

• Community College for Everyone

• How Extracurricular Programs can Enhance Your Child's Path to College

• Improving Writing for Success in College and Career

• Path to College

• Path to Community College

• School Transitions

• Start Now: Your Children Can Go to College

• Basic Psychology for Parents and Families

• Communicating with your Partner

• Coping with Grief and Supporting Others

• Emotional Awareness

• Ending the Silence: Overview of Mental Illnesses

• Finding Peace in the Chaos of Life

• Grief Support: Living with Dying

• In Our Own Voice: On Dark Days: Recovery and Hope for Living with Mental Illness

• Managing Difficult Times Together as a Family

• Managing Stress

• Overcoming Depression

• Post Traumatic Stress Disorder

• Reflections on Death and Dying

• Self-Care

• Stress Management, Sleep and Insomnia

• Supporting a Loved One Who Is Struggling with Suicide

Mental/Emotional Health and Stress Management

• Understanding Anxiety Disorders

• Understanding Suicide: Myths, facts, and warning signs

• What is Mental Health Therapy Like?

A Former Gang Member's Inspirational Journey - and Those Who Helped

• Anger Management for Parents and Families

• Bullying and Cyberbullying

• Bullying: Keep Your Kids Safe in School

• Child Safety

• Civic Engagement

• Crime Prevention

• Drug Awareness

• Family Safety

• Gang Awareness and Prevention

• Good Alternatives to Shouting and Yelling at Your Kids

• How to Report a Crime

• Make it Yours: How to become involved in your community

• Raising Kids Who Will Avoid Domestic Violence

• Suicide Prevention

• Talking with your Kids about Sexual Assault and Dating Violence

• Understanding Children's Mental Health Issues

• Vietnamese-American Culture

• What Parents Should Know about Gangs

Community Involvement and Violence Prevention

• 10 Steps to a Healthier You

• 5 Keys to Raising a Healthy, Happy Eater

• Adding Flavor, Cutting Salt

• Ask a Nurse

• Ask a Pediatrician

• Ask an OB/GYN

• Become Your Own Health Advocate

• Breast Cancer Bingo

• Build a Healthy Plate for your Family

• Building Healthy Meals using My Plate

• Choosing Healthy Beverages

• Dental Health / Overall Health

• Dental Health for Parents and Kids

• Eating Healthy and Exercising on a Budget

• Enjoy Healthy Food that Tastes Great

• Exercise for Anyone Anywhere

• First Aid for Families

• Food Shopping on a Budget

• Health and Weight Loss

• Healthy Food Shopping on a Budget

• Healthy Snacks Your Kids will Really Eat

• Home Environmental Bingo

• Making Healthy Eating and Exercising Affordable and Convenient

Health and Nutrition

• Patient Advocacy during a Hospital Stay

• Physical Activity is Key to Living Well

• Preventing Childhood Obesity, Diabetes and Asthma

• Quick, Healthy Meals and Snacks

• Rethink Your Drink

• Sleep and Insomnia

• Sweet Revenge: The Truth about Sugar

• Tips for Keeping a Healthy Weight

• Understanding the Nutrition Facts Label

• What's on a Food Label?

• Avoiding Consumer Fraud

• Building Good Credit and More

• Don't Lose Access to Your Money

• Drivers Licenses and Car Insurance

• Driving and the Law

• Financial Credit Union Services

• Housing Rights

• How to Protect Yourself from Fraud

• Preparing for DAPA and DACA+ Immigration Executive Actions

• Immigration Guidance

• Immigration Law and Services

• Issues in Car Ownership and Insurance

• Managing Your Money Well

• Online Banking

• Personal Money Management - What do you need to know?

• Safe Ways to Bank and Build Credit

• Setting up a Good Financial Future

• Teaching Financial Responsibility to your Children

• Tenants' Rights

• The Dangers of Payday Lending (and Alternatives)

• Tips and Tricks for Saving Money

• Understanding the Criminal Justice System

• What Everyone Should Know about Credit Cards

• Workers' Rights

Financial Literacy and Legal Rights

Employment Services

• A Career in the Trades

• Employment Training

• How to Interview for a Job

• How to Write Meaningfully

• Smart Use of Smart Phones

• The Path to a Job that is Right for You

• Worker's Comp and other Worker's Benefits

• Workers' Rights

Please see the Community Collaborations page for a list of community organizations that provide teachers for these classes.

If you have expertise to share with our families (pro bono) on a topic of parenting effectiveness, education, career planning, financial literacy, health, mental health, nutrition, law, safety or other practical life skills, please contact us. We will provide the English/Spanish interpretation.

Families tell us:
 

“My family and I have changed a lot through Sunday Friends. It has informed me how to eat healthy, how to save money and be smart with purchasing items. I myself enjoy taking the English classes that will help me learn and improve my English.” 

“The Sunday Friends classes provide us with positive discipline techniques, nutrition, and many more important topics we should all be informed about. I think my life would be very different had I not found Sunday Friends. I would not have been as involved and informed as I am about my community.”