The Magic of Learning Through Play

This program will increase play opportunities for children (3 to 6 years old). The program will support 100-150 parents/guardians and approximately 100 to 150 children through consistent play interactions facilitated by a well-prepared and educated Playguide. Parents will learn about the importance of play and healthy child development. Parents will learn about advocacy for improved learning opportunities for their children at their schools. Ten trained playguides from the community will be hired for this project.
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Families Connecting with Nature for Our Well-Being

PACTL will organize 5 visits to natural parks in nature for 70 families. Families will have options to choose their favorite outing in nature. Together with the team of parents, we will decide how to accommodate maximum participation depending on the size of the families. Must activities can provide transportation when needed. We can adjust as needed. Some will be day trips and two will be overnight. We are proposing three-day trips with closer distance to San Fernando Valley.
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Mental Health Ambassador Project

The Playroom Alternative Therapy Center for Children is a non-profit helping those in need with vital resources to bridge the gap of those living on the margin in Pacoima. The Playroom ATCC will offer 2 Resource Events per month. One Mental Health conversation and one group activity. These events will tackle the disparities in our black and brown communities caused by the disproportionate effect Covid-19 has had on people of color. By creating a safe friendly and inclusive environment for families to come and gather needed resources, such as clothing, medical supplies/evaluations, groceries & more, we can enhance the well-being of our friends and families in the community. Neighbors can socialize and encourage each other through music (Drum Circle), Arts and Crafts, and Yoga (to decrease mental/ emotional and physical health challenges in our youth) games and giveaways are available to empower the people of Pacoima. Mental Health Ambassadors, we strive to educate the community and supply a multitude of tools we can all use to better our mental state and well-being caused by the pandemic. These resources and discussions around mental health are important to our community. They empower our youth to trust they can achieve their highest potential, it gives the people of all walks of life a sense of belonging and hope, we will educate in financial fundamental thus redirecting those from Gangs, violence & other related crime in the community allowing those to become a vital part of society.
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Bridges of Hope and Healing with Nature for All

The last two years of the pandemic have been particularly hard for low-income families of color. Our community lost so many lives due to Covid. Most members of our community don’t have the privilege of working from home and are considered essential workers. Most residents of Panorama City live in apartment buildings with no backyard and little access to parks or green space. These past years of isolation and social distancing have dramatically increased our levels of anxiety, stress, depression, and other mental health issues. Spending time in nature has been proven to reduce stress and anxiety, improve confidence and self-esteem, help you meet and get to know new people, and improve your health overall. With this grant, we seek to alleviate the anxiety, stress, and depression our community is facing by connecting families to nature, to recreational opportunities and building relationships and support groups with other neighbors. We will organize hiking trips to the Mountain, family fun day activities in the region like fishing, biking and boat rental, and community wellness trainings that include meditation, arts, crafts, yoga, healing circles, home gardening, composting, and support groups.
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Family Nurturing and Attachment-Parents for Positive Programs and Safe Parks

The purpose of the project is to reintegrate families into activities in community spaces such as parks as before the pandemic. Stimulating family ties to our community with cultural, physical, and emotional activities. The program is a series of bilingual programs at Sepúlveda Recreational Center, with the purpose of promoting constructive parenting and in turn child development with positive outdoor activities. Family Upbringing and Attachment for children, youth and their families. It will start July 2022 to June 2023. Twi sessions per month for 12 months. With excursions to different places, celebrations and educational events, serving from 15 to 20 families. Participants will have the opportunity to learn about environmental justice, wildlife and marine life, urban gardening, healthy cooking, outdoor physical activity, and much more. Participants will also participate in four outdoor field trips each new season of the year.
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Digital Health Literacy Training for Parents and Adults

Painted Brain (PB) in partnership with Best Start El Nido proposes to implement Educación Tecnológica Para Padres, a comprehensive digital health literacy training for parents and adults in the San Fernando Valley, specifically Panorama City. Focusing on workforce development-related topics, this training will expose participants to various aspects of online program utilization including email setup, Zoom functionality, profile development, and more. Sixty (60) participants can receive up to 12 hours of digital health literacy training and education. To determine topics to be trained on, PB will host two (2) community listening sessions that gather input on digital health literacy needs of the community. Our goal is to provide access to digital health literacy training and laptop devices that promote workforce development and support overall wellbeing. PB will develop 2 training series and will train 2 cohorts per series (20 participants per cohort). Each cohort will meet for 6 weeks: 1 orientation session, 4 training sessions, and 1 graduation session. Participants who complete our training series will be eligible to receive a free laptop device. PB will distribute 43 laptop devices to ensure that they can stay connected to the digital world. Pre and post-evaluation surveys will be designed with stakeholder input to ensure the effectiveness of the proposed program.
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Education and Technology

A Project that trains families to strengthen their knowledge about the education system. The the project will support parents in having information and access to their children’s education and to the community. The mission is to strengthen knowledge about the education system. Provide tools and train parents (caregivers or guardians) on how to communicate with teachers, principals, and school staff to discuss how to solve problems together. An objective is for parents to feel capable of navigating the internet and school apps through the following examples:  Access grades, see the progress of submitted homework, scheduling appointments with teachers to see the academic advancement of our students  From a smartphone or computer Student, parent, caregiver, or guardian’s emotional and personal development:  Advocacy  Assistance with interpretation in their language. Our goal is to help parents become fluent in all types of technology, such as smartphones and laptops, and with different applications that school districts use to show students’ academic progress.
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