We are proud to offer our families the “Parents / Guardians as Partners” webinar series with Educational Consultant and Trainer Dr. Jennifer Bashant. Dr. Bashant is the founder of Building Better Futures LLC and provides a number of different opportunities for parents and educators to help children succeed in school.
This webinar series provides families, caregivers and staff access to all 10 live zoom webinars. Each session is recorded and will be available to watch for the remainder of the school year. Each live webinar will take place at 6:30 pm
2024-2025 Webinars
October 17, 2024: Strategies for Addressing School Avoidance or Refusal
Presented by Jennifer Bashant
Approximately one in five children in this country have a diagnosable anxiety disorder. Anxiety can show up in so many different ways, from anger or behavioral challenges, to avoidance, to perfectionism. When a child is experiencing a high level of anxiety, they may complain of various physical symptoms to avoid school, or even outright refuse to go to school. This is extremely stressful to the entire family, often leading to chaotic and tearful mornings. During this webinar, you will learn how to engage with your child and with the school to reduce the anxiety your child feels about attending school.
Link to register: https://us06web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_XJeAHikJRrSt_0EaBaf3Yw
October 29, 2024: Strengthening Early Literacy Skills at Home
Presented by Renee Beaulieu
During this webinar, the presenter will introduce various strategies to engage your child in developing vocabulary, background knowledge and verbal reasoning to enhance your child’s reading skills. We will discuss the skills that are foundational to the science of reading and how you can use these comprehension skills to reinforce your child’s learning. We will look at several ways to engage your child during outings, while engaging in daily activities and creating word games you can play throughout the day.
Link to register: https://us06web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_svpBW_sZS0SfoPJNWGo7yg
November 14, 2024: Vaping – Why Should I Be Concerned?
Presented by Patty Kilgore
Vaping has become one of the newest trends among tweens, teens and young adults. Kids as young as 8 or 9 are bombarded daily with positive messages about vaping on social media, gaming sites and videos. It seems appealing and safe. Learn the truth about what is in a nicotine vape as well as other vaped substances and the impact on a youth’s brain, body and development.
Link to register: https://us06web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_Aed5OLOnQsKyHIb68jB9UQ
November 25, 2024: Social Media – When is Too Soon and How Much is Too Much?
Presented by Jennifer Bashant
One of the biggest challenges of parenting today is moderating our kids’ use of technology. It can be a daily struggle over how much time is spent on phones, computers and video games. The explosion of social media and the overload of information is creating a sense of loneliness and negatively affecting our children’s mental health. As parents and caregivers, we know too much technology is detrimental, but how much is too much, and what can we do to protect our children from the harmful effects?
Link to register: https://us06web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_wqqhkr7FTJ2qWfm28C1BIQ
December 10, 2024: Navigating Loss – A Guide to Bereavement for Families
Presented by Kim Perone
Kim Perone, Certified Life Coach and Grief Educator, shares her own story of loss and information for families on the stages of grief and how to be with others in grief. This is a difficult topic that Kim shares with heart and humor to help us handle loss, which is universally felt and shared, yet uncomfortable to talk about.
Link to Register: https://us06web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_26TcLrVQS96eatKovrM4mA
January 16, 2025 Modeling a Growth Mindset and Building Resilience
Presented by Jennifer Bashant
When a child never faces and overcomes obstacles, they learn that they can’t trust themselves to figure things out. As a parent or caregiver, it can be difficult to let your child struggle, knowing that they may not be successful. This webinar will introduce the concept of a growth mindset and steps you can take to build resilience in your child.
Link to Register: https://us06web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_6bnOeFqORiKmtmg5pusKlA
January 28, 2025 Ways to Encourage Open Communication with Your Teen
Presented by Bob Mackey
As parents/caregivers, we want our children to come to us with issues, problems, and struggles they are facing. But how do we develop the trust required to encourage this type of open communication, especially about hard-to-face issues? During this webinar, Bob will share strategies and facilitate discussion about ways in which you can invite and encourage your teen to be open with you.
Link to register: https://us06web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_V94ZTxclQ1GpeydNkhBdQw
February 11, 2025: Is Finding a Work-Life Balance Really Possible?
Presented by Jennifer Bashant
Parents and caregivers have one of the toughest (yet most rewarding) jobs on earth! Raising a family requires a lot of energy, patience and consistency, which can take a toll. Finding balance between the demands of home and work can be challenging. During this webinar, we will discuss setting boundaries, carving out time for yourself to rest and renew, and ways in which you can structure your weeks in order to feel more in control of your life.
Link to register: https://us06web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_d4AcKCT7RdiZTJGIDZxLYQ
February 25, 2025: Increase Your Child’s Confidence, Curiosity, and Creativity by Encouraging the Development of Hobbies
Presented by Bennett Beaulieu
Hobbies, interests, and passions lie at the heart of a strengths-based approach to parenting. Discovering and developing skills and activities that light them up will help your child to build a healthy self-esteem and will increase their confidence in their abilities to solve problems. Bennett, a college student, is going to share how hobbies have added to his life growing up, then will introduce ways that you can help your child develop their own interests and passions.
Link to register: https://us06web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_aucRZrIgTnmDPkB0d-mtHQ
March 11, 2025: Move from Helicopter Parenting to Lighthouse Parenting
Presented by Jennifer Bashant
One of the hallmarks of Gen Z children is that they are the center of the family. Parents/caregivers (on the whole) have placed their children’s needs in the forefront and worked hard to give them opportunities and material things that they may not have had. The extreme version of this is a tendency to rescue a child from struggle, and to hover over them, offering advice and support as needed (aka Helicopter Parenting). Jennifer will share specific strategies to move toward Lighthouse Parenting – a style of parenting that will allow your child to build resilience, critical thinking, and problem-solving skills that will serve them well as they grow.
Link to register: https://us06web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_5jwfcT9HQKS7LQ8NsYmLYA