Family Literacy Trainer – Literacy Lab – Oakland, CA

Literacy Lab is a non-profit organization with a mission to create connected and interactive early learning environments by deploying books, digital content, and blended learning solutions for under-resourced children, their caregivers, and educators.

We are now seeking Trainers to run our family literacy workshops. The workshops engage and educate parents, childcare providers and teachers on the critical importance of dialogic interaction with children through daily routines of talking, singing, listening, playing and reading aloud with children. These daily routines form the foundation for children’s future literacy skills.

General requirements and expectations:

-Trainers will attend workshop trainings at a rate of $25/hr. in order to become fully knowledgeable in Literacy Lab’s core methodologies and philosophy for improving early childhood literacy success. These include a focus on brain development, the key precursors necessary for literacy skills, building “word wealth”, and increasing daily communication opportunities through reading, talking, playing, and singing while addressing the challenges that often get in the way.

-Trainers will conduct workshops in a professional manner reflecting the core values of Literacy Lab with an emphasis on communal knowledge building as well as information dissemination. Whenever possible, trainers will identify and highlight existing dialogic communication skills in parents and caregivers and thereby build from a solid, pre-existing base of parents’ knowledge.

-Trainers will promote a warm and safe environment of mutual respect in the workshops. While the trainer may have more knowledge on specific points, parents and caregivers are the ‘experts’ on their children. Trainers should therefore be good listeners as well as facilitators.

-Trainers will often work with one or more interpreters. It is therefore of critical importance that they maintain a pace, sensitivity and awareness that is appropriate for the interpreter to be able to communicate the ideas, questions and comments of both the trainer and the non-native English speaking participant.

-Trainers will maintain and distribute all necessary Literacy Lab materials and keep accurate evaluation and sign-in sheets. These forms will be turned in to a Literacy Lab Program Manager within one week.

-After workshops, trainers are required to reflect critically on their workshop and submit a short written evaluation to a Literacy Lab Program Manager that will touch on that workshop’s specific highlights including questions that arose, possible solutions, challenges and other areas of learning.

General traits:

– Trainers should be open-minded, creative, flexible, warm, respectful, and have a sense of humor.

– A background in early childhood education or adult education and training is preferred. Personal experience with caring for or raising children will be helpful to trainers.

– Bilingual ability is preferred, especially in Spanish, Cantonese, Vietnamese or Arabic.

-TB Test and fingerprinting are required, fee for acquiring these will be reimbursed for Trainers engaged and certified by Literacy Lab.

Compensation and other details:

– Trainers are paid on a contract basis for each workshop given at a rate of $75 for prep time and the execution of a1.5 hour workshop. Depending on the specific arrangement with the workshop site, these will either be given once or as a series of two or more. When multiple workshops are given to the same group, trainers are expected to be available for each one.

– Workshops are held throughout the Bay Area. We seek trainers that facilitate sessions located in Oakland, Richmond, Redwood City, Santa Clara, San Jose, San Mateo, Fremont, Sacramento, and Union City. Literacy Lab partners with school districts, various CDCs, other childcare centers and different parents and community groups so the specific locations will vary.

– Currently, Attendance at a Train the Trainer session is required to start the trainer certification process.

– Requires own transportation to collect workshop materials and to travel to training site.

How to apply

Email letter of interest to: team@litlab.org

Attn: Training Coordinator

Re: Family Literacy Trainer

Please include in a thoughtful letter of interest with the following:

Background, interest, qualifications, and qualities that would make you a stellar trainer/workshop facilitator for Literacy Lab.

Please specify which cities you are available to conduct trainings with minimal travel time required: Oakland, Richmond, Fremont, Union City, Redwood City, Santa Clara, San Jose, and San Francisco.
Please submit a resume, if available.

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