The Carbon County Family Support and Children’s Justice Center is hosting an eight-week Parenting Classes that will begin on Thursday, Jan. 12. Castle Country Radio was able to sit down with Director, Shelley Wright and Parent Educator, Tifani Marasco to discuss all the details.

“This is a resource that the center has been providing to the community for several, several years. Up until about two years ago, we started a new parenting program and it has been very, very, successful. It’s free to the community, we can provide child care while parents are attending the class. You’re right its very much about offering and doing some prevention in the home, but strengthening those families and the parents by educating them and opening their eyes up to different opportunities and ways to parent,” said Wright. Parenting classes are one of the most important investments you can make for your child as it can teach parents positive parenting skills.

The parenting course is a great way to get to know other parents and learn some new techniques. “When we do have the students in there the idea is to bounce different ideas off of each other and some parents will be like, wow I’ve never thought of it like that, I might try that. Then the next week when they come in, they have comments of I tried this and it was different. It’s not an overnight thing when you teach these skills and I tell my students, its not going to happen overnight, you have to stay with it,” explained Marasco. The course will provide you with the tools to be a better parent and will assist you in strengthening your relationship with your child.

This course is open to all parents and to register for this free eight-week course you just need to call the Carbon County Family Support and Children’s Justice Center at (435) 636-3200 extension 508. An assessment will be completed before and after the Parenting Class. “What we do is we initiate a pre-survey and it kind of establishes where the parents thinking is, it’s not a pass or fail, it’s not a right or wrong, its just gives us a little bit of an idea where the parents are at in their thinking. Then when they complete the eight sessions then they do a post-survey. It’s interesting the parents can actually look at, wow, I have improved and they can see that the parenting class was really beneficial,” said Wright. The Carbon County Family Support and Children’s Justice Center is hosting the Parenting Classes from 1:00 pm to 2:30 pm at the center on 80 South Fairgrounds Road in Price.