On four Tuesday nights in February and March, families gathered at the George Unseld Early Childhood Center in Louisville to attend the Molly of Denali Family and Community Learning (FCL) workshop series. Molly of Denali is the first animated series to feature an Alaskan Native character. Molly lives with her family in the fictional village of Qyah where they run a Trading Post.
The Molly of Denali series and workshops are part of the federally funded Ready to Learn (RTL) grant. RTL focuses on supporting families, especially those from low-income communities, by providing educational PBS KIDS resources. The FCL workshop series focused on building multi-generational engagement with learning. Families explored their community using informational text to learn about traditions, recipes, and native animals.
The FCL workshops aim to foster collaboration, communication, and fun among family members while building parent and caregiver’s confidence and comfort to support their children’s learning. During each workshop parents and caregivers are encouraged to help children connect Alaskan Native values to their own lives. “While we’re being taught how to understand, convey, and communicate with the kids about what they are learning, they’re also learning about their world around them” said Ben Barnes who participated with Amber Carpenter and their two children. Listen to Ben and Amber discuss their family’s experience with the Molly of Denali FCL workshop series.