MSU Extension/ Parent Education
MSU Extension/ Parent Education

Michigan State University Extension Child and Family Development December 2024 Offerings

MSU Extension has a wide range of free online classes for parents and caregivers of children of all ages and early childhood professionals. See below for December offerings!

Please reach out to your local Extension office or find a Child and Family Development team member near you.

Follow their Facebook page for more information and resources at MI Stronger Family – MSU Extension. 

Extension Extra’s Parenting Hour

These free online parenting workshops will provide guidance for parents of children as they navigate the challenges, concerns, and joys of parenting. Participants may register for as few or as many workshops as they wish. The workshops are on Tuesday evenings from 8:00 to 9:30PM ET as follows:

Class dates:

  • 12/03/2024: Screen Time for Young Children
  • 12/10/2024: Birds and the Bees: Talking with Kids About Sex
  • 12/17/2024: Helping Kids Manage Stress

Class Times: 8:00PM to 9:30PM

Registration: https://msu.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_tsaVF3uvTp2wINV5dlR2vw

Kinship Caregiver Classes

Kinship Caregiver classes are back! These classes are targeted to relatives caring for another relative’s children.  

Workshop:

12/11/2025: Exploring Parenting Styles

Class Time: 7:00PM to 8:30PM

Registration: https://msu.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_dZEat3Y_RLmerD7NcoQGyA

For more information contact Courtney Aldrich at aldric82@msu.edu

Parenting Series

Guiding Principles for Highly Successful Parenting

Are you wondering how to gain greater cooperation from your children? Struggling with chores or routines? Not sure how to handle discipline issues? Join us for this five-week parenting education series for parents with children of all ages will explore developing routines, emotional control, rules, and relationships, and being a calm, assertive parent. Certificates of attendance are available. This class is eligible for MIRegistry Credit!

Class Dates: Tuesdays, November 12, 19, 26, December 3, 10

Class Times: 11:30am-1:00pm ET

Register at: https://msu.co1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_0VpZf3ks77yZZGu

For more information contact Courtney Aldrich at aldric82@msu.edu

Building Strong Adolescents

Are you wondering how to navigate the teen years with your child?  Do you wonder how to set limits while still promoting independence and encouraging positive relationships? Join us for this five-week parenting education series for parents with children between 9-16 and explore the assets children need to succeed. Certificates of attendance are available.

Early Childhood Professional Development Classes

Title:  Learning to Talk

In-Person Workshop: Including All of Us

Description:  

Including All of Us is an intensive training to provide an opportunity for child care professionals to learn about issues of diversity, equity and inclusion in early childhood. Including All of Us includes group content, where early childhood professionals can explore their own beliefs, worldviews and understanding of issues surrounding diversity. Participants learn about ways they can incorporate anti-bias education into their work with young children and create environments of equity for all children. Ensuring that child care environments are high quality, equitable and inclusive will help build and nurture social emotional competencies and prepare children for success in school and in life. Including All of Us provides an opportunity for teachers to practice self-reflection and develop an awareness that will have a positive impact on their teaching, child care skills, and family interactions.

This in-person, free program is six hours in length and can be taught in one six-hour session or two, three-hour sessions. The program is approved in the MiRegistry system and completion certificates are available.

To schedule a workshop at your location, contact Vivian Washington at washi138@msu.edu

Online Self-Paced Classes

These free online classes can be completed on your own at your own pace. These free online classes can be completed on your own at your own pace. 

Positive Discipline:  Helping young children learn self-control is important to their ability to be successful citizens now and in the future. Positive Discipline workshops help adults learn how their role in creating appropriate environments and experiences can strengthen that development.   This class has a “parent and caregiver” track and a “professional” track.  Certificates of attendance are available for all who take the class and professional development training hours are available for early childhood professionals. Credit in the MiRegistry system is available.

Infant Safety

MSU Extension has partnered with the Livingston County Child Abuse Prevention Council to create a self-directed online infant safety course called “Sleeping, Crying, Driving.” This three part course contains videos and interactive content on infant safe sleep, how to handle extended infant crying and guidelines for transporting your child safely. A certificate of completion and MIRegistry credit is available for those who need proof of attendance. 

MI Parenting Resource

This free, online program is meant to support caregivers across the state in strengthening their parent-child relationships and gaining new tools for enhancing positive child behaviors.

For more information contact Courtney Aldrich at aldric82@msu.edu 

Registration: https://miparentingresource.org/

Additional Resources

Michigan State University Extension has partnered with Cooperative Extension in other states to provide more resources and classes for you! 

Check out Fit and Healthy Kids at  https://fitandhealthykids.unl.edu/, Online Professional Development Workshops for Early Childhood Professionals.

Laying the Foundation: Tools for Building Infant and Early Childhood Mental Health in the Classroom

This class is eligible for MIRegistry Credit!  Due to the volume of participants in a multi-state webinar, MIRegistry Credit will take up to one month to appear in the registry. Attend the live session or watch a recording up to one week later.

In this session, we will explore the foundation of infant and early childhood mental health including brain development, social and emotional skills, and executive functions. We will share practical strategies teachers can use in their classrooms to promote mental health in early childhood. Instructor: Patricia Carroll, University of Wisconsin Extension

Courses offered by Fit and Healthy Kids may be accepted by Nebraska, Georgia, Iowa, Arizona, Kansas, Michigan, Wisconsin and South Dakota to meet annual in-service training requirements.

Date and Time: December 2, 2024, 7:00-8:00 P.M. CT (8-9 pm ET);

Registration: https://fitandhealthykids.unl.edu/one-hour-once-month-webinars; Registration closes on Sunday at noon before the webinar!

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