Early Childhood Education
At Holy Family Day Home, we offer a progressive, Reggio Emilia-inspired preschool curriculum which emphasizes individualized learning, self-exploration, play-oriented lessons, and child-initiated, teacher-led education. Daily activities include early literacy lessons, STEM learning, small classes in the art studio, and outdoor education in the community garden. These are all supported by our highly-qualified teaching staff and a wide variety of age-appropriate teaching tools.
Food Security
Our Food Security Program responds to the unique needs of the Day Home community by providing a reliable source of nutritious, high-quality food for our families during the week. The program operates continuously and includes services like on-site meals for children, a community garden, holiday meal kits, and weekly grocery distributions. The centerpiece of our program is the free Community Pantry, which is stocked with shelf-stable foods, fresh fruits and vegetables, pre-cooked meals, healthy snacks, and essential household items like diapers and toiletries. Each Friday, we host free grocery giveaways for our families in front of our building.
Health and Nutrition
HFDH partners with the San Francisco Department of Public Health to offer dental care, vision screenings, and hearing tests to all enrolled students. We also work with the Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP) to ensure all meals and snacks served to students on-site meet federal nutrition standards.
This program also includes programming to promote physical health. Our educational curriculum provides ample time for outside play. Our teachers design structured activities that target specific physical developmental goals, ensuring that our children will gain the necessary gross motor skills. The Day Home also screens all students and staff entering our building for Covid-19 symptoms. For more information on our health and safety policy, click here.
Mental Health
Holy Family Day Home offers free mental health therapy and counseling to our children and families. Our trained family services staff provide children with targeted counseling and psychiatry, occupational therapy, and behavioral management services to give them the best possible start in life. As part of our “whole child” approach, we also provide parents and caregivers with a mix of one-on-one counseling and outcome-based case management to help address any mental health issues that might be having an undue effect on their children.
Early Literacy
Our Early Literacy Program prepares students with the literacy and language skills to succeed in kindergarten. We favor inclusive early literacy materials that celebrate diversity and reflect the children’s lived experiences. We work to expose our children to language, letters, and vocabulary through a variety of non-print mediums like puppets, storyboards, music, and age-appropriate play. In expanding the scope of literacy education, we can accommodate a variety of learning styles and teach families all the ways language can develop inside and outside the classroom.
Art Education
Inspired by the Reggio Emilia Approach to education, the Day Home has a dedicated art studio, or atelier, and a studio educator, to allow children time and space beyond their classroom walls to explore materials, foster creativity, and represent their ideas through the arts. Working in small groups with the art educator, the children discover the properties and possibilities of materials and make connections to the curriculum that is occurring in their classrooms and the community.
Nurture through Nature
As part of the outdoor education curriculum, children “work” with garden volunteers to plant veggies and maintain the garden. Our kitchen staff harvests and utilizes produce grown in the garden to create delicious Garden-to-Plate meals. When children participate in the growing of produce, they are more likely to make healthier food choices and expand their palate.
Alumni Program
To ensure that our families know HFDH is truly a home away from home, even after their children have graduated to the next steps of their educational careers, we started an Alumni Services program. Alumni services include farmer's market, therapy, resource and referral, and counseling with a case manager. As we grow this aspect of our programming, we hope to broaden the services offered, and open our doors to other families.