There’s a saying in Spanish: “Saber es poder,” which translates to “Knowledge is power.” Iris Fernandez witnessed the truth of those words when she brought 23 parents to the Half Moon Bay Library last month to reinforce a message about the importance of reading to their children at an early age. More than half the parents were visiting the library for the first time. Fernandez says the field trip, offered by Puente as part of its ongoing Abriendo Puertas (Opening Doors) workshop series, opened their eyes to the vast amounts of useful material that could be had for free. “There are magazines, books, tapes on how to learn English. They’re going to be offering book tablets, too. They were just thrilled,” she says. “We were trying to get everyone back to the bus, and we had to wait for them because they were checking out books,” she adds with a laugh. Thirteen parents signed up for new library cards on the spot. Puente staff didn’t know what to expect on March 2 when they launched Abriendo Puertas, a ten-part curriculum that teaches parents how to support their children’s growth and education with a focus on children aged 0-5. Would all 25 parents, many of whom work at least two jobs to keep their families afloat, be able to stick with the … Continue reading Puente trains parents to improve their children’s lives