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Steps for Building Relationships
Tools to Strengthen Families and Communities
  

A "knock-and-talk” is an informal communication method used by many community support organizations to meet people in their home or yard and open dialogue between outreach workers and residents. Managers and front-line staff will learn from this information and the accompanying activities how to initiate contact, focus the conversation on the needs of the residents and their neighborhood, and build cooperative relationships. Taking these types of steps to open the lines of communication will provide greater insight into neighborhood residents’ personal views and experiences and allow for a bottom up approach to working with the community.

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The following is an excerpt from Tools to Strengthen Families and Communities

Steps for Building Relationships

A "knock-and-talk" — an informal conversation between an outreach worker and a resident—is a powerful way of meeting people at the neighborhood level and assessing their hopes and concerns. The process of meeting people in their home or yard and really listening to them is frequently a new experience. More>> [PDF, 1 MB]

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See also:
    Tools to Strengthen Families and Communities [PDF, 20 MB]

Steps for Building Relationships. Tools to Strengthen Families and Communities. Mailman School of Public Health. National Program Office of Free to Grow. DHHS/ACF/OHS. 2006. English.