Giving Children the Best Possible Start in Life: Learning Through the Parents As Teachers Program

Children are born to learn, and their first and most influential teachers are their parents. This is the basic premise of Parents as Teachers, a parent education component of Supporting Today's Parents. Parents as Teachers (PAT) has been used in the Supporting Today's Parents (STP) program since 1996, and is funded by Parents Plus of Wisconsin. PAT uses a newly revised curriculum highlighting new brain development research (see box at end of article).

Through PAT we provide home visiting services and parenting groups for families whose children are between birth and five years of age. Using the PAT curriculum, workers explain how parents can maximize their child's potential through social/emotional development, intellectual development, language development and motor skills based on brain development information. "Even though we use the new brain research to help parents understand child development, we explain that parents don't have to be neuroscientists to be good parents. They just have to know how to play and interact with their children because playing is what kids do best, and for kids, playing is learning," stated Trudy, a PAT educator.

Families who participate in PAT greatly enjoy their visits, which is due in part to the PAT educators. Trudy states, "We believe, and base the program on the premise that parents are the experts on their child and that no one knows the child better than the parent." PAT educators bring toys, books, and ideas for making homemade toys, and provide information on family resource centers. They also bring a video showing important developmental information, and parent handouts for age appropriate activities. One family we work with is Nikita and her two boys LaSav-v-unta (age 4) and Savon (age 2).

Nikita has been with PAT for three years and with STP for four years. Nikita's PAT educator is Patrice. Nikita said, "I like the home visits and all the toys Patrice brings. She also gives me information on how to play with my children, and the information on different resources is very helpful."

In addition to home visits, parents participate in parenting groups. Parent groups are held twice each month and give parents the opportunity to meet new people and learn about many different topics. Groups are conducted in collaboration with family resource centers. To make this experience stress free, we provide transportation, a light meal and child care, all free of charge. Nikita enjoys attending the groups, which give her the "chance to get out of the house and do things with my children. I meet different people that are my age and people of different races. I learn new activities and ideas for making homemade toys."

When parents are involved in PAT, their children are more likely to receive additional support if they need it, which can positively impact children. Nikita stated, "[PAT] has helped me identify that my children were delayed in speech. I have also learned that children learn through play, which is very important [to understand]. Patrice also tells me that reading to my children is helpful, so I try to read more often."

In addition to the home visits and parenting groups, we offer services in four Milwaukee Public Schools. Our goals for this component are vast. Some of what we offer includes providing parenting education, child development information, and teacher in-services. "The reason for the involvement in the schools is three-fold," stated Susan Sikora, STP Program Manager. "We are trying to bridge the gap between home and school because sometimes, parents are intimidated by the school system. By bringing parents into the schools when their children are young, they may become more involved in the school when their child reaches school age." Second, Sue stated that PAT benefits teachers because parents will be preparing their children for school and will be more willing to work with teachers because they will have some experience with the school system. "Finally, MPS wants parent involvement, and PAT will help schools connect with parents," Sue stated.

The case workers in both Parents As Teachers and Supporting Today's Parents are very good at what they do, and we would like to thank them for their hard work and dedication to the program and to Rosalie Manor Community & Family Services.