Parents as Teachers: Birth to 3

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Parents as Teachers (PAT) Program - DuPage Regional Office of Education

Are you interested in a free program that helps you be your child’s first teacher?

Families with children ages birth to three years living in Keeneyville School District #20 have an opportunity to enroll in one of the nation’s most successful early childhood programs.

PARENTS AS TEACHERS (PAT) is based on the philosophy that parents are their children’s first and most influential teachers. The goals of Parents As Teachers are to:

  • Increase parent knowledge of early childhood development
  • Improve parenting practices
  • Provide early detection of developmental delays and health issues
  • Increase children's school readiness and school success.

PAT provides personal home visits, group connections, community support services, and evaluations.  In addition, your parent educator will provide you with activities that will help establish a better relationship with your baby.  Parents who participate in PAT are more confident about their parenting and are more involved in their children's schooling, which is a key component of a child's success in and out of school.

More Information

For additional information or to enroll, please email Vickie Trotter at vtrotter@dupageroe.org or 217-801-9017, or contact Ms. Aubry at ECC - aaubry@esd20.org or 630-894-4638.

Parents as Teachers (PAT)

Start Early (formerly known as The Ounce) provides information and resources for early childhood professionals and parents.  For 40 years, Start Early has been a champion for quality early learning and care.

An Introduction to Parents as a Teachers

Formed in 1981, Parents as Teachers today holds to its original vision – that all children will learn, grow, and develop to reach their full potential, and that parents are their earliest and best teachers. Parents as Teachers aims to realize this vision by helping parents positively impact their children’s development, beginning before they are born, so that by the time they reach school age, they will be fully ready to learn. Learn more about Parents as Teachers.

Evidence-Based

The Parents as Teachers program is an evidence-based early childhood home visiting framework that builds strong communities, thriving families and children who are healthy, safe and ready to learn.

Parents as Teachers certified  parent educators who implement the program emphasize parent-child interactiondevelopment centered parenting and family well-being in their work with families.

Program Components

There are four interrelated and integrated components of the model: personal visits, group connections, screening and resource network.  Together, these form a dynamic package of services.  Parents as Teachers serves a range of families with varying needs and offers services throughout the continuum from prenatal to kindergarten entry.

Ultimately, the Parents as Teachers model is a cohesive package of services with four primary goals:

  • Increase parent knowledge of early childhood development and improve parenting practices.
  • Provide early detection of developmental delays and health issues.
  • Prevent child abuse and neglect.
  • Increase children’s school readiness and school success.

Curriculum

The digital curriculum is grounded in the latest research and consists of parent-child activities, parent handouts, and parent educator resources that are available 24/7 wherever internet access is available.  Embedded links take you quickly to subjects or handouts and the handouts can be printed in any quantity for the families being served.

Each visit plan includes a parent-child activity, parenting strategies to promote healthy development, and a focus on family well-being.  There is also a time for book sharing included in the visit.

Staff Training

Initial training for staff consists of 3 days of Foundational Training and 2 days of Model Implementation Training for Parent Educators.  Supervisors are required to attend the 2 days of Model Implementation and encouraged to also attend the 3 days of Foundational Training.

To enroll in a training,  please contact Victoria Martin at 217.801.9017.

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First page of the PDF file: PATFlyerupdatedEngSpanish