TEACHING PARENTS TO TEACH

Carla Aufdenberg has watched 15-month-old Morgan Jones grow up.

"I can't believe this is the same little 4-month-old who used to just sit in her little Exersaucer," said Aufdenberg as she watched Morgan zip from room to room at her parent's home Thursday morning. "Now she's talking and gesturing. She's definitely become a toddler."

Aufdenberg has visited Morgan and her parents, Mark and Amber Jones, at their home since they began participating in the Cape Girardeau School District's Parents as Teachers program nearly 11 months ago.

Parents as Teachers, or PAT, is a statewide initiative created in the early 1980s that encourages parents to pay special attention to development of children under 3. The program, which every Missouri school district is required to implement, emphasizes the role of parents as a child's first teacher and encourages families to begin development and parenting programs with their preschool children.

PAT includes home visits by parent educators to create programs for each child and family; information and guidance at each stage of a child's development, including prenatal services; periodic health screening and testing of children to check language and motor development; and group visits with other participating parents to share experiences and gain insight into child behavior and development.

Aufdenberg said more than 300 families participated in the program last year. Trained parent educators provide parents with age-appropriate or developmentally appropriate lesson plans that helps parents know what to look for in the time between home visits.

During the home visits, parent educators bring activities that can be used to encourage a child's development. Parent educator Stephanie Illinger said the books and toys are normally inexpensive or can be made with objects found in the home.

"That way it's easier for parents to recreate the activities when we're not here," said Illinger.

Parent educators learn about children by observing them through home visits and by talking to parents about their questions and concerns. Those conversations may indicate potential problems that could make a child vulnerable to poor development if left untreated.

"We'll make note of potential problems, and if we continue to see a question or concern, then we can alert the parents and perhaps refer them to their family physician or to a relevant agency," said Aufdenberg.

In addition to its program for newborns through 3-year-olds, PAT also offers special services to expectant mothers and teen-aged parents. The prenatal program provides home visits and helps women access medical and other resources. The teen PAT provides home visits and can make special arrangements for in-school visits to help teen mothers have the best possible interaction with their child, said Aufdenberg.

"We share with them the same type of information we're sharing with adult parents in the district," she said. "The difference is we try to work on specific challenges they face as teen mothers. Our administrators were very supportive of that and very cooperative in allowing us to come into the school setting."

For more information about Parents as Teachers, contact Tammy Jackson at 651-3703 from 8:30-11:30 a.m.