Introduction to the Teaching Outlines · Introduction to the Teaching Outlines ... evaluation plan, please fill out the “Keys to Great Parenting Facilitator Questionnaire” and

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Introduction to the Teaching Outlines (Seven Abbreviated Outlines)

The teaching outlines listed below have been developed to meet the need for an

abbreviated series of educational sessions based on the seven core publications in the program “Keys to Great Parenting: Fun and Learning With Your Baby or Toddler.” The shortened outlines are included in the Internet-based Teaching Manual, available in camera-ready format at http://www.ca.uky.edu/fcs/keys. The Teaching Manual, a work in progress, contains a more detailed series of 21 lessons, three for each of the seven publications, as well as numerous other resources and program ordering information. More resources will be added to the Manual as additional funding becomes available.

This introduction is intended to inform you, as the parent educator, about “Keys to Great Parenting” program philosophy, adult learning principles, teaching outline topics, audience recruitment ideas, formation of a concurrent children’s group, community collaboration possibilities, and program evaluation procedures. Please feel free to contact your county Extension agent for Family and Consumer Sciences or Dr. Carole Gnatuk, primary author of the “Keys To Great Parenting” program, with suggestions or questions. Dr. Gnatuk can be reached at (859) 257-5083 or by e-mail at [email protected]. Program philosophy.

Broadly speaking, the “Keys to Great Parenting” program adheres to the vision set forth by Kentucky’s Early Childhood Initiative: “All young children in Kentucky are healthy and safe, possess the foundation that will enable school and personal success, and live in strong families that are supported and strengthened within their communities.” Recent cutting edge brain research indicates the crucial importance of a secure attachment bond, safe and healthy surroundings, consistent positive discipline, and an intellectually stimulating environment for babies’ and toddlers’ optimal development and future school and personal success.

Parents are their children’s first and most influential teachers. They bring practical knowledge and unique strengths to that important task. Most of them, however, welcome more support, research-based information, and assistance in developing more skills. They tend to be most receptive to growth in self-development as well as parenting knowledge, attitudes, and actions when they are responsible for a new life. Thus, “Keys to Great Parenting” is directed especially to parents and primary caregivers of babies and toddlers. “Keys to Great Parenting” is planned as a risk prevention program. It is friendly, informal, concise, flexible, optimistic in outlook, discovery-oriented in its teaching approach,

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and interactive in format. Written at the 6th grade reading level, its core publications are accessible to a wide diversity of ethnic and cultural groups. Adult learning principles.

Because adults have limited time, energy, and resources, they are attracted to educational topics that are vitally important to them for managing and enjoying their day-to-day lives. As a general rule, adults grasp and retain concepts best through realistic, concrete, hands-on learning methods. They are likely to listen attentively to a speaker for 15-30 minutes, but may then be ready for application activities that involve movement, sensory stimulation, and social interaction.

Adults often appreciate assistance in charting their progress in learning through charts, checklists, rating scales, or similar visual, game-like techniques. They sometimes react negatively to assessment procedures that involve tests, quizzes, or other techniques that remind them of school experiences. The “Keys to Great Parenting” program tries to incorporate these adult learning principles into its teaching outlines and program evaluation methods.

When adults find the educational sessions meaningful and enjoyable, can financially afford the experiences, are able to find transportation or to receive services in their homes, and can arrange child care or bring their children along, they are much more likely to continue with the program to its conclusion. Teaching outlines: Topics and resources.

The teaching outlines are planned for a 90-minute session unless otherwise indicated. They are intended to spark the creative imagination of the parent educator. As the educator, you may select the topics and application activities that provide the best fit for your group of participants. Feel free to draw upon your own resources; the ideas in the outlines may serve you best as useful stimulators for your own plan. Depending on the time you have available for your educational session, you may wish to change the number and timing of activities you provide.

In the following list of teaching outlines and resources for each of the seven publications, the italicized titles are supplemental resources that are incorporated into each lesson plan. You may download them from the “Keys to Great Parenting” Web site by following this procedure: From the Keys home page, click on “Additional Resources,” then on “Facilitators Resources.” To access ordering information for the videos, follow the same procedure above but click on “Video List” rather than “Facilitators Resources.” Key #1: Caring For Yourself Ground Rules Introducing…The Food Guide Pyramid: A Guide to Daily Food Choices (FN-JSK.024) Key #2: Cuddle, Talk, and Read With Your Child Developmental Growth Chart (FCS7-181A, inserted into FCS7-181: Key #3) The First Years Last Forever – video Touch…A Parent’s Guide to Infant Massage – optional video



A Brain Cell (Neuron) – diagram Communication With Nursery Rhymes My Child Is an Artist! The Stages of Artistic Development Recipes for Sensory Fun for 2- and 3-Year-Olds Key #3: Know How Your Child Develops The Amazing Talents of the Newborn – optional video Problem Solving Through Encouragement: Lev Vygotsky’s Theory of Social Learning Healthy Personality Development: Erik Erikson’s Theory of Psychosocial Development The Importance of Sensory Experience for Learning: Jean Piaget’s Theory of Intellectual Development A Daily Observation Record – chart How Am I Growing and Changing? – chart Your Temperament Assessment Scale – rating scale The Temperament Assessment Scale for Children – rating scale Key #4: Be Playful With Your Child Small Wonders: Early Brain Development – video Key #5: Show Your Child the World Small Wonders: Early Brain Development – video The Importance of Sensory Experience for Learning: Jean Piaget’s Theory of Intellectual Development Key #6: Teach Self-Control Discipline: Teaching Limits With Love – video The World’s Most Wonderful Parent – checklist Perfect Parenting: A Dangerous Business Why Children Behave and Misbehave Handling Biting With Toddlers Key #7: Practice Health and Safety Your Healthy Baby – video Safe From the Start – video What Children Really Need (FN3-524 – higher literacy) (FN-SSB.127 – lower literacy)

Available to download at http://www.ca.uky.edu/agcollege/fcs/resources. Click on Master Publication List and scroll down to the correct code number.

Certificate of Recognition – certificate Audience recruitment ideas. Here are some ways to recruit parents and primary caregivers (grandparents, child care providers, foster and adoptive parents, etc.): School newsletters; flyers in children’s backpacks; talks to meetings of parent-teacher organizations, YMCA’s or YWCA’s, women’s organizations, faith based groups, Head Start and Early Head Start parent groups, community service clubs, single parent groups, or family resource center activities; public service announcements or



interviews on radio, TV, and newspapers; special workshops, parties, gym nights, guest speaker nights, or family fun nights; special open house in collaboration with another agency or child care facility; informational booths at community festivals or county fairs; person-to-person contact or written notices in public housing projects, public health clinics; posters with removable brochures placed at mental health agencies, health professionals’ offices, stores, shopping malls, food co-ops, banks, bowling alleys, factory lunch rooms, LaLeche League meetings, or community centers; brochures in Welcome Wagon packets; notices in new baby packets or personal visits to new parents at hospitals with obstetric units; or last but far from least, personal contact with pastors, social workers, school counselors, mental health professionals, public and home health nurses, to ask them to inform parents who might benefit from your educational sessions. Community collaboration. The old saying, “It takes a village to raise a child,” holds true in parenting education. Parents not only gain knowledge, attitude changes, and skills from their educator, but they also benefit by gaining contact with and support from the wider community. Community agencies and organizations are enriched by working together to nurture the families. Each representative of the collaboration may plan and carry out one session of the series. Each person might take responsibility for planning the meeting site, snacks, attendance incentives, transportation, fund raising, and recruitment. Someone might contribute teaching resources or follow-up for families after the program series has ended. The whole community may become more caring as a result. Transportation challenges. One of the greatest problems facing parents and parent educators is finding ways to get to educational sessions. There are no easy answers. Some educators have written grants or solicited community organizations for donations of money to pay for taxicabs or the use of vans belonging to churches, community groups, and businesses. Groups of volunteers may be organized to drive their own vehicles to pick up participants. Safety concerns such as approved safety seats for children and adequate seat belts for adults must be considered. Parents are generally more motivated to attend sessions when they can bring their babies, toddlers, and even older children along. Solving transportation problems is most easy when a group of collaborators for the parenting program works together. Optional concurrent children’s program. Parents may be more interested in attending a series of educational sessions if they can bring their babies, toddlers, and preschool children along rather than having to find and pay for babysitters. The children’s group, which could be named the “Children’s Room” and held in a nearby classroom, would best be directed by an educator with some background in early childhood development and education. The educator would carry out a simple, developmentally appropriate program and would collaborate closely with the parent educator. You will find suggestions for the “Children’s Room” near the end of each teaching outline.



Program evaluation and accountability. The “Keys to Great Parenting” program contains a component for evaluating the impact that the program has had on the parents’ growth and change in knowledge, attitudes, and skills. Please read, “Using the Skill Builder Log Sheet: A Guide for Program Evaluation,” before beginning your series of teaching sessions. This piece explains the purposes of the Skill Builders evaluation plan and instructs you in its use. After completing a series of sessions and the Skill Builders evaluation plan, please fill out the “Keys to Great Parenting Facilitator Questionnaire” and send it back to me. In addition, the material below should be used to help you to:

(a) focus participants’ thinking during the sharing time at the beginning of each session on the progress they have made in accomplishing the goal they wrote down in their Skill Builder Action Plan at the end of the previous meeting, and

(b) guide participants in setting a new goal with another Skill Builder Action Plan near the end of each session.

To be used during “Sharing Time” at the beginning of each session: Move participants from general sharing to focused thinking by saying something like, “Let=s look for a few minutes at our Skill Builder Action Plans that we wrote for ourselves at the last session. Who would like to share with us about putting your previous Skill Builder into action?”

Stress that it takes courage to make out a personal action plan. As long as the individual has sincerely tried to follow throughCeven though he or she had only good intentionsCit=s a positive step in the right direction. The person didn=t fail; he or she just went through a learning adventure that is a stepping-stone towards success. As time allows, refer participants to the following questions (written on the flip chart) and permit free discussion on any of them: ‚ What did you learn about yourself and your management abilities? ‚ How did your actions affect your child? ‚ How did your actions affect the general atmosphere of your home? ‚ Which values do you share with other family members? Which values differ? Hand out participants’ Skill Builder Log Sheets and pencils. Hand out new log sheets to newcomers and briefly explain the purpose and procedure of the sheet. Ask participants to reread the words they wrote at the previous meeting. Encourage them to make a check in the box that best describes the degree of success they experienced with their action plan between meetings. When everyone has finished marking, collect the log sheets and set them aside until the Skill Builders time later in the session. PLEASE NOTE: Encourage participation among group members, but preserve the right of anyone to remain silent.



To be used during “Skill Builders” at the end of each session: As an educator, one of your important goals is to help members of your group apply what they have learned. Your tool for accomplishing this is the half-page action plan form called Skill Builders. # Pass out copies of the half-page form and guide participants in creating their personal Skill

Builders. You might begin the process by saying something like, “Think about what we’ve been learning today, and pick out a specific caring-for-yourself skill you would like to improve. Exactly how do you want to strengthen this skill? Choose one small but important change you really want to make in the next few days. Write your action plan in the space provided.”

# Ask the members of your group to choose a reasonably small commitment for their Skill Builder action plans. Biting off too much at one time only sets a person up for frustration or failure. The action plans should be specific and measurable. Having a definite game plan will help the participant to follow through and measure the degree of success.

# Once everybody has had an opportunity to complete the Skill Builder form, go around the group, allowing each person to share his or her action plan. As you listen, freely give compliments and encouragement. If another learning session will follow this one, remind participants to bring their Skill Builder forms with them next time. Knowing that they will have an opportunity to report on their action plans will be an added incentive for following through.

# Hand out the participants’ Skill Builder Log Sheets. Briefly explain the purpose of the log sheet to newcomers to this session (refer to the teaching outline for Key #1 for introductory words). Encourage participants to write a few words that describe their Skill Builder Action Plan on the next line. Newcomers should write their words on the top line. Again assure participants that you will keep their log sheets confidential between meetings. Be sure to collect their log sheets and place them in a folder.

# After participants have completed their half-page Skill Builder Action Plans and their Skill Builder Log Sheets, invite them to close their eyes, take several deep breaths, and relax. Then ask them to imagine that they are successfully carrying out their Skill Builder Action Plans just the way they want to. Lead them in visualizing the positive results and in experiencing how good it feels. Without rushing, you may want to guide them in going over these images a second time. Explain that mental pictures can be a very effective way of learning. Many athletes, for example, use visualization as an essential technique for improving their skills.

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Introduction to the Teaching Outlines · Introduction to the Teaching Outlines ... evaluation plan, please fill out the “Keys to Great Parenting Facilitator Questionnaire” and