
Parenting Education. Parenting Classes. Parenting Support. Whatever terminology you prefer, they all mean the same thing. . .help me I’m a parent and I’m drowning, someone throw me a lifejacket! Okay, enough with the dramatics, but I’m pretty sure there are many parents out there who have felt that way at least once. There are many different parenting curriculum offered throughout the Willamette Valley, but you must remember to choose one that will meet the needs for you and your children. Also, make sure to have an open mind to learning about content or practices that you strongly agree with or perhaps strongly disagree with. The important takeaway is to recognize that your family is unique from the next family, and that means the application of the curriculum may look different and/or have different outcomes. Below are a few evidenced-based curriculum that have shown positive results after parents have completed the course.
Make Parenting a Pleasure (in Spanish Haga de la Paternidad un Placer). This parenting curriculum has been in practice for more than 30 years. It is designed for parents who are highly stressed with children 0 to 8 years old.
Abriendo Puertas (in English Opening Doors). This curriculum is the nation’s first evidence-based comprehensive training program developed by and for Latino parents with young children between the ages of 0 and 5 years old.
Nurturing Parenting is a family-centered trauma-informed program designed to build nurturing parenting skills as an alternative to abusive and neglecting parenting and child-rearing practices.
Taking a parenting class can trigger feelings of anxiety or worry. Some parents feel like enrolling in a class may mean that they are “bad parents” or that they “can’t control their children.” Remember, we are all life learners and it’s important to stay abreast of the most recent up-to-date information on best practices for young children. We upgrade our smartphones and iphones every 2 years, right? Well, it’s important to upgrade our parenting skills, too. Parenting infants is different from parenting toddlers. Parenting toddlers is extremely different from parenting preschoolers, and so on and so on.
When you’re ready to upgrade, check out the calendar for upcoming parenting classes being offered by The Early Learning Hub of Marion & Polk County.
The Parenting Hub would love to help connect you with a parenting program that best meets your needs. Please send your inquiries to: parentinghub@earlylearninghub.org.