Parenting Education
Parents as Teachers (PAT) – Funded through United Way of El Paso County, Project Vida partners with AmeriCorps® to provide parents with the information, encouragement and support they need to help their children develop optimally during the early, crucial years of life. PAT helps:
- Increase parents' knowledge of early childhood development and improve parenting practices.
- Provide parents with early detection of developmental delays and health issues.
- Increase the child's school readiness and school success.
The program provides:
- Personalized home visits
- Regular screenings for the child
- Community resource networks
- Group connections to other parents
Nurturing Parent/Crianza con Cariño – A structured, complete curriculum offering experiential activities for parents in group sessions led by trained facilitators. The program focuses on nurturing as a lifestyle, growth and development of children including brain development, ages and stages, appropriate expectations, and infant and toddler development. The curriculum is family-based and has a strong track record of preventing the recurrence of child abuse and neglect. The 12-session program is offered twice a year at Project Vida's Early Childhood Center, 3616 Pera.
Parental Care and Responsibility Program – Provides primary prevention education to increase awareness and knowledge of the effects of substance abuse on parenting and child development. Courses include Alcohol and Kids Don't Mix and Families in Substance Abuse Treatment and Recovery.
- Alcohol and Kids Don’t Mix - Understanding the relationship between child abuse/neglect and drug/alcohol abuse. Program targets parents of school-age children. Consists of 5 weekly sessions for 2 hours for a total of 10 hours.
- Families in Substance Abuse Treatment and Recovery - Aimed at partners of parenting adults in treatment and recovery, extended family members who may be parenting children of substance-abusing adults, and adults in treatment and/or recovery for substance abuse and who are in parenting relationships with children. The program includes 17 topic areas. Each 1-1/2-hour session begins with an introduction from a trained facilitator about the topic and the group process. Goals, objectives, materials, and preparation needed are outlined for each session. Activities and exercises are designed to promote a high level of group participation and interaction.
