But for women going through the process without the support of family and friends, the experience can be intimidating and lonely. This is especially true for women who come from a different country and culture and speak a different language.
The Outreach Doula program, started by Open Arms Perinatal Services last year as part of the larger White Center Early Learning Initiative, supports both immigrant Latina women and Somali refugees in their own languages by women of and from their own communities. Outreach Doulas work with families from early pregnancy through a child's second birthday, connecting them to resources and information and helping them understand that child care and education begin at birth and that they (the parents) play an important role as their child's first and most important teacher.
Watch this Learning for Life as we talk with Sheila Capestany, executive director of Open Arms, about the Outreach Doula program, the difference it's making in the community and what other communities could learn from this program.
06.16.10
Giving Dads Another Chance to be Dads:
On Father's Day, we celebrate dads everywhere. Thanks to Marvin Charles, more men are learning to be the involved, nurturing and loving dads their children need and want.
Charles is co-founder of the nonprofit D.A.D.S. - Divine Alternative for Dads Services. For more than a decade, D.A.D.S. has provided hope, services and supports to dads of all ages who may be coming out of prison, battling substance abuse or living on the streets and wanting to reconnect with their children.
Watch as we talk with Charles about the D.A.D.S. program, what happened in his own life that led him to create D.A.D.S. and how he's a completely different father with his youngest daughter. We'll also talk with current D.A.D.S. client Dewayne Sullivan.
06.09.10
Using dance to help children's development: The first years of a child's life are incredibly important. Babies and toddlers aren't just cute-they are growing and developing at an astonishing rate. About 85 percent of the human brain develops in the first three years of life.
Movement and dance can help maximize a child's cognitive, emotional, creative and physical growth during this time. They also help strengthen the bond between a child and their parent or primary caregiver.
In this Learning for Life, we look at Nurturing Pathways®, an early childhood creative dance program for children up to three years old that engages the whole body and brain for optimal development. The research-based program focuses on patterns of movement, rhyming exercises, sensory play, and dancing to music to enhance development during the earliest years.
06.02.10
Using Drama to Help Develop a Child's Imagination: Having good imagination skills can make all the difference to life, whatever your age. For children, it can help them with various areas of learning, such as imagining characters when they're reading or creating stories, to livening up their experience of play. For adults too, having a good imagination is beneficial and can help relieve boredom and enhance enjoyment of fiction, plays and films.
In fact, research has shown that children who have an active imagination and use it well tend to:
play better with other children
do well in school
be able to handle anger and other emotions better
be happier
better able to amuse themselves and play on their own.
All these are great reasons why it's a good idea to help develop your child's imagination skills. Although toddlers are naturally inquisitive and have basic imagination skills, the more you can do to hone these skills, the better.
In this Learning for Life, we look at "Drama with Your Mama," a brand new class offered by Taproot Theatre in Seattle to help 1- to 3-year-olds explore their budding imagination and express themselves.
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