Parents as Teachers (PAT)
is an internationally recognized early childhood parent education and
family support program. It is a voluntary program for parents with children
from birth through age 5. PAT promotes parent involvement in learning
from the very beginning of a child's life and fosters optimal development
of the young child. To accomplish this, the Parents as Teachers National
Center provides training and support to early childhood educators.
Through Parents as Teachers, parents acquire the
skills to help make the most of crucial early-learning years. This free program covers
child development; suggests activities that encourage language development, intellectual
growth and social and motor skills; and strengthens the parent-child relationship. A
number of independent studies show that children who participate in PAT are significantly
advanced over their peers, and that these early gains continue after the children enter
elementary school. Parents are also more highly involved in their child’s school
experiences — a key factor in education success.
Two basic assumptions of PAT are:
All families have strengths.
Parents are the experts on their child.
The four
PAT program components are:
- Personal visits,
- Group meetings,
- Developmental screenings, and
- Connections with community resources.
Nebraska SPRING and Nebraska PAT
The State Office. Nebraska Parents As Teachers is an official state affiliate of the national
PAT program. This means all inquiries and re-certifications can go directly through the
Nebraska state office, rather than the national. The Nebraska PAT Office is operated by
the Northeast Family Center
in Lincoln, NE as part of the Nebraska SPRING grant. An
Administrative Team advises the PAT program. This team consists of a representative from
the Nebraska Department of Education, representatives from three PAT programs and a
retired principal.
How PAT
Works. There are currently 21 nationally
recognized PAT programs in
Nebraska. Not all certified parent educators work in single-focused
PAT programs, however. Instead, they use their PAT skills in the framework
of other early childhood programs. These programs include Early
Head Start, Head Start,
Even Start and Title
I.
Certified Parent Educators (CPEs) complete a 5-day
training developed and tested by the national PAT office. There are two basic trainings.
The first is for educators working with children age birth to three years of age. The
second is for educators working with children three to five years old.
How Nebraska
SPRING Helped. Nebraska SPRING assisted
communities with the cost of training and hiring Certified Parent Educators.
Since its inception in 1997, Nebraska SPRING has trained 26 Certified
Parent Educators. Fourteen received certification to work with children
age birth to 3, and 12 received certification to work with children age
3 to 5. In 2002, 15 Nebraska PAT programs received support for a part-time
parent educator through the Nebraska SPRING Grant.
For More
Information. If you are interested in receiving
training to become a Certified Parent Educator or wish to start a PAT
program in your community, you can contact Barb Gaither at 402.471.3700
or nfc1@alltel.net. Barb can help you contact the program closest to you
and answer any questions you might have about Parents as Teachers. You
can also use the locator
map to find the program closest to you and learn more about
their services.
Nebraska PAT Programs — Locator Map
To locate the closest PAT program
and learn more about the services they offer, click on the community and
go to their web page. Communities marked in purple indicate the local
Parents as Teachers program received support through the Nebraska SPRING
project.
Click on the town name and go to a web page that describes the local
PAT program. For Lincoln and Omaha, please choose from the programs listed below.
Lincoln — Northeast Family Center
Lincoln — Lincoln Action Program Early Head Start
Omaha — Westside Community Schools
Omaha — Salvation Army Early Head Start
Names in purple indicate those funded by Nebraska SPRING
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