Margate – Being a new parent can be exhilarating but exhausting, wonderful but isolating. Sleep deprivation and limited time for yourself can throw you into a very different life – one that you could have never imagined. But take solace in the fact that you are not alone. You can find camaraderie, education, and fun, in a “Parent & Tot” support group at the Katz JCC Early Childhood Education Center.
At the Katz JCC Early Childhood Education Center we offer FREE Parent & Tot classes that provide you an opportunity to socialize with other new parents while providing a place for your child to experience a fun activity, develop fine motor skills and foster creativity.
Parent & Tot classes are held on the second Monday of each month from 10:00 AM-11:00 AM. The classes are designed for parents of children under 24 months old. Parents who can rely on the support of other parents going through the same experience with children the same age often say that it makes a very positive difference in their lives, in both the short and long term. No one understands your struggles, or your day-to-day triumphs, the way other new parents do.
The Parent & Tot classes at the J not only offer friendship and encouragement, but help parents and toddlers by providing monthly themed-based classes filled with motor and sensory activities. Circle time includes stories, singing, dancing and fun-filled finger plays. Lively discussion time helps parents discover new ways to interact with and stimulate their children.
Topics of discussion during the classes can include the importance of routines and sleep, general baby care, infant massage, teething, and bonding. “These groups create a wonderful, supportive, nonjudgmental atmosphere. They don’t teach you how to parent,” explains Katz JCC Early Childhood Education Director Jan Higbee. “They’re there for support. You can vent, you can laugh together, you can cry, and other new parents are there with you. Parents can bring their children, but it’s not a play group—it’s a class made especially for them,” she continued.
For more information, call Jan Higbee at 609.822.1167, Ext. 130 or e-mail jhigbee@jccatlantic.org.