We’ve got a lot of wide-ranging news to share with you this week, from an interview with a business owner turned stay-at-home dad to research on how preschool teachers are (or are not) prepared for dealing with young children’s emotional development.
But before that, just a reminder to all the dads out there that we’d love to hear your stories about your experiences with fatherhood. You can share them with us here or drop us a line through Facebook.
And now… on to the news!
Fathers as Caretakers
- When Charon and Roy Marden became parents for the first time, Roy made the decision to become a stay-at-home father. In an interview for Forbes.com’s Good Men Project, Roy talks about the learning curve he faced, the satisfaction he feels taking on responsibility for his daughter’s day-to-day care while Charon is at work, and just how important he feels it is for new parents–especially fathers–to find a way to spend quality time with their children in their early years. [Forbes]
Screening & Follow-Up Services
- Thanks to a $9 million federal grant, New Jersey will be able to expand home visitation programs that currently serve approximately 3,500 families. These programs, modeled after similar supports already common in Europe, ease the strain on parents by providing them with in-home healthcare, education, and guidance beginning with prenatal care and continuing through a child’s early years. In addition to improving long-term outcomes for children, this type of early investment can save the state money in the long run, as early care and education can reduce the need for more costly interventions later on. [NJ.com]
- Virginia, on the other hand, hasn’t been so fortunate. Funding for the state’s Infant & Toddler Connection program, which provides developmental screening and therapy for children from birth to age two, has been unable to keep pace with the increasing number of families turning to the program. With the shortfall of funding, the program has been forced to limit the services it provides, including instituting a freeze on new enrollment. [WVIR NBC 29]
Quality Infant & Toddler Care
- For young children still developing emotional control, it’s important to have adults who understand how to respond in the face of outbursts and disruptive behaviors. But what does it take to provide that kind of emotional support in a childcare setting? A recent study from researchers at the University of Illinois, examines the practices of student teachers in preschool classrooms, finding that when teachers are more in touch with their own feelings and methods of expression, they are generally better able to be supportive in helping students cope with theirs. [Early Education and Development, Volume 12, Number 2]
Paid Family Leave
- It’s easy to promote the need for paid family leave when looking at it from the family’s perspective. According to Cali Williams Yost, it’s not a difficult position to support from a business standpoint as well. In this piece, Ms. Yost explores what she learned at The National Center for Children in Poverty’s April Paid Family Leave Forum and how she came to the conclusion that providing paid family leave is makes sense as a capitalist business decision. [Forbes]
