Strategies for Preparing a Family to Participate (1)
Collaborators that are well informed about Even Start are better partners and work more effectively with families. Therefore, an objective to preparing families is to train and inform all collaborative partners about Even Start.
Ensure recruited families are well informed about Even Start Program:
- Educate recruited parents about program components
- Provide opportunities for visitation by family to program sites
- Assist family in making choices
- Provide a "comfort level" for families
The following activities assist in doing this:
- Initial home visits are used to explain program
- Parents are given time to answer or ask questions
- Program description fact sheets are produced and given to families
- Provide information from collaborators - they offer program options
- Visitation by family to early childhood, adult education sites accompanied by a family educator
- Family meets others who are participating in Even Start.
- Discussion at home visit about future visits
- Evaluation of family goals and needs. (Help family tie these to the results of the assessments, their interests and schedules.)
Engage families in establishing their own program goals for the future and establish a family plan:
- Discuss and practice goal setting
- Discuss family strengths
- Write down short- and long-term goals
- Discuss the hurdles family will need to overcome or need assistance with in order to overcome as they attempt to meet goals
- Map out logical small steps for meeting goals
- Assist family in writing this on a family plan
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