Free public television's Pre-School-U program helping parents in Brightmoor
DETROIT (FOX 2) - As we know, parenting doesn't come with an instruction manual. But there are tips and tricks to help kids, especially unruly toddlers work through their emotions.
That's where the Detroit Public Television comes in and its program Pre-School-U.
Pre-School-U is a free workshop through Detroit Public Television that basically gives parents tips on how to parent in hopes of giving their children a brighter future. It's available now in Detroit's Brightmoor neighborhood.
"If you ever worked with a 3-year-old, you will know they have emotions and they don't always know how to regulate them," Tara Hardy said. "(We are) working with parents to see where your child is emotionally, that they are not trying to manipulate you trying to figure it out themselves giving them tools to calm down."
Trained adults and educators work with parents, grandparents and caregivers to teach them why the children are doing what they're doing, and how to react.
"A lot of the parents talking about kids throw tantrums," parent Arisela Orozco told us. "I was like thank God I am not the only one who has a daughter that doesn't listen."
Deborah Triplett came to class to learn how to better communicate with her six grandchildren.
"The whole scenario with children is different now," she told us. "Some of the things I am learning about today about feelings, I'm like, I needed that information years ago to communicate with them, to talk to them, to get our feelings out. It's an excellent program."
"The cool piece about Pre-School-U is it pulls the layers back and it makes you address yourself as the adult so that you can be a better support piece to your students and to your children, and so they have to deal with the pieces about their emotions so they can identify them as children," one of the trained instructors Yolanda Eddins told us.
Besides discussing best practices for parents, the workshops show parents different ways to help their children learn and give realistic tips, tools and activities to prepare their children for school.
"How you deal with when you get upset when you get worked up, all of it ties into better behavior in school?" Eddins said. "Because when we have kids who can't calm down, it leads to bullying. When we have children who can't manage their emotions it leads to them not being able to sit still in classrooms so everybody is impacted by it."
Orozco, who has a 2-year-old found the workshop so helpful she decided to bring a friend.
"I think it is a great workshop," she said. "It helps me prepare for my daughter when she goes to preschool, and her emotions and stuff."
DPTV is able to offer this free program through grants from Kresge and Fischer Foundations.
| MORE: To learn more, go to www.dptv.org/preschoolu