Helping parents make the most of their child's early years

Research shows that a young child's language, social and literacy development depends on positive, supportive parent-child interactions. In fact, ordinary, everyday routines like meal time, play time and bath time give parents the best opportunities to promote their child's early learning and development. That's why the You Make The Difference™ Program is so important. It gives parents the tools they need to make a difference during their child's early years - a difference that enriches the parent-child relationship and sets the child up for future success, both inside and outside of school. About the Program You Make The Difference™ is a nine-session general education or early prevention program encourages positive parent-child interaction during every day routines and activities promotes the development of children (birth to five) including those who may be challenged to reach their full potential due to social or environmental challenges includes a fun and interactive 90-minute parent group, followed by an individual one-on-one parent-child practice session Who Runs the Program? Educators and Family Support professionals who have taken the You Make The Difference™ Workshop and are licensed by The Hanen Centre run the You Make The Difference ™ Program. The Workshop is designed for those who have post-secondary training in early childhood education, public health/community nursing, social work, speech-language pathology or a related field, and work with parents and their young children. What Parents Learn in You Make The Difference  how to interact with their child in ways that enhance the parent-child relationship and promote their child’s well-being how to use everyday activities and playtime as opportunities to promote their child's social and language development how to become aware of developmental needs their child may have so that appropriate services may be accessed with support from Family Support professionals

Who Should Attend This Program?

You Make The Difference™ is a program for parents who may:

	benefit from improving their parenting skills
	be young and/or single
	be socially or geographically isolated
	be economically disadvantaged
	have limited literacy skills
	have typically developing children or children who are at risk of delays in development

Program Format

The You Make The Difference ™ Program consists of nine weekly sessions for parents.

 

Each session includes:

	90 minutes of group learning for parents while their child is taken care of by qualified child care staff
	time for each parent to practise what they've learned with their child, receive guidance from the group leader and be videotaped to be able to see the difference they make in helping their child learn

 

Program Content
Parents are guided through a step-by step process that helps them learn how to:

	Allow their child to lead
	Adapt to share the moment with their child
	Add experience and words at their child's level

During the nine weeks of the program parents learn how to follow this approach during everyday situations such as washing up, dressing, meal times etc., as well as when they are playing games, singing songs, sharing books and creating with their child.

 

The You Make The Difference ™ Program is supported by the parent guidebook, You Make The Difference In Helping Your Child Learn, Manolson, Ward and Dodington (1995) and an educational Teaching Tape. You can also browse sample pages from the You Make The Difference guidebook.

To order Hanen materials, click here.

Questions?
For more information about You Make the Difference™ contact info@hanen.org.