Interested in parenting groups. I’ve questioned these for being anything more than a pick up spot for single and -ummm married parents. However, after reading through some of their topics and classes I have to say I would not put them off as a resource. There’s got to be something to having the opinion of people in the same situation as you are. I know I have a better chance of figuring out how to get my kid to stop crying if i ask 20 people as opposed to staying at home and brooding about it.

I pulled some information from their site that I thought was interesting. The link to their site is below. Check them out, and if I’m there and should you run into me I’ll great ya with “how you doin?”

Parenting programs:

Groups for Infants and Toddlers

The advantages of groups at the Early Childhood Parenting Center:

# High ratio of professionals to children
# All group leaders are experienced professionals
# Warm, nurturing environment for you and your child
# A great place to make new friends

The groups are supportive and educational, and provide you with the latest developmental information. Some of the topics include:

# How to help your child sleep through the night
# Recovery from birth, marital changes, feeding, baby sitters and more
# How to toilet train without tears
# Secure separation
# How to avoid eating issues
# What to do about temper tantrums
# How limits can make your child more secure
# Building self-esteem
# How to deal with sibling rivalry

Infant Groups

The infant groups focus on the early adjustment to parenthood. This is an excellent way to enhance the development of your new child in a supportive setting.

Groups of eight to ten parents and their infants (birth to 1 year) meet in an informal setting to discuss topics such as recovery from pregnancy and birth, postpartum feelings, integrating the baby into your family, breast and bottle feeding, establishing good sleep patterns, returning to work, finding good child care, baby’s motor, cognitive, and emotional development, and transition to toddlerhood.

Toddler Groups

In the toddler groups, the children play together and are supervised by early childhood staff while the parents sit nearby talking together with the group leaders. Toddlers are within visual range and easy access at all times. The staff helps children develop early socialization skills while beginning the discovery of independence from their parent. Groups have eight to ten toddlers and their parents. Groups are put together according to the toddler’s age.

Some of the topics addressed in these groups are: separation, temper tantrums, sleep disruptions, beginning toilet training, travel, balancing the toddler’s need for dependence and independence, and how to manage eating issues.

Single Parent Groups

This is an evening group for single mothers and fathers. Single parents are able to explore their particular concerns such as how to manage as a single parent, issues related to divorce and custody, job stress, child development issues and many more topics. Supervised play is provided for children in an adjoining room.

Working Parents

This is a discussion group for working parents of young children. Groups of eight to ten meet once a week in the evening. Parents are able to talk about the stress and confusion they experience in their multiple roles. Some topics explored in the group include: finding competent child care, the difficulty of saying good bye, the impact of two working parents on the family, and coping with guilt and exhaustion.

Daddy and Me Discussion Groups

This group focuses on the role of the father in his child’s emotional and social development. Fathers and their children ages 0 to 3 meet to discuss topics important to the role of fatherhood.

Parenting Skills Group

Parents without their children meet with professional leaders in a group setting to talk and learn how to be the best parent they can be. Groups meet either during the day or the evening.

This is the perfect group to continue learning parenting skills, after your child completes the toddler program. All parents are welcome, even if this is your first group with us.

These guys also provide their classes on CD

Early Childhood Parenting Center
1440 Harvard Street
Santa Monica, CA 90404