Parents can enter the Healthy Families program prenatally or before a baby is three months old. Family Support Workers partner with parents to help build a nurturing relationship between parent and child, provide information on how children develop, and suggest ideas for activities for parents to engage with their child. Services are provided where it is most convenient for the participant – usually at home.
Healthy Families participants receive:
- Information on how children develop and learn.
- Materials and ideas for activities to do with children to strengthen the bond between parent and child.
- Knowledge and skills to help parents prepare children for success in school.
- Support for parents with children up to age 5.
- Connection to services such as help with food, housing, medical, education and training so that parents can focus on themselves and their children
Home Instruction of Parents of Preschool Youngsters (HIPPY)
Support through Healthy Families can continue until a child is age three and eligible for the HIPPY (Home Instruction for Parents of Preschool Youngsters) program. Parents of children ages 3-5, not already enrolled in the Healthy Families Program, may be eligible to enroll in HIPPY. The HIPPY Program continues to focus on supporting parents through home-visiting but with an emphasis on school readiness.
HIPPY Home Visitors meet parents weekly for 30 weeks providing the HIPPY curriculum, books and educational materials. Parents are trained to use the curriculum and educational materials with their child, supporting the parent’s ability to be their child’s first teacher. The curriculum provides activities for parents to do for 15-20 minutes daily for five days. The suggested activities include language/literacy, math, science and motor activities.
Parents as Teachers (PAT) Affiliates
Parents as Teachers affiliates are family-focused organizations which have chosen the Parents as Teachers home visiting model as one of the services they offer to families with small children. Parents as Teachers builds strong communities, thriving families and children who are healthy, safe and ready to learn by matching parents and caregivers with trained professionals who make regular personal home visits during a child’s earliest years in life, from prenatal through kindergarten.
Eligibility Requirements
Eligibility - Both programs are FREE of charge and eligibility is not based on income.
If you are a Calvert County resident who is pregnant or have a child under 3 months of age, you may be eligible for the Healthy Families Calvert County Program
Additionally, if you a child over three months you may be eligible for the Parents as Teachers Program
If you have a child that is between 2 and 5 years of age and you are a Calvert County resident, you may be eligible for the HIPPY Program