[blparent] Taking advantage of parenting classes

Tue Feb 28 18:52:53 UTC 2012

The only thing I can chime in on here is Hadley.  It is a correspondence
school specifically for anyone who is blindor visually impaired.  This is
why no one outside the blindness community mentions Hadley--they cannot take
classes from this particular school.  Just to be clear, Hadley is not
affiliated with the NFB; it is open to anyone who is blind or legally blind
and lives in the US, so I know there are students from both NFB and ACB, as
well as those who are not affiliated with any organization.
Just some information some might find helpful.
Melissa

-----Original Message-----
From: blparent-bounces at nfbnet.org [mailto:blparent-bounces at nfbnet.org] On
Behalf Of Pickrell, Rebecca M (TASC)
Sent: Tuesday, February 28, 2012 1:45 PM
To: 'Blind Parents Mailing List'
Subject: Re: [blparent] Taking advantage of parenting classes

Can you explain how a class can prepare you? Bridget mentioned something
about how that the classes didn't prepare her or maybe I misread.
In any event, can you explain how some "basic information" helped you?
And, what value does Hadley have outside itself? I'm being serious, does
anybody outside Hadley or NFB really care?
If the classes were good and useful that's great, but I don't hear anybody
outside the blindness community say "You know, I think I'll take classes at
Hadley". Why?
And yes, please explain how a class prepared you for a given senario. You
choose both.

-----Original Message-----
From: blparent-bounces at nfbnet.org [mailto:blparent-bounces at nfbnet.org] On
Behalf Of Jo Elizabeth Pinto
Sent: Tuesday, February 28, 2012 1:38 PM
To: Blind Parents Mailing List
Subject: Re: [blparent] Taking advantage of parenting classes

Who said you can't train for being a parent?  I don't think you can
anticipate every problem or challenge that might come up, but you can
definitely arm yourself with some basic information.  I especially liked the
blind-specific info in the Hadley courses.  Besides that, I got a
certificate that I have in my just-in-case file.

Jo Elizabeth

"How far you go in life depends on you being tender with the young,
compassionate with the aged, sympathetic with the striving, and tolerant of
the weak and the strong.  Because someday in life you will have been all of
these."--George Washington Carver, 1864-1943, American scientist

--------------------------------------------------
From: "Pickrell, Rebecca M (TASC)" <REBECCA.PICKRELL at tasc.com>
Sent: Tuesday, February 28, 2012 10:49 AM
To: "'NFBnet Blind Parents Mailing List'" <blparent at nfbnet.org>
Subject: Re: [blparent] Taking advantage of parenting classes

> I'm going to rain on this parade, but if you can't really prepare for 
> being aparent, what's the point of the classes?
> I'm serious with this question.
> If you can't train for it, why train at all?
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: blparent-bounces at nfbnet.org [mailto:blparent-bounces at nfbnet.org] 
> On Behalf Of Bridgit Pollpeter
> Sent: Thursday, February 23, 2012 3:32 PM
> To: blparent at nfbnet.org
> Subject: [blparent] Taking advantage of parenting classes
>
> Jo Elizabeth,
>
> I agree with you. I didn't mean to suggest it was wrong for Hadley to 
> offer parenting classes or for anyone to take advantage of such a class.
> Like you, even though I have child-care experience, and I have been a 
> second mommy to Penny for more than a year (complicated story with
> Penny) my husband and I are reading a ton of material and looking into 
> various classes and groups we can participate in. As prepared as you 
> think you are, once baby arrives, so much changes and a lot ends up 
> involving common sense and quick problem solving skills, grin, 
> regardless of a disability or not. My comments were directed solely at 
> societal ideas still buying into the notion that blindness is an 
> automatic risk factor when parenting, and that anyone would insist we 
> "prove" our ability to parent based only on disability. Hadley's 
> course sounds interesting and definitely something to check out.
>
> Sincerely,
> Bridgit Kuenning-Pollpeter
> Read my blog at:
> http://blogs.livewellnebraska.com/author/bpollpeter/
>
> "History is not what happened; history is what was written down."
> The Expected One- Kathleen McGowan
>
> Message: 8
> Date: Wed, 22 Feb 2012 15:57:37 -0700
> From: "Jo Elizabeth Pinto" <jopinto at msn.com>
> To: "NFBnet Blind Parents Mailing List" <blparent at nfbnet.org>
> Subject: Re: [blparent] Child Protective Services & blind parenting
> Message-ID: <SNT116-DS336E8EBA4E5A59E48CB80AC640 at phx.gbl>
> Content-Type: text/plain; format=flowed; charset="iso-8859-1";
>        reply-type=original
>
> Congratulations on your pregnancy, Bridgit.  I agree that we shouldn't 
> have to prove our ability as parents just because of our blindness.  
> But I also believe that, at least for me, I couldn't be too prepared.  
> The thing I liked about the Hadley courses is that there were tips 
> included from other blind parents, some of which I borrowed for my own 
> box of tricks.
>
> I have a file tucked away in a drawer that includes my certificates 
> from
>
> Hadley, the documentation from the baby care class I took at the 
> hospital before Sarah was born, the report from Social Services that 
> says nothing was found to be amiss at my house, the letter from the 
> home nurse stating that I finished the visitation program, the notes 
> from our pediatrician from each yearly visit at which everything was 
> said to be fine, and the results from the voluntary test at the health 
> department that told me my daughter was
>
> developing within normal emotional and social limits.  If and when I 
> ever have trouble again, from my own family or elsewhere, I'll be well 
> armed.
>
> Even Sarah's dad thinks I'm at least a little paranoid.  Once burned, 
> twice shy.
>
> One final thing--I fear the day when every parent has to take classes 
> or get certified.  I've heard people suggest that, usually in the 
> context of teen pregnancies.  But I know full well that blind parents 
> would have a devil of a time passing any class or certification that 
> could be proposed, not because of lack of ability, but because it 
> would take proving ourselves to a whole new level.  Scary thought.
>
> Jo Elizabeth
>
>
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