Appendix A: Parent Handouts
- #1- Getting to Know Your New Baby
- #2- Helping My Baby Sleep
- #3- Building Connections: Finding an Early Rhythm
- #4- On the Path to Developing Trust
- #5- Feeding is More than Just Eating
- #6- Supporting Trust & Exploration
- #7- The Power of Repair
- #8- Big Ideas & Big Emotions
- #9- Encouraging Cooperation in Everyday Moments
- #10- Staying Connected During Difficult Moments
- #11- On the Path to a Positive Sense of Self
- #12- Reconnecting During Difficult Times
- #13- On the Path to Successful Separations and Transitions
- #14- Play & Delight
- #15- Understanding Children’s Behavior
- #16- Social Emotional Needs of Children
- #17- Meeting the Social & Emotional Needs of Children
- #18- Reframing Challenging Behaviors: Looking at the Needs & Feelings Beneath the Behavior
Reflective practice groups, where professionals come together to reflect about their work, have long been a cornerstone for professional practice in other fields, law, education, infant mental health, and more recently, health care.
“Reflection means stepping back from the immediate, intense experience of hands-on work and taking the time to wonder what the experience really means. What does it tell us about the family? About ourselves? Through reflection, we can examine our thoughts and feelings about the experience and identify the interventions that best meet the family’s goals for self-sufficiency, growth and development.”
~ Parlakian, 2001
Reflective practice groups create a space for providers to come together to support one another, to feel seen and valued, to have their distress contained, and to be accompanied in their work. Important features of a reflective practice group parallel important features of sensitive and responsive parenting. The meetings need to be predictable, frequent (i.e. at least once a month), consistent and dependable. There needs to be a sense of safety where participants can bring their biggest concerns and most difficult cases to the group and feel comfortable and safe enough to share their more vulnerable moments.
The Washington Chapter American Academy of Pediatrics and the University of Washington Barnard Center for Infant and Child Mental Health have partnered to offer reflective practice groups to Washington State pediatric care providers in recognition of the deep need to support front-line providers through reflective practice.