SINAI PARENTING INSTITUTE: The School for Parents
The Need
Parenting is not taught in school. For many of us, the only parenting we have
experienced comes from our own childhood. What if that experience was not a good
one? And even if it was good, today’s families are presented with different
challenges. Every family has its strengths. The Sinai Parenting Institute is
designed to recognize and build upon these strengths.
How SCI Helps
For over ten years, Sinai Parenting Institute has been proud to offer a variety
of parenting programs. Each program is specifically designed to provide information
and build skills based on the needs of the participants. Hundreds of parents,
grandparents, relatives, guardians, foster parents and other caregivers have
attended our classes to help them raise healthy, happy and productive children.
Participants enter the Parenting Institute with different levels of parenting success. Some seek out the program to strengthen their own family while others are referred from a variety of sources (such as Illinois Department of Children and Family Services and the Illinois Correctional System). Others attend because they are part of organizations, which recognize the importance of improving parenting skills, and have added our classes to the services they offer.
The Sinai Parenting Institute’s various curriculums offers parents alternatives to the negative parenting choices they’ve made in the past. The programs give parents and caregivers the opportunity to practice new, positive parenting techniques in a safe, nurturing environment. Participants learn everything from basic physical care --feeding, clothing and bathing-- to meeting the social and emotional needs of children. Parents are always eager to learn about age-appropriate disciplinary techniques and how to best nurture their child’s growth and development.
Because people have different learning styles, the program offers a mix of individual and group activities, including discussion and role-play that will prepare them for practicing these techniques at home. The teacher gets to know each parent and develops a trusting relationship through which learning can occur. Our programs are offered on site at Sinai Community Institute as well as at local public schools and human service agencies.
