MPB launches Parents Are Teachers Too initiative in Warren County

Parents have a tremendous influence on the academic success of their children. Mississippi Public Broadcasting is launching a new education initiative providing Warren County parents with tools and strategies to help families learn together at home.

The Parents Are Teachers Too initiative will launch in Warren County and 19 other Mississippi counties at the end of February. In each community, current teachers, retired teachers, librarians, college instructors and other educators will serve as MPB PATT facilitators for the program. They will lead participating parents in six one-hour sessions.

The sessions include open discussions on various topics, fun hands-on activities, tips and strategies to use in the home to extend what their child is learning in school, ways to make reading fun and suggestions for family activities. PATT provides parents with tools and resources to create an atmosphere of families learning together. The goal is to encourage and empower parents to be more engaged and work confidently with their children.

MPB is piloting this initiative in Claiborne, Coahoma, Copiah, DeSoto, Hancock, Hinds, Holmes, Humphreys, Jones, Lafayette, Lee, Madison, Oktibbeha, Pike, Sunflower, Warren, Washington, Winston and Yazoo counties.

There is no charge for families to participate, but space is limited. Parents and guardians can contact the facilitator in the county nearest them to get detailed information on the time, date and location of the local program. Contact information for PATT facilitators in each county can be found on the MPB Education Facebook page.

“As a result of MPB’s long-time involvement in early childhood programs and family engagement activities, PATT was developed to help close the gaps between parent-child and parent-teacher relationships,” said MPB’s Early Childhood Director Shelia Brown Robinson in a statement.

“MPB educators have watched how many of the parent-child relationships advance and witnessed children’s grades improve because of the parents’ participation in the school and home. We listened to the needs and concerns of the parents participating at our events. Also, we heard teachers and other school administrators declare that parents need to be more involved,” Robinson said.

PATT is sponsored in part by these generous sponsors: Donna and Jim Barksdale, Sheryl and Jay Davidson, Martha and Marty Hederman, and Origin Bank.

MPB’s Early Childhood Division is dedicated to providing best-practice resources to parents, teachers and community advocates for children from birth to 12-years-old. By using the trusted PBS KIDS platform, the MPB broadcast network and early literacy initiatives, MPB educators provide quality services across Mississippi.

MPB’s Early Childhood team provides books to build home libraries and offer families extended activities. Parents are the child’s most important first teacher and teachers are the parent’s best partner. Creating and nurturing these relationships ensure all children receive quality education and positive school experiences. The ultimate goal is to support families by building programs that are encouraging and engaging for the entire family.

For more information regarding MPB, visit mpbonline.org.