Photo By Airman 1st Class Taylor Shelton | Parents play with their babies on kick boards during the Water Babies class March 3,...... read more read more
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FAIRCHILD AIR FORCE BASE, Wash. - Water Babies is a class offered through the 92nd Medical Group held at the base pool every Tuesday at 11 a.m.
Swimming, singing, using a kickboard and playing with wiffle balls are the main activities at the Water Babies class.
Mary Cook , 92nd Medical Group New Parent Support Program nurse, and Susanna Dodd, 92nd Medical Group Family Advocacy, co-teach the Water babies class. Cook designed the program 10 years ago and it’s been running ever since.
During the first 7-10 minutes of the class, the participants practice fine and gross motor skills with singing and hand movements which helps the babies utilize both sides of their brain.
The purpose of the class is to optimize early learning and development and for the parents to bond with their children.
Cook said “the babies are role playing and watching their parents and bonding with face-to-face contact.”
The use of kick boards help the children utilize their neck and chest muscles. Cook said they check to see if the kids are moving their heads side-to-side and are looking around.
The next few minutes are used to play with plastic wiffle balls. They start out playing with one then as they learn to problem solve and how to handle multiple balls they add more. The older kids learn to throw and kick balls.
Cook said “all of these things build neuronal pathways for the kids, and the parents are learning to interact by modeling.”
The last few minutes of the class is used to socialize and have the babies interact with others.
“The parents are able to come and enjoy their kids as they learn new socialization skills and new gross motor skills,” Cook said.
“It’s good for their brain development, but the socialization and the parental bonding is probably the best.”
| Date Taken: | 03.04.2015 |
| Date Posted: | 03.06.2015 11:54 |
| Story ID: | 156163 |
| Location: | FAIRCHILD AIR FORCE BASE, WA, US |
| Web Views: | 26 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, Amphibious infants: Babies first kick, by A1C Taylor Shelton, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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