Originally Posted by Laurel:
What exactly is a home visitor for Headstart? I really don't know a thing about Headstart. I thought it was a preschool type program for low income children.
Glad you love your job though!
Basically, we support low-income families in being their child's teacher. I go visit each family weekly (I have 10 children, 8 families). I do activities with the kids and parents together (parents help plan, in theory but not always in practice), give parenting training, and find support services for families in need. We might direct them to energy assistance, birth-3 services, or help with getting adult education figured out. We also run playgroups out of our building, and offer socializations for 3-5 year olds (typically those that aren't in preschool or daycare, so they get some exposure to group situations before school). Our organization also runs Head Start Classrooms, which are esentially free preschool for low income children ages 3 to 5.