Parenting Classes

Taking a parenting class may help you understand how to best parent your children after separating from their other parent. Also, mental health professionals can help to point out important issues for the family and help you make the separation as easy on your children as possible.

The family court in your county has an office, called Family Court Services, which usually has a list of parenting classes. Find the Family Court Services in your county. Also, most areas have groups like the YMCA or YWCA, youth agencies, community agencies, and religious groups that offer:

• Handouts on normal development for babies, toddlers, and preschoolers
• Articles with checklists for picking a quality daycare
• Parenting classes with tips for handling typical situations

Because there are so many resources available, it is best if you search for what you want in your city or county. Go to an Internet search engine and search for "parenting resources" or "parenting classes" in your city. There are online parenting classes, guidelines, and handouts for parents and children of all ages. Many cities also have parenting classes in languages other than English.

General Parenting Resources

These websites can give you some guidelines that you may find helpful, but an individualized plan for your children is best:

• Using Child Development Research to Make Appropriate Custody and Access Decisions for Young Children by Joan B. Kelly and Michael E. Lamb.
• CYFERnet’s articles.
• Parents Forever: Resources for parents and families from the University of Minnesota Extension classes.
• The Arizona Supreme Court’s Model Parenting Time Plans for Parent/Child Access has suggestions for parenting plans for children of different ages. Remember, these are just suggestions.
  

Resources for Parenting Young Children

Most areas have groups like the YMCA or YWCA, youth agencies, community agencies, and religious groups that offer:

• Handouts on normal development for babies, toddlers, and preschoolers.
• Articles with checklists for picking a quality daycare.
• Parenting classes with tips for handling typical situations.

Mental health professionals also can help to point out important issues for the family and help you to plan.

There are also a lot of websites with helpful information on parenting children of different ages. Here are some websites that may be helpful:

• CYFERnet (Children, Youth and Families Education and Research Network) offers information from the country’s top universities based on research on child development
  • For infants.
  • For toddlers and preschoolers.
• Ages and Stages for Caregivers fact sheets (from 0 to 5 years; published by the Ohio State University Extension)
• Parenting and child development fact sheets (for the first year; published by Rutgers NJAES Cooperative Extension, with most available in English and Spanish)
• Zero to Three:
  • 0 to 8 months;
  • 8 months to 18 months;
  • 18 months to 36 months.
• Superior court of Los Angeles County:
  • Creating a Parenting Plan: Children under 3
  • Creating a Parenting Plan: Children Three to Five Years

 

Resources for Parenting Children 6 Years Old and Over

There is a lot of information on the Internet about the needs of children of school age and teenagers.

Here are some resources:

• CYFERnet (Children, Youth and Families Education and Research Network) offers information from the country’s top universities based on research on child development:
  • For school-agers.
  • For child and adolescent development.
• Superior court of Los Angeles County:
  • Creating a Parenting Plan: Children six to nine years.
  • Creating a Parenting Plan: Children ten to thirteen years.
  • Creating a Parenting Plan: Children 14 to 18 years.

Parenting resources for gay and lesbian parents

You can find information on the Internet and through some community organizations on issues specific to children of gay and lesbian couples.

Here are some resources:

• Lesbian and Gay Parentingby the American Psychological Association
• Lesbian and Gay Parents and Their Children: Research on the Family Life Cycle by Abbie E. Goldberg. Published by the American Psychological Association
• Claiming a Place at the Table from the American Psychological Association
• "The kids are all right" by Sadie Dingfelder