Our youngest teachers honoured

ELEVEN babies were honoured at a special Barnardos celebration in Bray’s Little Flower Hall recently, for being Ireland’s youngest teachers and volunteers. Over the past nine months these babies and their parents have been visiting local primary schools in Bray, Wicklow Town, Shankill, Ballybrack and Tallaght as part of a Barnardos programme to teach school children important lessons about expressing feelings, respect, inclusion, infant development and safety, and the power of a loving bond between parent and child.

The programme, called Roots of Empathy, is an internationally proven primary school classroom programme that reduces levels of aggression among students, while raising their social and emotional competence and increasing their empathy.

At its heart are a local baby and parent, who visit the classroom with a trained instructor nine times over the school year. The instructor coaches the school children to observe the baby’s development, celebrate milestones, interact with the baby and learn about the baby’s needs and unique temperament. The Instructor also visits the class before and after the baby’s visit to prepare and reinforce teachings, using a specialised curriculum.

Roots of Empathy is delivered by Barnardos in partnership with other local agencies and schools in Ireland, and has reached 1,840 children around Ireland this year alone.

County Wicklow’s participating schools this year include Bray School Project, Gaelscoil UiCheaddaigh, Newcourt School, St Fergal’s National School, St Kieran’s National School, St Patrick’s National School, St Peter’s National School and St Philomena’s National School in Bray and St Patrick’s National School in Wicklow Town. The delivery of the programme is also supported by a range of local agencies including SPECS (Supporting Parents in Early Childhood) which funds the implementation of the programme in three Bray schools.

Those interested in finding out more about the programme, becoming an Instructor or having their baby ‘ teach’ can contact Barnardos on (01) 4530355.