Parent Child Learning

Operation Little Learners

Operation Little Learners is an interactive education program for parents and their children to enhance child development. Parents learn to be the primary educator of their child with tools to enhance child development and early learning, as well as parent-child bonding.

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Moms and todllers play together with blocks

Operation Little Learners Program Overview

Operation Little Learners at Armed Services YMCA Fort Leonard Wood is an educational program that acts as a much-needed platform to help support and build confidence in parents in their roles as their child’s first teacher. This program guides and provides tools to parents to enhance key areas of early childhood development and offers an opportunity for parent-child bonding.ย  This class also provides the setting for both parents and children to make new friendships and feel part of a community, which is critical in the lives of military families. Additionally, parent-child bonding can predict a childโ€™s ability to develop healthy relationships, handle conflicts, and have an overall higher quality of life well into adulthood. The classes provide a variety of activities that enhance cognitive, emotional, social, motor, and other skills of children ages 18 months through 5 years old.

Frequent moves due to military orders are unique stressors of military family life. These moves can come without warning and without control over future location. The move can often cause economic hardships and feelings of isolation. Coupled with potential short-term deployments by the service member, military life can result in the military family feeling untethered without the support of their own family or an established local network to rely upon. Many junior-enlisted active-duty spouses are young, new parents, away from the familiarity of their home community.

This class provides the setting for both parents and children to make new friendships and feel part of a new community. From a physiological and sociological perspective, we know a parentโ€™s bonding with their little one can predict the childโ€™s ability to develop healthy relationships, handle conflicts, and have an overall higher quality of life well into adulthood. As such, the Armed Services YMCA has created Operation Little Learners, which fosters a connection to a community of support, as well as fun and engaging activities to ensure that parents and their child/children learn ways to grow together as a family.

The program results in parents and children that are stronger and more resilient, who not only develop and grow due to the organized curriculum but also connect to a support network filled with other moms and dads experiencing the same military life challenges. With a focus on phonics, writing, art, music, nutrition, and fitness, each participant leaves the program having established a foundation for future social and academic success.

This program is open to active duty military families and offered free of charge.

January – February Session

  • Mondays March 4 – April 22 from 12:00 pm – 1:00 pm
  • Wednesdays March 6 – April 24 from 12:00 pm – 1:00 pm
Location:
13900 Replacement Avenue
Fort Leonard Wood, MO 65473

Music Education

Music & Me

Because we recognize that children learn through play, we make everything we do in class engaging and fun. We also know that young children learn best from the powerful role models in their lives, which is why our music classes will show parents, teachers, and caregivers how to help their children become confident music-makers just by having fun making music themselves.

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group of kindergarten-age kids play music on differfent instrucments

Music & Me Program Overview

Music games are a fun way for young children to express themselves while benefiting mentally, physically, and developmentally. It serves as an outlet to spark a childโ€™s creativity, which encourages their vivid imagination. More than just fostering creativity and imagination, music education provides:

  • An improvement in their vocabulary and language
  • More self-confidence
  • More self-discipline
  • Increased motor skills
  • Improved listening skills
  • Enhanced social skills

Music education stimulates childrenโ€™s brains, requiring them to simultaneously listen for the beat, read along with sheet music, and coordinate their movements to play the instrument or dance with the rhythm.

Summer sessions will be opening in May 2024 for registration, Check back for updates.

Location:
13900 Replacement Avenue
Fort Leonard Wood, MO 65473