HIPPY Success Story

When Micheas sits down with his mom to read a story and do a science experiment, he doesn’t know that he is gaining skills that will help him be better prepared for kindergarten in a few months. But he does know that learning is fun, persistence pays off and his mother is an excellent teacher.

Hazel Sullivan is a hands-on, enthusiastic parent to a young adult, a teenager and a preschooler, and she is learning, growing and communicating in new ways that are enriching life for her and her youngest son. Micheas is already exploring science, reading, movement and other activities that will help him be ready to succeed in the classroom. Their journey is supported by participating in HIPPY – Home Instruction for Parents of Preschool Youngsters – with Greenville County parent educator Jamaica Griggs.

“HIPPY is bringing parents back to the table with their children,” Griggs said. “They go from school to home, and at this preschool age, kids might never get back to the table just to review what they learned at school. HIPPY puts you back at the table.”

HIPPY is an evidence-based program that supports parents in their role as their child’s first and most important teacher. It serves families with children ages 3 – 5, building partnerships between parents and teachers as they work toward the same goal: helping children learn, grow and thrive. Parents meet weekly with their HIPPY educator, providing opportunities to ask questions, role-play learning activities and have built-in support. The program is easy to implement in just a few minutes each day. All supplies are provided and the activities are scripted and practiced, so parents have everything they need to be their child’s first teacher.

While Micheas learns with his mother, she is learning how to work with his strengths.

“Everybody learns differently. Everybody has their own pace. And I love it because it teaches me too,” she said. “I didn’t know I like teaching – I didn’t know that. He really listens to me. And I love how he gets so excited reading a book, to the point that I know the book by heart and I can stop, look at him, and he can finish the word or try to sound it out. I would love to encourage more parents to do it. It’s worth it. It’s the best investment you can put in your child.”

Made possible by an Innovation Investment grant from South Carolina First Steps, First Steps county partnerships in Anderson, Greenville, Laurens, Oconee, Pickens, and Spartanburg counties recently launched Home Instruction for Parents of Preschool Youngsters (HIPPY), a national evidence-based program that provides parents of preschool-aged children with the tools, skills, and confidence they need to support their child’s learning at home. Through weekly in-person visits, trained parent educators – many of whom are the child’s teachers – guide parents through educational activities that build school readiness and strengthen parent-child relationships.