Welcome!
My public classes & workshops are listed below, including

“Free to Be…” RIE^® Certified Parent-Infant Guidance^TM classes

RIE^® Before Baby^TM

Introduction to Educaring^TM

Infant Massage / Touch Communication for families

and

Infant Massage Basics for Caregiving Professionals

Public offerings are held at Heartful Birth’s beautiful dedicated classroom:
1615 Hill Road, Suite 1, Novato, CA 94947

Thinking about a *private 1:1 or small group* class? I would love to explore this with you:
Let’s connect!

“Free to Be…”
RIE Certified Parent-Infant Guidance classes

8-week series

for families with
Infants, 4 – 10 months
and
Toddlers, 10 – 20 months

Registration for the January – February 2025 series is now open!

See the class calendar below…

Here’s a video sampling of “Banana Snack,” offered in toddler classes
(click photo)

In “Free to Be…” parent-child classes:

• Discover how infants benefit from independent play

• Appreciate what your child can do right now

• Learn how care routines can be favorite times for both caregiver and baby

• Share in the beautiful unfolding of children’s first relationships – with themselves, with others and with their surroundings

• Support only as much as needed

Through this 8-week series, parents or caregivers will receive the opportunity to thoughtfully observe their little ones and experience them demonstrating the value of these principles for us, as we intentionally grant them the freedom “to be.” We will also explore the trust-based parenting approach developed by infant specialist Magda Gerber.

Warmly guided by an experienced facilitator and RIE® Associate, parents will draw from one another’s experiences through sharing and reflection, and will receive supportive resources to inform your parenting journey.

Experience first-hand how just as the child’s first teacher is their parent, the parent’s first teacher is their child.

*Learn more* about the approach we explore in Free to Be parent-child classes and related 1:1 offerings here.

Below is the current class calendar:

Infant Massage Basics for Caregiving Professionals

with Jennifer Curtis, CD(DONA), CIIM
1615 Hill Road, Suite 1, Novato

**SPRING 2025 workshop**
Saturday, April 19, 2025
10:00 am – 4:30 pm

Are you a professional nanny or postpartum doula, or do you work with families and provide direct care to infants?
This workshop is designed for you!

Infant massage is touch communication. Infant Massage Basics for Caregiving Professionals will provide tools that cultivate 2-way communication, attunement and wellbeing for infants and their caregivers. The relationship-based approach provided in this class will include:

* one-on-one instruction for offering massage to babies in your care (plus special techniques for relieving gas, colic and constipation)
* support for interpreting a baby’s own set of communication cues
* practical ideas for weaving massage into the daily family routine
* examples for adjusting massage throughout life, as children grow and preferences change

Professional caregivers are in a unique relationship with babies and their families. Participants in this workshop will receive practical guidance on respectfully incorporating massage into your care with parents’ consent.

5.5-hour class, with a 1-hour break = $190 per adult
Please bring an infant-sized doll to class for practice

This workshop provides 5 DONA International Contact Hours

Class is for adult professional caregivers only (not suitable for babies to attend)

PLEASE NOTE
The tools provided in this class are intended to enhance your personal caregiving toolkit and to support authentic relationship with the infants and families in your care. This class does not provide certification to professionally teach infant massage. If parents are interested in learning infant massage, they should seek a class taught by a certified instructor such as myself, where they will receive valuable information tailored specifically to the parenting journey. Certification to teach infant massage is a 30+ hour training plus a formal practicum & mentor review; resources for pursuing this will be shared in class. This class, however, is a great way to learn whether pursuing certification to teach might be a good option for you!

*Registration for the April workshop opens in January*

Please reach out to be added to the announcement list:

RIE^® Before Baby^TM

Join me for this in-person course with a small group of aspiring and expectant parents
to learn about RIE’s relationship-based approach to caring for your newborn, before baby has arrived

An introductory course for those expecting, waiting to adopt, or thinking about becoming a parent, Before Baby is designed to start you on your journey with confidence in yourself as a parent and trust in your baby’s unique ability to show you the way.

Before Baby will help you meet the needs of your baby and establish healthy patterns from the beginning. Course content includes:

What crying means and how to respond

Setting up the baby’s room

Sleep for baby and parents

Caregiving times built for connection

Working with baby’s biological rhythms

Self-initiated movement

Using observation to guide your decisions

“Quality” time together

8-hr course (includes up to 2 adults per family):  $350 

4 Tuesdays:
October 29; November 5, 12, & 19
6:30 – 8:30 pm

at Heartful Birth:
1615 Hill Road, Suite 1, Novato, CA
94947

*Registration for this course is now closed*