Neuro-Nurturing Night with the Minnesota Twins

Help Raise Awareness and Practicing of Neuro-Nurturing so Infants and Children Thrive

During the prenatal stage and for the first few months and years, a baby’s brain is going through an amazing amount of growth as connections between the billions of neurons in their brain get developed, strengthened, and pruned.  There are many factors that impact how these young brains develop, and the “wiring” that emerges from those first few months and years has a major impact on the health, language skills, relationships, and the quality of the rest of their lives.

The term Neuro-Nurturing refers to the many things that parents and caregivers can do to support the optimal development of the brain in those early months and years.

The Minnesota Twins are champions in their support for improving communities in our state. 

The Neuro-Nurturing Night with the Minnesota Twins on September 17th is one way they are supporting improved teamwork among many different organizations that help expecting and new parents gain the understanding and support that will help them nurture the brain development of their infants and toddlers.

It takes a TEAM to help all parents Neuro-Nurture their infants.

No one organization can provide the full scope of education and support that will ensure that all children benefit from good Neuro-Nurturing.  It takes an ecosystem of organizations each leveraging their different strengths and relationships to support parents, caregivers, and early childhood educators.

By bringing many nonprofit and other organizations together to learn about their strengths and services, this special night of baseball and conversations will help many different organizations gain new insights on how they can build on each other’s strengths to achieve greater impact for more families.

The term Neuro-Nurturing has been popularized by long-time early childhood brain expert, Deborah McNelis.  It is not a specific program, but rather a term that refers to a rich set of practices and factors that parents and other caregivers can learn about and use to enhance early brain development.  It includes what the American Academy of Pediatrics calls “Early Relational Health,” which involves things like secure attachment and being responsive to a baby’s needs.  It also includes the importance of singing, talking, and playing with a baby, as well as physical factors like sleep, nutrition, and hydration.

Learn more about Neuro-Nurturing on Deborah’s website.

Minnesota’s Emerging Neuro-Nurturing Ecosystem

In spite of having an abundance of resources for pregnant women and new parents, far too many infants and toddlers are not benefiting from the Neuro-Nurturing that would help them flourish as children, students and adults.  When organizations operate in “silos” and well-intentioned efforts are fragmented, many opportunities for efficiency are missed, and parents of many infants fall through the cracks.

Developing an ecosystem requires building relationships among organizations, engaging funders in new ways, and co-creating a strategic framework around which many efforts can be aligned for greater impact.

As part of participating in the night with the Minnesota Twins, dozens of organizations are participating in Zoom meetings and identifying ways that they can work together.

Ramsey County Mothers First provides case management and support to women who are pregnant and/or parenting a child 3 years old and under who have a history of substance use, living in Ramsey County.  To learn more and subscribe to our monthly newsletter here: https://www.ramseycounty.us/residents/health-medical/clinics-services/mental-health-crisis-services/mothers-first

YWCA Minneapolis is committed to providing quality Early Childhood Education through accreditation, specialized anti-bias curriculum and focus on nurturing a diverse, inclusive community. Five ECE sites across the Twin Cities offer care for children starting at 6 weeks old and extending through pre-kindergarten. Now enrolling! Schedule a tour today by visiting ywcampls.org

Music Together® is Music Together® is an early childhood music and movement program for children from birth through age eight—and the grownups who love them!  Music Together® classes are offered in over 50 locations in Minnesota, and they’ve also created the Wiggle & Sing on-demand music activity video series for infants (birth to 6 months).  Sign up for a free demo class at https://musictogetherclasses.org/ 

Brain Insights, LLC has a wealth of resources that provide clear awareness, understanding and simple insights for the ways adults can positively contribute to helping children thrive in fully being themselves. Sign up for the free First 60 Days eMagazine at https://www.braininsightsonline.com/pages/the-first-60-days-magazine.

The Rock and Read Project helps parents, educators, and organizations use singing and basic music skills to develop young brains for reading. For free pre-reading strategies, a free assessment, and a PreK/K curriculum, see https://www.rocknreadproject.org/.

Hue-MAN Partnership brings together grassroots wisdom and public health system to transform communities by strengthening families.  Give expecting fathers a copy of The Daddy Book: A guide for new fathers, which you can request at  https://www.huemanpartnershipalliance.org/team.

American Indian Family Center provides a wide range of services for families, including expecting and new parents, that are grounded in the culture and values of the American Indian community.   Learn about educational and valuable ways for individuals or groups to volunteer at https://aifcmn.org/getinvolved/volunteer/

Guiding Star Wakota serves families with children, from pregnancy up to three-years-old, offering compassionate support, life coaching, classes, support groups, and material assistance to help them thrive. We provide many parenting resources and a caring community, empowering parents to meet their children’s needs and build a strong foundation for their families. Guidingstarwakota.org

CHC: Creating Healthier Communities is a national 501(c)3 organization that exists so that every person in every community has an opportunity to live their healthiest life. We address barriers to health by partnering with communities and mobilizing nonprofits, businesses, and governments to create bold solutions, trusted programs, and resilient communities. Learn more about how you can engage with CHC at https://chcimpact.org/ 

D.I.V.A. Moms of St. Paul is an African-American led program designed especially for pregnant and postpartum moms.

HOPE Worldwide (Minnesota Chapter) is a non-profit international humanitarian aid organization, with nearly 100 U.S. Chapters. Our mission is to equip our volunteers to engage in their communities and partner with neighbors in need, respond to disasters, and strengthen communities. One of our main areas of focus in the U.S. and abroad is early learning. 

Wilder African American Babies Coalition and Projects works to educate, build capacity, and mobilize community partners to challenge and design care that supports the holistic development of infants and children in Black and Brown families. https://aabcprojects.org/