Across from The Phoenix School is Cumberland County’s only developmental center, Baby Birds Learning Center, which helps children 18 months to 5 years with cognitive, language, motor and emotional delays.
Director of Baby Birds Whitney Delaney said children in the program have a range of diagnoses, such as autism or down syndrome.
“It is quite amazing, we have babies that come here that cannot walk, they’re not talking, and they’re not able to do a lot of things, but they absolutely leave here and they are doing much more than what they came with because they’re getting individual help,” Delaney said.
Delaney said the center is funded through the Tennessee early intervention system. Parents have to register with the Tennessee early intervention system and get their child evaluated to qualify for Baby Birds’ services.
“If a child has deficit areas, the sooner you start working on that deficit area, the sooner that they have a chance of overcoming it,” Delaney said.
The facility has everything from toys and blocks to dress-up costumes. Delaney said that playing is more than just fun, but a way to work on a child’s developmental delay. Gripping a crayon, walking across a balance beam or playing with play-doh improves motor skills deficiencies. While playing, Delaney encourages children to name objects and colors, which can help them work on speech or cognitive deficiencies. Play is also how young children socialize and learn how to interact with their peers.
“If it is fun and it is engaging, they want to do it more, and that’s what you want. It’s amazing what children learn through play,” Delaney said.
And Baby Birds isn’t just for children – but parents too.
“It’s not that we just take the baby in; it’s the entire family that we take in,” She said.
Baby Birds often hosts parent participation days, during which parents can meet each other, set up playdates and plan birthdays.
“The majority of parents who have a disabled child are afraid to leave their child. They just are. They’ve never been away from them. When a parent comes in, one of the first things we try to do is get them comfortable,” Delaney said.
New parents get a tour of the center and fill out paperwork about a child’s allergies and medications. During that time, Delaney also asks parents what they would like Baby Birds staff to work on with their child.
Baby Birds also has several video cameras, which helps parents feel at ease.
“Going away is hard for them, but once they realize their baby is not crying coming in here, and their baby is leaving happy or they don’t want to leave, they are elated,” she said.
Sarah Smith’s 3-year-old son is in the Baby Birds program. She said her and her husband, Wesley Smith, have seen their son’s social and language delays improve.
“He’s doing things I thought he’d never be able to do,” Smith said. “The women running the program love the kids like their own. I don’t know where my family would be without baby birds,”