What Parents Say

"As I sit and watch her play with the students, I can really see what she is able to understand."

"If every parent helped a little, the researchers would be able to help us build better education and treatment programs for our children."

"This is a simple way to contribute and a fun outing for my children."

"As a teacher, I also know how important it is to work with University research projects. I know that there is a lot about child development that we do not understand or even know about. If we gain more understanding about children's development, we may be able to improve our educational or supportive systems."

"I also found the experience very interesting, as I am focusing on how my baby learns and understands new concepts. It forces me to focus and watch activities that help me understand my children better."

"Quinn and I had such a fun time. He loved the unusual toys and all of the attention."

"As a physician I know that there is so much that we do not know about children's cognitive and language development. As a parent I would like to contribute to this science so we can have a better understanding of how our children acquire language and cognitive skills. I know I can help by allowing the researchers observe my child. The best thing about this type of contribution is that while I am helping in the collection of data, my baby is having fun!"

"To build a better education system for our children, we all need to actively participate …including, the parents and community organizations and all the different educational systems. It's easy to do and it can make a big difference."

"It is very interesting how the students are able to capture my one year old's attention for fifteen minutes."

"My two year old is very shy and attached to me ... Coming to the studies has helped me teach my son to be a little more comfortable around others. The university staffs know how to help my son become at ease with playing with other people than myself. It is very nice to watch him interact with others, and this is something he does not do often."

"My daughter loves to participate. When I tell her that we are going to Northwestern University, she gets excited…she feels like she is going to a fun school."

"Collaborating with the researchers is to our benefit. These activities will help us understand our children's future needs. I know it's hard to not see the results right away but eventually many will benefit from our collaboration."