Online Training - We Can!® Energize Our Families: Parent Program
This online training introduces you to the four-session We Can! Energize Our Families: Parent Program and provides you with skills to talk to parents about ways to achieve energy balance in their children and families. The Parent Program is great for health educators, community organizations, or anyone interested in training parents and primary caregivers using science-based health education resources. Start the training now if you are set and ready to go.
The We Can! Energize Our Families: Parent Program is designed to provide parents and primary caregivers with the knowledge and skills they need along with practical tools to help families maintain a healthy weight. Each session of the Parent Program uses hands-on activities to help parents learn skills to help their family members and others make more nutritious food choices, become more physically active, and reduce screen time. The lessons also cover specific topics like energy balance and calorieneeds, the body mass index (BMI), physical activity guidelines, and ways to limit TV and video use, among others.
This training offers an overview of the Parent Program, including a quick look at key content areas for each program session and—perhaps most importantly—insightful, firsthand tips from experienced We Can! program facilitators from across the nation.
These tips are scattered throughout the training. You won’t find them anywhere else.
The beauty of having an online training to help you and other facilitators run the Parent Program is that you can do it at any hour of the day or night, go through it at your own pace, and don’t need to take time out of your busy work schedule. The training is organized into nine individual chapters, ranging from 5 to 20 minutes each, with a total running time of approximately two hours.
Please note that this training is not meant as a substitute for the guidance and full instruction provided by the Parent Program: A Leader’s Guide. We recommend that you have the Leader’s Guide on hand so that you can get the most out of this online training.
Keep reading to learn more about the following topics:
Learning Objectives
Apply for Continuing Education Units (CEUs)
View the Training
Share Your Thoughts
Learning Objectives
After completing the training, you should be able to:
- Explain the importance of engaging parents as part of your We Can! efforts
- Navigate the Parent Program Leader’s Guide
- Identify the key content areas of the Parent Program
- Describe key strategies to successfully implement the Parent Program
Apply for Continuing Education Units (CEUs)
Registered dietitians (RDs) may apply for and receive 2 hours of continuing education credits for completing all chapters of this training. To apply for continuing education credits, you will be asked to take a brief quiz and mail it to NHLBI. Your credit certificate will be sent to you. Visit the NHLBI Continuing Education page for other continuing education opportunities.
Take the Online Training
Below are links to Flash presentations of each of the training’s nine chapters. Each chapter contains a table of contents to help you navigate the presentation. In addition, you can read the plain text transcript of each chapter. We have also included PowerPoint slides of the training that you may wish to download and share with others.
We encourage you to complete each of the chapters in the order suggested here, but feel free to complete them in whatever sequence best meets your needs.
Chapter 1: Introduction
A brief overview of the We Can! Parent Program and what you can expect to learn in the upcoming chapters of the online training.
Flash Version (Duration: 8 minutes 33 seconds)
Plain Text Version
PowerPoint Version
(2.4 MB)
Chapter 2: What is We Can!?
A brief introduction to the We Can! movement, the key We Can! program objectives, and program elements designed to support communities and families in maintaining a healthy weight.
Flash Version (Duration: 5 minutes 46 seconds)
Plain Text Version
PowerPoint Version (7.8 MB)
Chapter 3: Parent Program Overview
Development of the Parent Program curriculum, the target audience, overall content of the sessions and how to evaluate the Parent Program.
Flash Version (Duration: 10 minutes 26 seconds)
Plain Text Version
PowerPoint Version (3.4 MB)
Chapter 4: Getting Started
Overview and key content areas of Parent Program Session 1.
Flash Version (Duration: 12 minutes 21 seconds)
Plain Text Version
PowerPoint Version (5.8 MB)
Chapter 5: Maintain a Healthy Weight: The Energy Balance Equation
Overview and key content areas of Parent Program Session 2.
Flash Version (Duration: 13 minutes 44 seconds)
Plain Text Version
PowerPoint Version (9.7 MB)
Chapter 6: What to Feed My Family: ENERGY IN
Overview and key content areas of Parent Program Session 3.
Flash Version (Duration: 13 minutes 44 seconds)
Plain Text Version
PowerPoint Version (5.3 MB)
Chapter 7: Less Sit, More Fit: ENERGY OUT
Overview and key content areas of Parent Program Session 4.
Flash Version (Duration: 9 minutes 45 seconds)
Plain Text Version
PowerPoint Version (10.3 MB)
Chapter 8: Implementing the Parent Program
Tips and ideas on how to successfully launch and run the Parent Program in your own community, including specifics on facilitation, scheduling, recruitment, and partnerships.
Flash Version (Duration: 20 minutes 51 seconds)
Plain Text Version
PowerPoint Version (41.2 MB)
Chapter 9: Summary and Resources
Review of major concepts and instructions for navigating the website, accessing resources, and getting involved with the We Can! movement.
Flash Version (Duration: 12 minutes 28 seconds)
Plain Text Version
PowerPoint Version (8.8 MB)
We hope that you will find this training useful in preparing you to deliver the We Can! Parent Program, a unique curriculum designed especially for parents and primary caregivers.
Once you’ve taken the training, we'd like to hear your feedback. It is essential to improving both this training and helping guide us in the creation of future trainings and other We Can! resources.
Please tell us what you think. We appreciate it!
