Research Driven :: First Step Family Support Center • Serving Clallam County since 1972

Protective Factors

Protective factors are conditions or attributes in individuals, families, communities, or the larger society that, when present, mitigate or eliminate risk and increase the health and well-being of children and families.
Protective factors help parents to find resources, supports, or coping strategies that allow them to parent effectively, even under stress.

We want parents to know how important they are in the lives of their children as their child’s fist and most important teacher, their child’s emotional home, and their child’s best advocate and protector.
We want parents to understand their child’s social, emotional, physical and cognitive development and to gain the tools necessary to help their children grow.
We want parents to build strong positive social connections that will serve as a safety net around their families.
We want parents to be able to access the resources that they need, when they need it, to provide for their families’ needs, and
We want parents to build and experience resiliency in the face of trauma.

ACES are Adverse Childhood Experiences.
The three types of ACE include Abuse, Neglect and Household Dysfunction.
There is a 95% likelihood that additional types of childhood trauma accompany a single ACE.
As the number of ACEs increases, so does the risk for negative health outcomes.

Parents as Teachers promotes the optimal early development, learning and health of children by supporting and engaging their parents and caregivers so that all children will grow and develop to realize their full potential.
Parents as Teachers assists families who are pregnant or who have children ages three and under. Your parent educator will help you to practice positive parenting, enhance child health and development through education, and prepare children for kindergarten.