Parent Partners

Parent Partners was a web site project aimed at helping parents support their children's development. Project Zero provided the research base for the site by generating in-depth reviews of developmental research from birth to age 14 in seven areas: linguistic/verbal; visual/spatial; number/logic; emotional; social; movement; and musical. The project philosophy foregrounded the interactionist, dynamic nature of development. It sought to offer information about individual, cultural, and other group differences while providing normative patterns of growth. It focused on the parent-child relationship, helping parents observe, understand, and participate effectively in their children's development through concrete examples to guide them. It encouraged the creation of rich environments to support growth in a variety of domains.

Tina Grotzer was the Principal Investigator for the project. Kiki Donis was the project manager. The following Project Zero researchers worked on the site over the five years of the project: Keith Burt, Stacy Grossman, and Ryan Modri. The following GSE students also contributed to the work: Emily Buser, Aimee Decoste, and Kristen Greer-Paglia. Project Zero researchers had a number of collaborators on the project including J. Kevin Nugent, Director of the Brazelton Center at Children's Hospital, Boston; George Forman, Professor of Child Development at UMASS Amherst, William Fifer, Associate Professor of Psychiatry at Columbia University, and Parent Partners Founder, Don Burton.

The work was originally funded by Parent Partners LLC. The site was purchased in 1999 by eSCORE!/Kaplan who funded further development through 2000. It was subsequently expanded and refocused beyond its original developmental emphasis and interactionist philosophy to include a focus on basic skills and issues of school learning.