Benefits keep flowing from our HIPPY home tutor program

As a home tutor with our HIPPY program, Tasmanian mother Gemma says the benefits keep flowing for her and her daughter, Izzabella.

During the two-year program, Gemma spent about 15 minutes every weekday engaging her daughter, now 6, in practical and enjoyable educational activities. The home tutor assigned to Gemma made regular visits to offer support and ensure Izzabella’s learning was on track.

‘Her favourite type of activities were definitely the creative ones, such as drawing and puzzles’, says Gemma. ‘Izzabella is everything to me. I strive to be the best role model I can be for her. Study and work is important but having fun is also important.’ ‘I believe that the skills I learnt from being a parent and a home tutor in the program have helped her significantly to be the confident and happy child she is today, particularly in regards to her schooling.

‘Before the program I was very shy. I had very little self-confidence, especially as I had not worked before’, says Gemma, 23, born and raised in the port city of Burnie on Tasmania’s north-west coast.

‘My daughter has gained so much confidence and enjoyment from the program and that’s continued through to her schooling, where she’s excelling’, she says of HIPPY, the Home Interaction Program for Parents and Youngsters. Gemma and Izzabella enrolled in HIPPY in 2014, and last year Gemma secured a job as a home tutor. ‘It means I am earning money and helping to provide for my family, which gives me a sense of accomplishment and increases my self-esteem. It is so important to have a job for one’s self-esteem.’

The experience of taking part in HIPPY as a parent motivates Gemma in her role as a home tutor. ‘Having completed the program and also having seen the benefits for my daughter only drives my passion for HIPPY, and I believe it helps me give the families I work with the best experience I can. I’m able to help new home tutors as well’, she says. ‘It is an amazing feeling being able to help people go through their own HIPPY journeys.

’Read more stories about the people we provide services for in our 2017 Annual Report (PDF, 4 MB) and find out more about HIPPY .