Chandankaur wants to be an educated mother

Thank you for gifting a year of parenting classes to Chandankaur.

At age 27, Chandankaur has already been a wife for more than half her life.  As is still common in her community, her parents arranged her marriage when she was only 13.  Now she is the mother to 5 children, ranging in age from 11 years to her youngest, 9 month old Jairee.  Chandankaur never had the opportunity to go to school when she was young, while her husband has an elementary school education and works as a caddy at a nearby golf course, earning 3,000 rupees ($60) per month.

When she had her last child, Chandankaur decided to take advantage of the opportunity to join the AIC Mother-Baby class, a parenting program for mothers from her community.  This weekly class allows Chandankaur   to meet with mothers of similarly-aged children and participate in interactive discussions and activities related to a variety of topics, such as dietary needs of their children, baby growth and development, birth spacing and family planning, communication and relationships within the family, good parenting practices and much more.

Chandankaur’s son, Jairee, enjoys attending the class alongside his mother, because he gets to play with a variety of fun, educational toys with other little ones while the mothers engage in discussions and activities.  Chandankaur also appreciates the attendance incentives offered – small toiletry and hygiene items like soap, baby toothbrushes, and baby lotion – as these are items that she can’t afford to buy because of her husband’s low salary.   Overall, although she is certainly not a new mother, Chandankaur feels like she is truly benefiting from the Mother-Baby classes and learning a lot, while also enjoying the experience and meeting other mothers.