Leading Caregiver & Baby Classes: From Therapist to Parent Educator, with Carly Dorfman

How Carly Gained the Confidence to Find Balance and Transition into Private Practice

In this episode of the Learn With Less® podcast, Ayelet sits down with pediatric speech-language pathologist, parent educator, Learn With Less® facilitator, mother, and founder of Kidnection LLC, Carly Dorfman. Carly is based in Parkland, Florida, and serves families in her private practice both within therapy, as well as in the community with family enrichment classes for infant and toddler families, in a “caregiver & me” setting.

Her experiences as a speech-language pathologist (and a mom!) makes her an incredible resources for parents and caregivers in her community searching for high-quality, evidence based resources to help them connect with their babies and toddlers, and support early learning and development.

Not familiar with the term, “caregiver & me” classes? We use it as a more inclusive term instead of “mommy & me” classes. Our classes are open – and meant for – ALL parents and caregivers: not just moms… but also dads, non-binary folks, grandparents, foster parents, babysitters, and other amazing grownups who care for tiny humans. We’re going to play the “search term” game here (so you can find this great content more easily!) and help shift the conversation from “mommy & me” classes to “caregiver & me” classes… to do our part to shape the more inclusive world we’d like to live in.

In this episode, we discuss:

* Carly’s educational and professional background, and how she came to do the work she’s doing today* How and why she made the transition from steady, full time work as a speech-language pathologist to business owner in her own private practice* The various “hats” she wears (speech-language pathologist, parent educator, mom, etc) and why all these roles actually create MORE balance in her life* What COVID had to do with the shifts Carly has made in her life* How she gained confidence in herself to move forward with her big dream of running community-based classes for families and becoming a go-to early intervention resource in her community for new parents and caregivers* Why leading Learn With Less® “caregiver & me” classes speaks to her soul and reinforces the work she was already doing as a therapist, allowing her to create additional impact on families and on her own bottom line

Helpful Resources Related to This Episode

Learn With Less® podcast episode: Enrich Your Practice as a Parent Educator, with Sara Moreno

Learn With Less® podcast episode: Educating Parents to be Their Child’s First Teacher, with Rachel Kammeyer

Learn With Less® podcast episode: How to Impact Your Community With Parent Education and Parent Coaching Skills, with Laurel Smith

Learn With Less® podcast episode: How Lesley Took Her Existing Skills as an Educator, and Started Serving Infant/Toddler Families In a Holistic, Meaningful Way

Learn With Less® podcast episode: How to Use Your ...