Judi Mattix

Judi Mattix, a parent educator with Parents as Teachers in Blue Springs, applauds Paige McPheron, 17 months old, on her mother Amanda Stuckey's lap during a home visit Jan. 15.
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Judi Mattix sits on the floor with a laundry basket and some bean bags.
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"This is great for hand-eye coordination," Mattix says of the activity."It also helps the releasing of frustration she feels.They can't talk about their emotions at this age, so there is an extreme from one thing to the next.This is a great way for them to release that aggression."

Mattix has been a parent educator at the Blue Springs Parents As Teachers Center for the last four years.
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Judi Mattix, a parent educator with Parents as Teachers in Blue Springs, checks the eyes of Landon Kreissler, 2, of Blue Springs on his mother Leslie's lap Wednesday.
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"Judi comes and tells me what to look for and what she should be doing at this age.
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Mattix said these screenings detect any problems such as hearing, vision, language, speech or other developmental issues.

"There is a window of opportunity in which some problems can be corrected without any permanent damage.These problems can be corrected so that there is no lasting effect as the child enters kindergarten," she said."When parents are having learning or discipline problems, it can sometimes be traced back to a defect in hearing or vision.We want to catch those type of problems early."

The Grain Valley, Independence, Fort Osage, Oak Grove, Kansas City and Lee's Summit school districts all have PAT programs.Mattix, who is only a part-time educator, said she works at least 20 hours a week, mostly preparing for and conducting in-home visits.
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Mattix said she feels her most difficult responsibility as a parent educator is keeping on top of the latest information on child development.She said there is so much information about various things at different ages, it is difficult sometimes to know it all.However, Mattix said her greatest joy is seeing a family that has been having problems work things out.

"My favorite part is knowing that I was responsible for getting a family the help they need to fix an issue they are having," she said.
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Judi Mattix, a parent educator with Parents as Teachers in Blue Springs, uses a sock puppet to play with Paige McPheron, 17 months, on her mother Amanda Stuckey's lap during a home visit Jan. 15.