Hillcrest HS Parenting Students Experience 'RealCare Baby'

Hillcrest High School students in Ms. Haustein’s Parenting class recently experienced what it’s like care for a newborn baby. “RealCare Baby” is an infant simulator with programming and reporting capabilities. “It’s an engaging experience for the students. They have to care for the babies throughout the day and take them home for two nights. The babies have to be fed, burped, rocked or changed. The baby will actually coo when its needs have been met,” said Ms. Haustein. The electronic simulator records and measures events such as: wrong head support, time in a car seat, clothing changes, and surrounding temperatures. All babies are on different schedules and will even wake the students up at night like a real newborn baby. “The students come back from their weekend and say they will think twice before having a baby,” said Haustein. Student Autumn Clemons said the experience really helped her when she was babysitting a young baby. “I knew exactly what the baby wanted because of my experience with the RealCare baby,” said Autumn.