JOURNAL - International Childbirth Education Association

TEACHING TIPS
These are some of my favorite teaching aids and the ways I use them. I hope they will be useful to you!
When discussing the physiology of labor and birth, I use the pocket-size pelvis and doll to demonstrate the widest
diameter of the baby’s head negotiating the widest diameter of the pelvic inlet and outlet, and how the ischial spines
infl uence rotation and are used for measuring descent. After demonstrating this, I pass the objects around the class
to be handled and played with.
I use a ribbed sock and cupie doll to demonstrate uterine effacement and dilatation; I then pass them around the
class.
Next, I fi ll a ziplock bag with warm water and place a cupie doll in, head down. As I squeeze the bag (over a dish
basin) to demonstrate the pressure of contractions, the water begins to bulge in front of the doll’s head and the bag
invariably breaks or leaks—surprising the class. This is a good way to illustrate the surprise of spontaneous rupture
of the membranes! As I continue to squeeze contractions, the class observes the doll’s head seals off the water flow
between squeezes but water leaks out with the squeezes. In a later demonstration, I use an amniohook on the water
bag to illustrate artifi cial rupture of the membranes.
When teaching about hospital routines/interventions, I use the following props: as I discuss hospital admittance,
I put on a hospital gown over my clothes and ask the class to tell me how they would feel dressed this way while
having intense contractions and trying to dialogue with professionals who are not only fully dressed but uniformed
and wearing nametags. This prepares us to discuss the woman’s vulnerability, the coach’s role in advocacy, and to
brainstorm ways of reducing the disadvantage mom may feel. Usually, I place a second gown over the first, wearing
it backwards like a robe as they are making suggestions.
As I bring up various interventions, I begin putting them on myself; i. e., I hang an IV bag from a coat rack and tape
the tube to my wrist or secure it with my watchband; as I move about asking for info on the disadvantages of a
routine IV, it is easy to see the limitations of my movements. I then ask for the reasons why an IV is used and when
it is considered an advantage. We then discuss alternatives. I follow the same procedure for EFM, external and
internal, using elastic belts and jar lids and extension cords and objects to be tethered to, such as the TV, and the
graph readout of a sample monitoring. The blood pressure cuff is added, tubing that imitates continuous epidural, a
construction worker’s dust mask for an oxygen mask, etc. By the time we have discussed the pros and cons of the
interventions, it is apparent that I am quite warm and cumbersome! Everyone can see the difficulty I am having just
reaching for my teaching props, gesturing, etc. This makes a great springboard from which to problem-solve how to
cope as positively as possible if events/choices of labor lead to such an array of equipment! However, I believe one
of the great advantages of using these props is to help people think through the choices they may make that lead to
such a tangled web! Of course, I augment all these props with the usual charts and pamphlets, some fill-out forms
for prioritizing options, and video clips. Thanks to ICEA’s excellent conventions and Journal
articles over the years,
I have tried to compensate for all types of learning styles on any given topic!
When teaching infant care and breastfeeding, I give each couple a fully dressed doll and have them mimic various
positions for holding babies in feeding, burping, etc. They undress the dolls and mimic bathing (with all the props) and
sometimes even infant massage with a video demonstration. At one point, while the moms watch the breastfeeding
positions video, the guys are in another room dressing the naked dolls from diapers to booties, onesies, dresses, bibs,
jackets, blankets, etc. This is to give them a chance to figure out all those snaps before trying it on wiggling babies!
When they return successful in spite of no advice from the women (but lots from each other), it leads to discussing
the differences in men’s and women’s styles of care, and the importance of building confidence in each partner—if
they want each other’s participation in baby care!
Micki Johnson, ICCE, CD (DONA)
Reprinted from Teaching Tips from ICEA Certifi ed Childbirth Educators (ICCEs), ICEA 1998 International Convention.
36 • IJCE Vol. 13 No. 4