Babies on campus: Human Development class confronts reality

By Hailey Burrow

As the year starts to come to a close, Redwood students have noticed a few new bodies on campus.

Babies? Or at least, fake babies.

The Human Development class, offered on campus, has assigned its students the hands-on task of taking care of their own babies. The baby dolls fuss, cry, eat, use the restroom in a sense, etc. The baby has to be cared for as if it was real, it is sensitive to temperature and needs to be constantly supported.

This activity allows students to experience childcare and the harsh responsibilities that come with it. The babies were sent home with the students for about three to four days.

Jordan Gallardo, ’22 was one of many of these students. Gallardo shares, “It wasn’t really my thing, I personally don’t want one– at least right now.”

Gallardo learned a very important lesson on patience. Although it did teach serious life lessons, she also enjoyed the impracticality of carrying around a plastic baby. Many people got a good laugh out of the unlikely situation.

Since the babies had to be cared for 24/7, they also had to be brought to class. Like a real baby would, they cried during class. Although this might seem funny, it really taught the reality of having a child– they need to be attended to around the clock.

When asked about her experience, Lizeth Zavala, ’22 says, “They literally wake you up every hour of the night, they also continued to cry for at least 15 minutes.” Many rough night sleeps brought Zavala to the conclusion that she does not want kids for a long time.

Asia Blaza, ’22 actually had more of a positive experience. Although it was really hard, Blaza got really attached to the baby. It taught her responsibility with feeding the baby, changing the diaper, rocking it, burping it, etc.

Overall, this was a very enlightening experience for all students involved, this tradition continues to teach responsibility, patience, and other components of child care.