Class Descriptions
Find your care
If you are a new patient seeking prenatal care, please call 310-794-7274. If you are an established patient and need to reach labor and delivery, call 310-825-9111 for Westwood or 424-259-9250 for Santa Monica.
Educational Programs
The months, weeks and days preceding your baby's birth will be an exciting, joyful time filled with many physical and emotional changes. This is a natural time for you to learn more about pregnancy, childbirth and parenting.
The BirthPlace offers classes to help improve your birth experience and ease your transition to parenthood. We offer the following classes:
- Childbirth Preparation series (online)
- Breastfeeding series (online)
- Baby Talk series (online)
- Infant CPR/First Aid (in-person)
- NEW! Childbirth Preparation series (in-person)
Each online series is 3 virtual classes. The classes are 60-90 minutes long.
Infant CPR/First Aid is a 2 hour 45 minute class.
In-Person Childbirth is two 3 hour classes held one week apart.
We recommend you register 2 to 3 months before your due date.
This page contains an overview of our classes. See our class schedule to register and pay for classes.
Prices listed may change. Please note that rates are higher if delivering at a Non-UCLA facility.
For questions regarding tours and classes, call (424) 259-8250.
Prenatal Education
Infant CPR and First Aid
This course is for anyone who wants to learn first aid and CPR for Infants and children. During this 2 hour 45 minute course, you will learn basic safety knowledge and skills.
- Know what to do while waiting for help
- Practice Infant CPR skills and knowledge using an infant manikin
- No course completion card issued
Breastfeeding Series
Class 1: Basics of Breastfeeding
This class introduces pregnant women to the benefits of breastfeeding and how to get off to a good start. Topics covered include:
- Benefits of Breastfeeding
- Breast changes in pregnancy and after birth
- How we make milk
- How to get off to the best start
- Latch and positioning
Class 2: Making Milk: Strategies for Lactation Success
Join one of our UCLA lactation consultants for a deep dive on breastfeeding and making milk.
- Learn how to establish a robust milk supply and comfortably feed your baby
- Explore techniques for optimal feeding and latching
- Enhance milk supply by learning hand expression
- Explore common concerns and management techniques for
- sore nipples,
- engorgement,
- how to know if you are making enough milk
- normal newborn feeding and fullness
Class 3: Sustaining Breastfeeding
Supports families that experience early separation from their infants, including;
- NICU families or preterm infants
- Families experiencing challenges to breastfeeding in the first week of life
- Families that will be returning to work and/or school
We cover how to work on breastfeeding, while also building and maintaining milk supply with:
- Hand expression & breast massage
- Breast pumps
- Milk collection, storage and management
- How to maintain breastfeeding or exclusive pumping for the first year of life.
Childbirth Preparation - Online series
Class 1: Overview of Labor
This class provides an overview of the labor and delivery process including:
- Beginning labor signs
- The stages of labor
- When to leave for the hospital
- What to expect throughout the birthing experience
Class 2: Labor Comfort Measures and Pain Medications
This class features a review of helpful comfort measures for managing early and active labor discomfort such as:
- How labor partners provide physical and emotional support
- Meditation, massage and music
- Labor positioning for optimal descent
- Medication options such as nitrous oxide, narcotics and epidurals
Class 3: Birth interventions and C-Sections
In the final class we discuss some common birth interventions, such as:
- Inductions,
- Augmentations,
- Fetal monitoring
- Stage 2 (pushing phase) interventions
- C-sections,
- Childbirth recovery strategies
Childbirth Preparation – In-person
Class 1: Overview of Labor and Labor Comfort Measures
In this class we provide an overview of the labor and delivery process including:
- The four stages of labor and what your contractions accomplish
- Beginning labor signs and when to go to the hospital
- How to minimize labor discomforts
- How labor partners can provide physical and emotional support
- Skills practice: breathing, focusing, and massage
Class 2: Labor Positioning, Birth Interventions, Cesarean, and Recovery
In this class we discuss pushing, labor positions, labor interventions and medications, Cesarean birth, and recovery.
- Labor positioning for progress and descent
- Pushing strategies and partner’s role in pushing
- Skills practice including labor positioning
- Fetal monitoring
- Labor induction
- Medication options including nitrous oxide, narcotics, and epidurals
- Labor augmentation
- Cesarean birth
- Physical and emotional recovery from birth
Baby Talk!
Class 1: Baby Care
Good baby care begins with an understanding of normal newborn needs.
In this class we share basic baby care information including:
- Normal newborns appearances immediately after birth
- Responsive feeding techniques
- How to know if baby is feeding well
- Normal newborn elimination patterns
- How to groom, bath and diaper your baby
- Umbilical cord and circumcision care
- How to have a healthy baby and know when to call the doctor
Class 2: Baby Behavior
In this class we explore normal newborn behavior including how babies tell us what they need.
We cover:
- How babies use cues to guide us to help them
- Why babies cry and how to calm a crying baby
- Normal feeding, waking and sleep patterns
- How to cope with night waking
- Swaddling and pacifiers
- Resources on infant development
Class 3: Parent Transitions
This class explores a variety of safety topics including:
- Car seats safe sleep and cribs
- Choosing health plans, life insurance and other guardianship considerations
- Know your rights when returning to work!
- Quality childcare and how to find local resources
- Maternal wellness and self-care
- Couple Time
- Screen Time and appropriate infant activities such as Time On Tummy, Reading, Singing and Talking