Professional Development Opportunity

DON’T MISS OUT ON THIS EXCITING TRAINING OPPORTUNITY!

Peter L. Mangione, Ph.D., is Co-Director of WestEd’s Center for Child and Family Studies. For over twenty-five years, he has provided leadership in the development of the Program for Infant/Toddler Care, a national model for training early childhood practitioners.

Join Dr. Mangione and other child care providers from throughout Indiana to explore why responsiveness to infants and toddlers is critically important to their development.

When: Friday, February 18th For child care CENTER and MINISTRY administrators and directors
Saturday, February 19th For family child care HOME providers

Time: Friday, February 18th 9:00am-4:00pm
Saturday, February 19th 9:00am-2:00pm

Location: Friday, February 18th
The Garrison Conference Center Blue Heron Ballroom
6002 N. Post Road, Indianapolis IN
Saturday, February 19th
Fort Harrison State Park Inn Roosevelt Ballroom
5830 N. Post Road, Indianapolis IN

Cost: $20 per person-includes resources and lunch!

PLEASE COMPLETE THE ATTACHED FORM AND RETURN IT WITH PAYMENT NO LATER THAN MONDAY, FEBRUARY 14TH.


Limited Space is Available.
Reservations will be accepted on a first come, first served basis.


For questions, please contact Renee’ Kinder at rkinder@iaccrr.org or call 317-924-5202 or 1-800-299-1627 ext. 224.

New Report: Information and Quality are Important to Hoosier Families Seeking Child Care

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

February 9, 2011

Contact Person: Erin Ramsey, Director of Public Relations: eramsey@iaccrr.org or 812-549-6216

New Report: Information and Quality are Important to Hoosier Families Seeking Child Care

In Indiana, 66 % of children under the age of five are in some type of child care arrangement outside of the home. Research shows that 85% of a child’s capacity to learn is determined during the first five years of life. The brain development of young children is directly influenced by the relationships and environments that they experience. Therefore, it is essential that families have the tools, information and resources they need to make informed decisions about the child care providers they choose for their children.

The Indiana Association for Child Care Resource and Referral (IACCRR) has published Parents and Child Care in Indiana (2010), a compilation of parents’ responses regarding their success in locating and selecting child care after they accessed the services of Child Care Resource and Referral (CCR&R) agencies.

Marsha Thompson, Executive Director of IACCRR says, “We found that, first and foremost, parents want a safe environment for their children and caregivers who are experienced and trained to care for and educate their children. Parents also want information and they use it directly in how they search for care and how they select care. It is our goal that all families who are in need of child care referrals or information will access all of our free services.”

IACCRR reports the following findings from Parents and Child Care in Indiana (2010):

Child Care Resource and Referral services are valuable to families. In fact, 92% of parents responded that the local Child Care Resource and Referral (CCR&R) agency helped them make a more informed choice, and 85% responded that they knew more about what to look for when trying to find high quality child care after receiving information from the CCR&R.

Parents take action based on information provided. Of families who responded, 92% intend to or have asked about caregiver training and education related to caring for children; 80% intend to or have contacted other parents for references; and 88% intend to or have checked adult-to-child ratios.

Despite the solid efforts by IACCRR and other groups devoted to Indiana’s families and children, some families still encounter challenges securing child care for their children. According to parents who were unable to obtain child care within three weeks of contacting the CCR&R, subsequent barriers included cost, availability and quality.

Child Care Resource and Referral agencies do a good job serving families. This free service offered 80% of clients between 3 and 15 child care referrals. In addition, 95% responded that their needs were understood by the CCR&R; 96% responded that CCR&R staff was knowledgeable; and 95% rated overall services provided as outstanding.

To access the full report, visit www.iaccrr.org

Families who wish to locate their local Child Care Resource and Referral agency may visit www.iaccrr.org.

The Indiana Association for Child Care Resource and Referral is a 501c3 organization funded by the Indiana Family and Social Services Administration.



Note: IACCRR conducts ongoing follow-up surveys of parents who use CCR&R services across the state. A random selection of 20% of parents in each of the 11 agency areas are surveyed on a variety of topics. Oversampling is done of parents who receive an enhanced referral in order to accommodate low population and sample sizes. For this report, N=991 parents receiving referrals between October, 2009 and March, 2010. Valid responses only were used to calculate percentages and totals.

With volunteer effort, PNC banks on kids

PNC bank officials recently made their 1,800 Indiana employees an offer that's somewhat unusual in the financial realm.

Essentially, they said workers can take 40 hours over the coming year -- paid time during the workday, no less -- and volunteer at a local preschool. They can read to children, help them learn their numbers, build playgrounds or splash a new coat of paint on the walls.

But once the employee completes those 40 hours, PNC takes community involvement to a level not often seen: The company will make a donation to the preschool on behalf of its employee.
For $1,000.

The e-mails had barely circulated before 83 employees signed up, with more joining the effort each day. That's potentially 3,320 volunteer hours and $83,000 -- and counting. And it isn't some sort of window dressing project being circulated so quietly that nobody notices. Each employee received a starter kit with a bag of information and T-shirts.

Midlevel managers are urging their underlings to join them in volunteering as a group activity. And PNC Regional President Stephen Stitle, in addition to sending an e-mail urging everyone to participate, is planning to lead the parade by example.

(taken from 2/6/2011 - Indianapolis Star article- written by Robert King)

Here is the link for the complete article
http://www.indystar.com/article/201102060245/NEWS1003/102060358

Children's eating habits: parents should model good eating behavior

The best way for kids to learn healthy habits is to watch their parents’ model healthy habits.

There is no one in the world who can influence a child the way a parent can, especially when it comes to they way your child learns to think and feel about food. But the older kids grow, the greater the role that other outside factors start to play in a child's life.
This means that parents should start teaching their children about healthy living long before they are faced with high fat, high sugar options at schools, friends' houses, and after-school programs. Instead of waiting for your child to develop unhealthy eating habits and then setting out to undo the damage, use your powerful influence to shape the way kids think and feel about food long before they are ever exposed to the world of milk and cookies.

This may seem like it is much easier said than done, because as most parents already know, it is no easy task to persuade a child to give up cookies in exchange for an apple. Try using these helpful tips to guide you in the right direction.
Be a positive example: One of the significant ways in which parents influence their kids comes from watching, not listening. That "do as I say, not as I do" rule just doesn't work. Children pick up on their parents' behavior and mimic it. This rule doesn't just magically disappear at the dinner table or during snack time. It is important that parent learn to make themselves into a lifestyle role model. When you say "eat your veggies or you can't have dessert" and then you leave half of your vegetables on your dinner plate uneaten, you are sending ambiguous messages to your child. When you child is confused about what to do, he will probably do as you do, and not as you say. So lead by example and always eat all of your veggies at dinner time.
Food is not a reward. This also means that you have to be careful about they way you reward and punish your children. When you talk to your kids about the importance of staying away from high fat, high calorie, high-sugar foods you can't turn around and make those very foods the rewards they get for doing something right. Good deeds get good rewards, not bad ones, so bad foods will suddenly be good foods. Children might also begin to associate bad foods with good feelings and happiness, and as a consequence will start to prefer to eat those foods over all others.
At the same time, taking away sweets as a punishment also sends the message that good kids get the good stuff and the good stuff is a fresh batch of mom's homemade brownies. Find a different "privilege" to take away, as long as it isn't food.
Exercise portion control. Instead of forcing your child to clean his plate when he isn't hungry, start him off with very small amounts of food so that none goes wasted when he gets full. If your child truly wants more food out of hunger, offer him more vegetables or a piece of fruit rather than more meat or bread. If he really is hungry, he'll take it. Otherwise, don't allow or strictly limit second helpings. Parents should follow this same rule in order to set a good example.
Remember that it is never too late to begin teaching your children how to live a healthy life.

Healthy Eating Habits: Start Small

Teach Your Children Good Eating Habits When They Are Young

The biggest health problem threatening our children today is obesity. How can you help your child defend themselves in the fight against this nationwide epidemic? Instill healthy eating habits when they are young, this is the most powerful weapon you can give to your children.

It was not until I had children of my own that I could fully reflect back on the kind of eating habits I was taught as a child. I owe my mother a thunderous applause for starting me off right. She provided me with an example and set of habits that centered around a healthy lifestyle. Those habits that I adopted when I was young are still part of my adult lifestyle. Fortunately for me, I have a leg up on being healthy thanks to those good eating habits. It is simple for you to do the same for your own children, as long as you are committed to living a healthy lifestyle yourself.

The first thing we must accept as parents is the obvious effect our culture has on our population's eating habits. Soda, fast food, candy and chips are part of modern culture and diet, whether we like it or not. Unless you plan to raise your children in a exclusive cave, they will most likely be introduced to these foods at a young age. While you cannot prevent your children from consuming junk food, you can teach them how to make good choices about food. Teaching children how to make good food choices at home, will guide them when they are not directly under your guidance (WebMD)1. In fact, making healthy food choices may become second nature, and while they may enjoy the occasional pizza outing with friends, your children will hopefully grow up automatically making good food choices.

Helpful Tips As We Approach Spring ISTEP Testing

Week before ISTEP



Establish an early bedtime routine, to ensure your studnet receives at least 8 hours of sleep each night.
Remove televisions, CD players, or other distratctions from his/her bedroom to ensure they have an uninterrupted sleep.
Make sure your student eats a healthy breakfast before school.
Limit the number of sodas your student drinks.
Be positive about the test! Don't put undue pressure on your student's performance.
Reassure your student, let them know that they just need to do his/her best.
Encourage your student to take his/her time, they are given plenty of time to complete the test.
Have your child practice math facts orally, utilizing flash cards, to improve speed and accuracy.
Ask your student to read aloud to you and occasionally stop them to ask questions about a paragraph they just read.

The week of ISTEP

Do all of the same things above, and..


Dress your student in comfortable/loose fitting clothing.
Limit the number of sodas they drink.
Encourage your student to play outside after school, if weather permits, for at least 30 minutes. (The physical exercise helps relieve stress.)
Reschedule any appointments for that week.
Continue practicing math facts and reading aloud.
Make sure your student brings at least three #2 pencils to school each day.

Please No Mechanical Pencils

The High Costs of Failing to Invest in Young Children

An interesting article on the importance of well-funded early education programs.

http://www.partnershipforsuccess.org/uploads/20110124_02311PAESCrimeBriefweb3.pdf

$10,000 Pay Now
Children prepared for school success by quality pre-kindergarten programs are less likely to drop out

$250,000 Pay Later
A high school dropout’s lower earnings create costs for public assistance programs and efforts to offset the dropout’s reduced contribution to society