Provider Appreciation Day is a special day to recognize child care providers, teachers and other educators of young children everywhere. Started in 1996 by a group of volunteers in New Jersey, Provider Appreciation Day is appropriately celebrated each year on the Friday before Mother's Day. The founding organizers saw the need to recognize the tireless efforts of providers who care for children of working parents. Momentum and support for this event has grown each year and recognition presently includes individuals and government organizations throughout the United States.
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The Week of the Young Child is an annual celebration sponsored by the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC), the world's largest early childhood education association, with nearly 90,000 members and a network of over 300 local, state, and regional Affiliates.
The purpose of the Week of the Young Child is to focus public attention on the needs of young children and their families and to recognize the early childhood programs and services that meet those needs.
NAEYC first established the Week of the Young Child in 1971, recognizing that the early childhood years (birth through age 8) lay the foundation for children's success in school and later life. The Week of the Young Child is a time to plan how we--as citizens of a community, of a state, and of a nation--will better meet the needs of all young children and their families.
For more information about WOYC, please visit the NAEYC website by clicking HERE
THE EASE OF MOVING
FROM LEVEL 2 to 3
HOMES
Training Hours
~ Level 2 requires 50% of staff to have 15 clock hours of educational or in-service training and 45 clock hours towards a CDA for the lead caregiver
~ Level 3 requires 20 clock hours of educational or in-service training and 60 clock hours towards a CDA
Policy & Procedures
~ Level 2 requires approximately 21 policies & procedures to be in place
~ Level 3 requires 1 additional policy, “Special Needs Policy”
Additional Requirements
~ To obtain level 3 status, providers need only to complete the following:
~ Annual program evaluations by the families served
~ Written curriculum with lesson plans that are linked to the Foundations and you program’s
philosophy & goals
~ Orient staff and make families aware of your curriculum
~ Show your child observation tool for gathering information to support children’s development
~ Display children’s artwork at the child’s eye-level
CENTERS & MINISTRIES
Training Hours and Education
~ Level 2 requires 50% of staff to have 15 clock hours of educational or in-service training and 25% of staff to have 45 clock hours towards a CDA or a current CDA or higher early childhood
certificate
~ Level 3 requires 50% of staff to have 20 clock hours of educational or in-service training and 50 % of staff to have 60 clock hours towards a CDA or a current CDA or higher early childhood
certificate
Policy & Procedures
~ Level 3 requires 1 additional policy, “Special Needs Policy”
Additional Requirements
~ To obtain level 3 status, providers need only to complete the following:
~ The Lead Teacher receives paid planning time
~ Annual program evaluations by the families and staff
~ Strategic planning is completed including annual evaluation and long range planning
~ Written curriculum with lesson plans that are linked to the Foundations and your program’s
philosophy & goals
~ Orient staff and make families aware of your curriculum
~ Show your child observation tool for gathering information to support children’s development
~ Display children’s artwork at the child’s eye-level
Spring is here. The flowers are in bloom, the sun is shining, and temper tantrums are escalating. That is right; it is not just your imagination, temper tantrums do get worse in the spring. When the seasons change children are more sensitive to the atmospheric shifts and his or her behavior often reflects this sensitivity. So what do you do with those baby meltdowns?
It is important to keep in mind that tantrums are normal for all young children, but that does not mean that adults are powerless when they occur. The first step in helping your child(ren) through a tantrum is to understand what the cause of the tantrum is.
The most common cause of temper tantrums in toddlers and two year olds is a child’s frustration at his or her inability to communicate. Children in general, but toddlers in particular, become frustrated when he or she is attempting to communicate a need or desire with someone and the other person does not understand. For example, your toddler feels hungry and would like a snack. He or she points to the counter and grunts. You think he or she wants the toy you placed on the counter earlier and hand that to him or her. He or she knows then that his or her communication attempts have failed and suddenly you have a screaming terror on your hands.
Chances are if you have a toddler, this sounds familiar. So what are you to do? Prevention is your best course of action. Work on helping your child expand his or her vocabulary by talking to your child every day. Try to expand on babbling and grunts by saying things like, “Oh do you want to hold the spoon?” rather than simply handing them the spoon. Learning a few simple baby signs and teaching them to your child can also make a huge impact. Because children develop coordination in their hands and arms before they develop the mouth coordination necessary for speaking, a very young child can use a few simple signs to communicate his or her needs before they can talk. Teaching your child how to say more, eat, and drink, for example, can alleviate much of your child’s frustration and thereby, decrease the number of tantrums. Not only will this help decrease the number of tantrums, but research shows that baby signs can also help children build a stronger spoken vocabulary over the first three years of life. Bona Vista’s Child Care Solutions offers free one hour classes on baby sign. If you think this might be helpful to you and your child call, 1-800-493-3231 to schedule a class.
It is also important to remember that a child who is struggling with a communication delay may need additional support. A child should be babbling and imitating sounds by eight months, saying a few words by 12-15 months, and should have a vocabulary of more than 25 words by the time he or she is 24 months old. If you are concerned that your child is not speaking, or is struggling with speech, you can have a developmental screening done to ensure that your child’s development is on track. First Steps in Indiana offers free developmental screenings to all children under that age of three. If you are located near the Kokomo or Peru areas Bona Vista also offers free developmental screenings.You can also always talk to your child's pediatrician about the best place to have a screening done in your area. If you are concerned about your child’s speech or any other area of development, please contact a professional to have a developmental screening done.
With a better understanding of tantrums, you can approach your little one with a new mindset. Ultimately helping you tame those temper tantrums.
As you flip through prenatal books and baby store catalogs, you are bombarded with pictures of babies serenely sleeping in a cozy crib. This is the perfect image all parents try to create for their own new babies, but it is important to make sure when we get our babies ready for sleep that we are following a few simple tips to make sure that each sleep is a safe sleep.
• Always place your baby on their back to sleep. Whether taking a short nap or sleeping through the night, the safest way for babies to sleep is on their back.
• Keep all soft bedding, toys, blankets, and objects out of your baby’s crib. Infants can suffocate through even a partial covering of the nose or mouth. Even products advertised to help keep children safe such as sleep positioners and bumper pads pose a risk to a sleeping infant. Nothing needs to be in a crib except the baby.
• Do not overheat your baby. Babies look so small and vulnerable, there is a tendency to over bundle them to try and keep them warm and cozy. Overheating a baby is extremely dangerous. The ideal room temperature for a sleeping infant is 65-73 degrees, so if the room is warm enough for you, it is likely warm enough for the baby. If you are worried about warmth, try using a sleep sack or a wearable blanket rather than a traditional blanket.
• Do not allow smoking around your baby. Second hand smoke exposes children to nicotine and has been shown to increase a child’s chances of dying from SIDS (sudden infant death syndrome) by up to three times.
• Place your baby on a firm sleep surface, such as on a safety-approved* crib mattress, covered by a fitted sheet. Never place your baby to sleep on pillows, quilts, sheepskins, or other soft surfaces.
Following these tips can help reduce your baby’s risk of a sleep related death. Please remember that every sleep counts. If you are interested in more information on safe sleeping practices, or would like to schedule a free parent training please contact Bona Vista’s Child Care Solutions 1-800-493-3231.
Loud and boisterous or quiet and shy- we have all known children who could be labeled with one attitude or another. According to this Zero to Three Article these diverse personality traits are the result of a child’s temperament. Temperament shapes a child’s behavior throughout childhood. Subsequently, an understanding of it can improve one’s understanding of a child’s actions and perceptions. For example a child with a timid temperament who was slow to warm up to strangers might cry silently and pull away from attempts an unfamiliar adult makes at comforting. In contrast an assertive child might be quick to walk up to strangers and play without fear. Understanding the temperaments of the children in your life can help you understand how best to support them.
In Tuning into Temperaments there is an explanation of temperament types, as well as a clear illustration of what each type might look like. This article is a beautiful introduction to the concept of temperaments. Only 1 page long and easy to read, it would be wonderful to share with parents and child care professionals alike. Please follow the link to the article on the Zero to Three website.
If you are still interested in more information on temperaments please call Child Care Solutions to register for a Temperament training. This free training will cover the 9 temperament traits, discovering your temperament and the temperaments of those you are closest to, and exploring how to work with someone whose temperament is not a good match for you. The next temperament training will be in March, so call ahead to reserve your spot.
