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EUP GREAT START CONNECTIONS
October —
November 2014
EUP Great Start Connections “ALL CHILDREN WILL BEGIN KINDERGARTEN SAFE, HEALTHY, AND READY TO SUCCEED IN SCHOOL AND LIFE.”
IN THIS ISSUE
Page 1
Page 2
Page 3
Page 4-5
Page 6
Pages7-8
Pages 9-10
Page 10
Mosquito Dash Results
Great Start Collaborative
Great Start Parent Coalition
Early On
Great Parents, Great Start
Infants & Toddlers
Preschool
Spotlight: Imagination Library
Visit us at: www.eupkids.com
Mosqui to Dash 2014 Resu l t s The EUP Great Start Collaborative and United Way of the EUP are very excited to announce close to $3,000 raised for the Becky Davis Early Learning Scholarship and the United Way of the EUP!
See page 2 for more information!
EUP GREAT START CONNECTIONS 2
Questions, Concerns or Comments, Please Contact:
Heather Bird, Great Start Collaborative Director
(906) 440-2410
www.eupkids.com
GREAT START COLLABORATIVE
One hundred twenty two runners braved the rain to test their physical ability at the 2K Mosquito Dash. This dash down a country road was split by 13 challeng-ing obstacles. Some of the obstacles offered mud holes filled to the brim to run and crawl through, cars and bales of hay to climb over, a wooden structure to scale, and a 25 foot slip-n-slide to wash clean in!
Younger runners training to become Mosquito Dash-ers gave their best during the toddler obstacle course as well. The toddler obstacle course included tunnels, wall climbing, a slide, and jumping hoops. Runners were pumped up by music provided by 95.1 the Eagle. After completing the dash, volunteers and runners enjoyed a filling lunch at King’s Fish Market. All proceeds from the lunch were donated to the EUP Great Start Collaborative and United Way of the EUP.
Veteran race runner and past race coordinator, Rich Cullen, stated “with the weather working against them, the staff and volunteers of the Mosquito Dash not only made the best of the situation; they pulled off a very successful inaugural event. My family and I will be back for sure”.
The following runners placed within their age group:
Adult 13 and above:
1st Place – Adam Alexander of Wisconsin
2nd Place – Eileen Law of St.Ignace
3rd Place – Garth Law of St.Ignace
4th Place – Ryan Williams of Rapid City
Children 12 and younger:
1st Place – Emmalee Hart of Allenville
2nd Place – Jayde Fraser of St.Ignace
3rd Place – Trey Forgrave of Sault Ste. Marie
4th Place – Adam Williams of Rapid City
Mosquito Dash Committee member and parent vol-unteer, Heather Arnold shared that today’s turnout exceeded her expectations despite the weather. “The Mosquito Dash went over so well, and seeing such a small community pull together to make our event so successful is heartwarming! We already have a few fresh ideas for next year, Thanks to every-one who Sponsored, Participated and/or Volun-teered!”.
Mosquito Dash 2014 A HUGE success!
EUP GREAT START CONNECTIONS 3
Questions, Concerns or Comments, Please Contact:
Becky Freitas, Parent Liaison
(906) 259-3746
www.eupkids.com
GREAT START PARENT COALIT ION
Like us on Facebook: EUP Great Start Parents & Collaborative
EUP Great Start Collaborative & Parent Coalition welcomes EUP wide Parent Liaison!
The EUP Great Start Collaborative and Parent Coalition are excited to announce the expanded cov-erage area of Becky Freitas; Chippewa, Luce, and Mackinac County Parent Liaison.
Becky started her journey with Great Start as a parent coalition member while attending parent-child directed events hosted by Great Start. She has now been employed with the Great Start Collaborative and Parent Coali-tion in Chippewa County since September 2013. Becky is dedi-cated to partnering with parents to ensure all children in the EUP are safe, healthy, and ready to succeed in school and life. This partnership can come in the form of bake sales to improve play-grounds, planning parent-child events that support a needed topic in the area, or promoting parent leadership at home. Becky states, “This past year has
brought me a lot of experience reaching out to community agencies and parents while build-ing partnerships to ensure that every child has a great start.” The EUP Great Start Collaborative and Parent Coalition believe a parent is the best voice for their child.
Becky has been married to her husband Nathan for 8 years. They have two daughters and a son. They are originally from Utah but have lived in Nebraska and have now lived in the EUP for 3.5 years. Becky graduated from Brigham Young University - Provo, Utah with a bachelor of science in audiology and speech lan-guage pathology. Becky’s most prized position is being a wife and mother. She has been a volunteer for Community Action Head Start Policy Council for 2 years and served as the Policy Council Chairperson for a year.
Great Start Collaborative Direc-tor, Heather Bird, shares, “Becky brings a high level of quality to the parent coalition from her love for being a parent, her parent leadership experience, to her love for EUP communities.”
You can meet Becky at her up-coming Parent Coalition Meet-ings. Dinner is provided and chil-dren are always welcome. Check the EUP Great Start Parents & Col-laborative Facebook page for upcoming meeting dates.
More information about joining Becky and other parent coalition members can be found at www.eupkids.com, Facebook: Great Start Collaborative & Par-ent Coalition, or E-mail: [email protected]
EUP GREAT START CONNECTIONS 4
Questions, Concerns or Comments, Please Contact:
Jessica Savoie, Early Childhood Supervisor
(906) 632-3373 ext. 142
www.eupkids.com
Early On® Measuring Child Outcomes
From the Early On® Parent Involvement Committee
Early On is here to help your child with his or her process of growing and learning. It can also help your fami-ly to be better able to help your child grow and learn.
Part of our work is to measure how much Early On helps each child. We do this by checking how much your child grows and learns while he or she is in Early On. We call this measuring Child Outcomes.
We want to make sure that all children in Early On are growing and learning and reaching their goals.
We use the information to improve Early On.
We need to show the federal government that Early On helps all children and families. The information will show the government why they should continue to fund Early On.
Why do we need to measure child outcomes? How do we measure Child Outcomes?
We measure Child Outcomes by asking three questions:
1. Do children have positive social relationships?
(This means that for their age, they express and understand feelings; they develop trusting relation-ships; and they get along with family and friends.)
2. Do children acquire and use knowledge and skills?
(This means that for their age they learn and do new things and play in new ways.)
3. Do children take appropriate action to meet their needs?
(This means that for their age, they can get what they need)
EUP GREAT START CONNECTIONS 5
Questions, Concerns or Comments, Please Contact:
Jessica Savoie, Early Childhood Supervisor
(906) 632-3373 ext. 142
www.eupkids.com
Early On® Measuring Child Outcomes Continued
From the Early On® Parent Involvement Committee
Where does the information come from?
The information to measure Child Outcomes come from you and your Early On team.
You will review the results of assessments that help meas-ure your child’s development.
You can watch your child play, to see how he or she is doing.
You will share how YOU think your child is doing.
Your Early On team will share how they think your child is doing.
You can also ask others how they think your child is do-ing.
All of the information will be put together to answer the three Child Outcome questions.
What will happen to the information that we collect?
When do we measure Child Outcomes?
We measure Child Outcomes at the same time we write and review your child’s plans:
When your child comes into Early On, to see how they are doing at the beginning;
When your child leaves Early On, to see how much progress they made
Early On will combine the information about all the children. Once it is combined, it will NOT have your child’s name on it anywhere! Only the combined numbers will be used.
The combined numbers will help Early On create a picture of:
How children in your service are doing;
How children in our state are doing.
The federal government will put our state information together with other states to see:
How children across the country are doing; and
Show Congress that early intervention is worth the money!
EUP GREAT START CONNECTIONS 6
Questions, Concerns or Comments, Please Contact:
Joan Killips, Parent Educator
(906) 632-3373 ext. 123
www.eupkids.com
Tummy Time is very important for your growing baby. Placing your baby on his or her tummy helps build muscles in the neck, back and stomach. These are the muscles that will help your little one to lift his or her head, chest, roll, sit and crawl and walk. Tummy Time also helps your baby learn how to reach, how to focus vision and increase confidence and independ-ence.
TUMMY TIME
Great Parents, Great Start
Put your baby on his or her tummy for 3-5 minutes, 5 times a day. If baby cannot turn their head yet reduce this to 1-2 minutes a few times a day. Always supervise your child during tummy time.
Put baby on your chest when you are laying on your back. Talk and sing as baby looks at your face.
Plan tummy time when baby is not already tired. Lay on the floor with baby and put your face on either side of her/his head. Talk and sing to baby.
Be sure to do this on both sides so baby turns his/her head. Put pictures and toys on the floor where baby can see and reach for them. Roll up a small towel or baby blanket and place it under your baby's chest just under the arms so
head and upper body are a little bit higher. If your baby begins to cry pick her/him up. Your baby needs to know that you will always take care
of her/him if upset.
Always supervise your baby at all times during play and always put your baby on their back to sleep to reduce the risk of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS) and suffocation.
For more information about Tummy Time, home visits, or other resources please contact your Great Parents, Great Start Parent Educator. Great Parents, Great Start is a home visit program for families with children birth-5 years old.
Becky Meyers, Early On Service Coordinator
(906) 322-6814 (Text only)
www.eupkids.com
Questions, Concerns or Comments, Please Contact:
Brittany Stabile, Early On Service Coordinator
(906) 322-6816
www.eupkids.com
EUP GREAT START CONNECTIONS 8
Infants & Toddlers
Every behavior is a form of communication. Biting is a behavior that teaches us to look at what the child might be trying to say. If we can understand the functions of the behavior
(why the child is biting and what he is trying to communicate) then we can develop a plan to reduce the behavior.
OUCH!
Understanding Our Role in Preventing Biting Behaviors
Temperament: Does the child’s temperament play a role in her use of this behavior?
Environment: Does the environment impact biting behaviors? Are there enough materials? Are there duplicates of preferred toys? Is space limited? Is it too stimulat-ing? Is it too sterile? Is there a consistent and predictable routine? Does the biting occur more often in certain settings or during particular activities? Have there been any changes in the home or school environment?
Attention: Is the child trying to get or avoid the attention of an adult or another child? Does the child have the skills or the ability to get/avoid attention in other ways?
Communication: Is this the most effective form of communication? Is this how the child greets other children or adults? Expresses affection? Protests? Does the child have the ability to use language to express wants or needs? Do others respond ap-propriately to his verbal or non-verbal requests?
Hungry, thirsty: Are basic needs a factor? Is the child hungry? Does the behavior occur before lunch or snack time? Is the child thirsty?
Expressing strong feelings: Is the child feeling angry? Lonely? Frustrated? Excited? Does she know other ways to express her feelings?
Sleepy/sick: Is the child tired? Is it more likely to happen early in the morning and before naptime? Is this a persistent behavior or could she be feeling ill or uncom-fortable? Is she teething?
Becky Meyers, Early On Service Coordinator
(906) 322-6814 (Text only)
www.eupkids.com
Questions, Concerns or Comments, Please Contact:
Brittany Stabile, Early On Service Coordinator
(906) 322-6816
www.eupkids.com
EUP GREAT START CONNECTIONS 8
Infants & Toddlers OUCH! Understanding Our Role in Preventing Biting Behaviors Continued
Other factors to consider:
Children pay close attention to the language of adults. When adults… Discuss biting in front of children Refer to the child as “The Biter” Repeatedly use the “bite” word (or use it sev-
eral times during response to a bite) Read and re-read “Biting Books” …then the word “bite” floods the environment. Overuse of the word “bite” can reinforce or en-courage biting in very young children. For exam-ple, if the adult says, “No Bite! Biting hurts! You bit (name)! No Biting!” then the child’s action was re-inforced four times. Instead the adult could say, “Stop! That hurts.” Young children are “hands-on” learners who ex-plore by doing, touching, and feeling. They have more sensory receptors in their mouths than they do in their fingertips. For some children, biting be-haviors are reduced when they have access to teethers, pacifiers, or sippee cups.
With thanks to Laura Gagnon, EUPISD Early On Occupational Therapist, and Sarah St. Amour, EUPISD Early On Physical Therapist, who have made this information available to our Early On Program. The information from pages 7 and 8 was developed and presented by: Jennifer Champagne, Early Childhood Behavior Consultant at Oakland Schools Early On Annual Conference: Thursday October 21st, 2010
EUP GREAT START CONNECTIONS 9
Questions, Concerns or Comments, Please Contact:
Alicia Lawlor, Preschool Consultant
(906) 632-3373 ext. 141
www.eupkids.com
Preschool Why Some Kids Try Harder and Some Kids Give Up
Article By: Tracy Cutchlow
My toddler struggled to buckle the straps on her high chair. "Almost,"
she muttered as she tried again and again. "Almost," I agreed, trying
not to hover. When she got it, I exclaimed, "You did it! It was hard, but
you kept trying, and you did it. I'm so proud of you." The way I praised
her effort took a little effort on my part. If I hadn't known better, I might
have just said, "Clever girl!" (Or even "Here, let me help you with that.")
What's so bad about that? Read on.
Stanford researcher Carol Dweck has been studying motivation and perseverance since the 1960s. And she found that children fall into one of two categories:
Those with a fixed mindset, who believe their successes are a result of their innate talent or smarts Those with a growth mindset, who believe their successes are a result of their hard work
Fixed mindset: 'If you have to work hard, you don't have ability.'
Kids with a fixed mindset believe that you are stuck with however much intelligence you're born with. They would agree with this statement: "If you have to work hard, you don't have ability. If you have ability, things come naturally to you." When they fail, these kids feel trapped. They start thinking they must not be as talent-ed or smart as everyone's been telling them. They avoid challenges, fearful that they won't look smart.
Growth mindset: 'The more you challenge yourself, the smarter you become.'
Kids with a growth mindset believe that intelligence can be cultivated: the more learning you do, the smart-er you become. These kids understand that even geniuses must work hard. When they suffer a setback, they believe they can improve by putting in more time and effort. They value learning over looking smart. They persevere through difficult tasks.
What creates these beliefs in our kids? The type of praise we give them -- even starting at age one.
EUP GREAT START CONNECTIONS 10
Questions, Concerns or Comments, Please Contact:
Alicia Lawlor, Preschool Consultant
(906) 632-3373 ext. 141
www.eupkids.com
Preschool Why Some Kids Try Harder and Some Kids Give Up Continued
Article By: Tracy Cutchlow
The research
In one study, Dweck gathered up fifth graders, randomly divided them in two groups, and had them work on prob-lems from an IQ test. She then praised the first group for their intelligence:
"Wow, that's a really good score. You must be smart at this."
She praised the second group for their effort:
"Wow, that's a really good score. You must have tried really hard."
She continued to test the kids, including presenting them with a choice between a harder or easier task.
Kids praised for their effort tended to take the challenging task, knowing they could learn more. They were more likely to continue feeling motivated to learn and to retain their confidence as problems got harder.
Kids praised for their intelligence requested the easier task, knowing there was a higher chance of success. They lost their confidence as problems got harder, and they were much more likely to inflate their test scores when recounting them.
Later, Dweck and her colleagues took the study out of the lab and into the home. Every four months for two years, Stanford and University of Chicago researchers visited fifty-three families and recorded them for ninety minutes as they went about their usual routines. The children were 14 months old at the start of the study.
Researchers then calculated how often parents used each type of praise: praising effort; praising character traits; and
"other praise" that has a neutral effect, like "Good!" and "Wow!"
They waited five years.
Then the researchers surveyed the children, now 7 to 8 years old, on their attitudes toward challenges and learning. Chil-dren with a growth mindset tended to be more interested in challenges. Which kids had a growth mindset? Those who had heard more process praise as toddlers.
I give more examples of ways to praise effort in my book, Zero to Five: 70 Essential Parenting Tips Based on Sci-ence.
Can you unfix a fixed mindset?
Dweck took middle-schoolers and college students who had fixed mindsets. She found that the students were able to improve their grades when they were taught that the the brain is like a muscle: intelligence is not fixed.
It's not too late -- not for your kids, and not for you. Salman Khan of Khan Academy is on a mission to let you know it. He created an inspiring video, based on Dweck's work, titled "You Can Learn Anything": The message: The brain is like a muscle. The more you use it, the stronger it gets. The way you exercise your brain is by embracing challenges, practic-ing skills, learning new things. As Khan puts it, "the brain grows most by getting questions wrong, not right."
Which is why, when my toddler was trying to snap her own buckle, I needed to encourage her to take on the chal-lenge by saying, "Almost!" and "Try again" instead of "Here, let me do that for you."
EUP GREAT START CONNECTIONS 10
Community Resources Spotlight
EUP GREAT START CONNECTIONS 10
Community Resources Spotlight
EUP GREAT START CONNECTIONS 12
Community Resources Spotlight
