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Discoveries for those caring for children…
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“At any given moment, no matter where you are, there are hundreds of things around you that are interesting & worth documenting.” — Keri Smith, How To Be An Explorer Of The World: Portable Life Museum
CDA: Before you Start
Understanding the many steps towards a CDA (Child Development Associate) credential takes time. Before beginning the CDA credential process, it is beneficial to reflect on why a CDA credential may be valuable. Equally important is to be knowledgeable in how to obtain a CDA credential and renew a CDA credential.
Providing early care and education for children is important work: it is a profession. Studies show that well-educated, skilled early caregivers are the basis for offering quality early learning and care programs. The CDA credential is a nationally accepted credential that recognizes the knowledge and skill base to meet the developmental needs of young children. Obtaining a CDA credential can be a catalyst to professional growth in a career in early childhood.
Are you aware that the Penn State Better Kid Care Distance Education lessons can be completed to meet the formal CDA (Child Development Associate) credential education training requirements (120 hours total)? View the Distance Education listing by CDA subject areas here.
The Better Kid Care curriculum follows the PA Core Body of Knowledge and offers multiple course titles to choose from. Each course offers numerous Distance Education lessons, providing a well-rounded approach to obtaining your professional development. View the entire Better Kid Care Distance Education curriculum on line at www.betterkidcare.psu.edu and choose your course of study today!
Featured Distance Education:
Autobiographical Statement
You may be required at some point in your early childhood profession to write an Autobiographical Statement—for example, if you apply for the CDA credential. Autobiographies are often required when applying for a position of work or with academic applications. Writing an Autobiographical Statement can seem overwhelming, but with a little planning ahead, you will be able to share a professional Autobiographical Statement.
Available as a one-hour Web-based lesson. To complete this lesson on your computer and receive credit and comments, you will need to register.
View Better Kid Care’s comprehensive list of web based and mail based professional development lessons here.
Research Collections: CDA (Child Development Associate) credential
CDA: National Model for Preparing childcare Personnel – This power point, authored by CDA Board President and CEO Josué Cruz, includes graphs of data on the status of children from the National Center for Children in Poverty, facts on the availability of childcare in the United States, and an overview of the Child Development Associate (CDA) Program as a model for preparing entry level teachers for the field. Visit http://www.cdacouncil.org/res_presentation.htm.
Men in Early Childhood Education: The Role of Teacher Preparation Program – This report by CDA Board President and CEO, Dr. Josué Cruz, begins with facts on the number of male teachers in America and international data on men in primary education. The heart of the presentation includes specific suggestions for the recruitment, teacher preparation program content, and teaching approaches for increasing the number of men who gain teaching credentials and teaching positions. View the report.
Role, Relevance, Reinvention: Higher Education in the field of Early Care and Education - This report focuses on the current state of early care and education programs and how to make them better, is authored by Valora Washington (Executive Director of the CAYLE Institute and CDA Board member) with the following signatory partners: Aspire Institute, The CAYL Institute, The Council for Professional Recognition, National Head Start Association, National-Louis University, Pre-K Now, and Wheelock College, September 2008. View the report here.
Collections
Collecting is for everyone. The reason for collecting may be different for each person, but most collections provide interest, meaning, and joy for the collector.
Invite children to think about what might be interesting to collect and why. Think about what may already be collected, such as books, items from nature, and family photographs. Collections usually consist of objects, but can also be inanimate, such as collecting thoughts or funny jokes. Building collections can be done individually or as a group - consider both with children. Collections also add an aesthetic dimension to the environment and can be both pleasing and perplexing -lots of ooh's, ah's, and hmm's. Multiple learning skills can be explored, such as comparing, counting, categorizing, and arranging. Children can also explore social skills, problem solving, and creativity through the process of creating collections.
The Smithsonian Institute (Smithsonian Education) offers information on Teaching With Collections. Download Teaching With Collections here (or copy and paste into your browser). Learn more about the Smithsonian Education resources by visiting www.smithsonianeducation.org.
Turn the PageTree Houses
The Tree House Book by Peter Nelson, published by Universe, ISBN 0789304112. Have you ever dreamed about making your own tree house? This book reveals wonderful tree houses as well as play houses from across the world.
The Tree House by Marije Tolman, published by Lemniscaat, ISBN 1590788060. Children will enjoy adding their thoughts to this wordless picture book about a unique wooden tree structure. Inside the tree structure are interesting places for animals to reside and also the perfect environment for great adventures.
Henry and Mudge and the Tall Tree House by Cynthia Rylant, published by Simon and Schuster Children's Publishing, ISBN 068981173X. Uh-oh. Henry's uncle has built a great tree house for him to play in, but there is one big problem – Mudge, Henry's constant companion and the family dog, doesn't fit. What will they do?
More Tree House Books
Are you looking for articles to share with your families? Do you need information for your parent/family bulletin board? Family Time / Work Time shares easy-to-read articles for busy parents and caretakers with a focus on Building Strong Families.
You are welcome to print and share these publications with your friends, family, and other childcare providers.
How You Influence Your Child
By Nancy Wilson,
Early Childhood Program Specialist
You influence your child in ways you might not think about such as:
Reading and success in school
Children do better in school when parents read to them often. Show reading is important to you by having reading materials around your home. If your child sees you reading regularly, it shows you think reading is important.
Parental involvement
Be involved in your child's school. Children do better when parents show an interest in their school.
Getting along with others
Children develop good social skills when parents spend time with them. Set guidelines for behavior and supervise your child when he plays.
Read more here.
School Age childcare Pennsylvania School Age Professional Credential (SAPC)
The Pennsylvania School-Age Professional Credential (SAPC) is administered by the Pennsylvania Key through the six Regional Keys. The School Age Professional Credentail was developed to promote quality services for children and families by providing specific standards, professional development, and evaluation of school-age practitioners.
The PA School-Age Professional Credential is modeled after the Child Development Associate (CDA) Credential. Individuals interested in acquiring the SAPC must meet specific eligibility requirements, complete 120 hours of coursework, and complete a collection of information including a Portfolio, Resource File, Observations, and Family Questionnaires. The final step in the process is an on-site assessment review with a SAPC Assessor.
What is the PA School Age Professional credential process?
SAPC: Get In the Know
New! CDA: Get Started resource guide Considering professional development towards a CDA credential is an exciting step! Understanding the many steps towards a CDA credential takes time.
The CDA: Get Started resource guide, from the Penn State Better Kid Care Program, is a five-part PDF that will help you wade through the details of obtaining and keeping your CDA credential. The CDA: Get Started includes the following:
If after reading this resource you have more CDA questions, contact the Better Kid Care office to get even more CDA help. Choose from the following:
As with any CDA work, it is important to stay in communication with the CDA Council for Professional Recognition. Be sure you visit the Council's web site at www.cdacouncil.org or call 800-424-4310 with your CDA questions.
NEWS from the CDA Council….
YourCDA™ – Beginning Autumn 2010, the CDA Council for Professional Recognition plans to unveil YourCDA ™, its new online CDA Application tool. By using YourCDA ™, CDA candidates can
YourCDA™ guides the CDA Candidate through the CDA application process and also contains useful application tips, as well as displays the application status. YourCDA™ is a handy tool for communication with the Council, Advisor, and Director. Maintenance of a valid email address is crucial with YourCDA™.
Look for news regarding YourCDA™ on the Council's website soon! Contact the CDA Council For Professional Recognition with any questions.
The following information highlights upcoming professional development opportunities available for early childhood practitioners:
July 11-14 – Second Annual National Principals Conference for Elementary School Principals, Columbus, OH, 617-354-3820
July 12-15 – Infant Massage, international trainers of Infant Massage USA, Penn Stater Conference Center, located at University Park, State College, visit http://ceup.psu.edu/infantmassage
July 12-August 6 – Project Based Learning Camp, Free on-line camp from Edutopia, visit http://www.edutopia.org/pbl-camp-registration
July 16 – 18 - The American Speech-Language-Hearing Association's (ASHA) annual conference, the Mirage in Las Vegas, Nevada, visit http://www.asha.org/events/schools/
July 18-21 - The Center for Effective Learning Summer Institute, Lake Tahoe, California, http://www.thecenter4learning.com/html/events/summer.htm
June 21-25 – Summer Institute for Educators, WQLN, Erie http://www.wqln.org/main/Education/default.aspx
July 28-29 – Administrator's Summit, Best Practices in Early Childhood Education: The Kindergarten Year, State College, PA, 717-265-8912
August 2-6 – Gateway Arts and Education Institute, Pittsburgh, PA
August 13 – CPR Training & Certification, True United Church, Philadelphia, PA, contact 215-844-1132 or 215-844-1208. E-mail sdavidheart@ao.com. Registration is due by July 23.
August 24 – Creating a School Yard Habitat, Free Webinar, National Wildlife Federation
October 13-15 – Early Childhood Education Summit, State College, PA, http://www.earlychildhoodsummit.org/
October 17-20 – Connecting Children with Nature Action Forum, Nebraska City, Nebraska, visit http://www.worldforumfoundation.org/wf/wf2010_nature/index.php
October 29-31 – The Pennsylvania Art Education Association (PAEA) annual conference, contact, wendymmilne@aol.com.
Nov. 18-20 – Big Tent Conference (Better Developmental Outcomes for our Youth), Houston, Texas, http://www.bigtentconference.com/
December 9-11 – Zero to Three National Training Institute, Phoenix, Arizona, http://www.zttnticonference.org/
Summer Rejuvenation Guide – During the rush of the school year, free time is an all-too-scarce commodity for busy teachers. Summer's another story. More relaxed schedules allow a little breathing room to reflect, collaborate, plan ahead—or just unwind. The time off is all important for helping teachers get reinvigorated and ready for the new school year. Discover Edutopia's 10 tips for rejuvenating this summer! Visit http://www.edutopia.org/pdfs/edutopia-summer-guide.pdf
At the Autism Speaks blog , the goal is to change the future for all who struggle with autism spectrum disorders. They are dedicated to funding global biomedical research into the causes, prevention, treatments, and cure for autism; to raising public awareness about autism and its effects on individuals, families, and society; and to bringing hope to all who deal with the hardships of this disorder. Autism Speaks. It's time to listen.
Autism Spectrum Disorders: Diagnosis, Prevalence, and Services for Children and Families – The most recent issue of the Society for Research in Child Development's Social Policy Report provides a summary of selected recent studies on Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) diagnosis, prevalence, and intervention. Autism Spectrum Disorders: Diagnosis, Prevalence, and Services for Children and Families (2010), by Catherine Lord and Somer L. Bishop. This issue is available online here.
PTA.org Launches Summer Learning Toolkit – Families are an important factor in supporting your student's development over the summer. The PTA (Parent Teacher Association) Urban Family Engagement Initiative Summer of Learning Toolkit calendar features quick ideas on almost every day of the week. To access the calendar, go to PTA.org/summeroflearning. For more information, visit http://www.pta.org/4213.htm.
Family FUNdamentals Pre K-3 Learning Activities – For students, summer is a time for fun and play. It is also the time when children's learning slides. Research (Brace, 2002) shows that during the summer students forget many of the reading and math skills learned during the school year. A child's ability to succeed in school takes a partnership—one that begins at home and continues in school. To increase learning and stop the summer learning decline, the Michigan Department of Education has developed summer literacy activities for preschool, prekindergarten, and early elementary students to practice at home. Find out more here.
Baby Steps: Tips for Fun Outside with an Infant – National Wildlife Federation caught up with Jennifer Aist, author of Babes in the Woods: Hiking, Camping, Boating with Babies and Young Children, to get some tips for enjoying outdoor adventures with the youngest members of your family. Get it here.
2010 Summer Survival Guide – Get a free downloadable guide with nature games, a summer adventure check list, and other fun stuff—by simply taking an online pledge to go outside more often. Once you pledge, you'll receive an email full of outdoor activity ideas, games and more to keep you busy. Go here.
Dispose of Medicines, Vitamins, and other Supplements Properly – Some medicines, vitamins and other supplements poured down the drain or flushed down the toilet may pass through wastewater treatment plants. They may enter lakes, rivers and streams which are often used as sources for community drinking water supplies. Find out how to properly dispose of these resources here.
The Healthy Families Newsletter, from The National Food Service Management Institute, features environmentally friendly nutrition information for childcare families. Each monthly issue features four "Going Green" sections. Find it here.
Seven Manufacturers Announce Recalls to Repair Cribs to Address Entrapment, Suffocation and Fall Hazards – The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), with the cooperation of seven firms, is announcing voluntary recalls of more than two million cribs to address drop-side hazards and other hazards that affect the safety of young children. The recalling firms are providing consumers with free repair kits to immobilize the drop sides or other remedies. Do not attempt to fix these cribs with homemade remedies.
http://www.cpsc.gov/cpscpub/prerel/prhtml10/10270.html
Grants, Funding, & Opportunity
Find Grants: The George Lucas Educational Foundation Grant Information List
2011 Outstanding Young Educator Award (deadline August 1; $10,000 for teachers age 40 or under, who demonstrate commitment and contribution to the profession). Find out more here.
National Environmental Education Training Program – The purpose of this program is to deliver environmental education training and long-term support to teachers and other education professionals across the U.S. to enable them to teach effectively about environmental issues. Find out more here.
The USA Science & Engineering Festival Kalvi Science Video Contest is looking for creative and surprising videos submitted by K-12 students that explain why science is cool. Learn more here.
Million Dollars for a Million Moves – Throughout 2010, Nickelodeon will award $1M in grants to elementary and middle schools and community organizations, enabling kids around the country to achieve the goal of a million acts of help.
New subscribers can join by clicking this link: http://eepurl.com/dRhWg..
View archived Better Kid Care E-Newsletters here.
Reflections…
Let's hear from you! Email your ideas to crb16@psu.edu or call 814-865-7894.
Disclaimer: Where trade names appear, no discrimination is intended, and no endorsement by Penn State Cooperative Extension is implied.
