Skip the navigation and go directly to the content.
Subscribe to receive Newsletter
Welcome to this month's issue of the Better Kid Care E-Newsletter - A newsletter for those caring for children.
Notable Quote: "Now is a moment of opportunity for family involvement….consider the 'big picture' of family involvement and its potentially bright future." ~ Bouffard, Suzanne, and Weiss, Heather, Thinking Big: A New Framework for Family Involvement Policy, Practice, and Research, Harvard Family Research Project, The Evaluation Exchange XIV 1&2, Spring 2008.
Linda from Indiana County, PA, knows how important it is to work together with families. Linda has a terrific idea for sharing professional development and communicating with her families in her child care program. After Linda has worked on one of the Better Kid Care Professional Development Distance Education lessons on DVD, she then offers the DVD (professional development) for parents to also view.
Linda finds that she and her families are sharing and understanding the same early childhood information, using the same language, and planning quality care experiences for the children. She and the families discuss and share their ideas at drop-off and pick-up times and when planning specifically for the children. Linda shows she values family input and involvement in her program and also is sharing important information on early childhood topics. By encouraging this type of communication early on, Linda builds positive relationships with her families that continue to grow.
Do you
have a great tip or good thing? Send us your best tips!
Email Christine at crb16@psu.edu or contact the Better Kid Care Program at 814-865-7894 or 800-452-9108 (within PA).
Getting to Know Families - Part 2by Christine Belinda
* For Part 1 of Getting to Know Families, titled Build a Solid Foundation, go to the August 2008 E-Newsletter
Celebrations and Invitations: Getting to Know Families
Family involvement brings much to celebrate. Research shows that family involvement is a key piece to success for children. Along with success comes a joy and satisfaction of building partnerships that grow and add value over time. Consider the following from the Harvard Family Research Project:
"Children's cognitive and behavioral skills, while important, are not enough to ensure school success. Of equal or greater importance are the support and involvement of the child's family and positive relationship between home and school." ~ Amy Schulting, M.Ed., M.A., Promoting Parent-School Relationships During the Transition to Kindergarten, Harvard Family Research Project, The Evaluation Exchange XIV, 1&2, Promising Practices, Spring 2008
To celebrate family involvement is to welcome our differences as well as celebrate our connections. Differences in socioeconomic backgrounds, cultural experiences, personal views, lifestyles, education, and other individual characteristics make each family and person one of a kind. Wanting what is best for the child is the united focus and connection.
Getting to know families and fostering their involvement is a priority to all programs. It helps to designate a family involvement leader or committee. Planning should include not only ideas from the program, but from parents, staff, and children. The identified leader(s) can help plan strategies, goals, and specific activities. They also can make sure family involvement goals are met and reflected on for further growth and planning throughout the year.
References (found at the end of the article)
 |
Research-Based Early Childhood Information |
The Future of Children: Childhood Obesity - CFK (Connect for Kids) has the report from The Future of Children: Childhood Obesity. A panel of four policy makers discussed their approaches to the problem of childhood obesity in the U.S., at an event marking the release of the third volume in The Future of Children series on the issue. View report at Connect for Kids.
Effects of Preschool Curriculum Programs on School Readiness: Report from the Preschool Curriculum Evaluation Research Initiative The Institute for Education Sciences began the Preschool Curriculum Evaluation Research (PCER) initiative to conduct rigorous efficacy evaluations of available preschool curricula. Under a competitive process, 12 research teams were awarded grants to implement and conduct research on one or two preschool curricula of their choosing with a predominantly low-income population under an experimental design. IES also contracted with RTI International (RTI) and Mathematical Policy Research (MPR) to collect evaluation data from all research sites in fall and spring of the preschool year and spring of the kindergarten year using a common set of measures. View report at IES (Institute of Education Sciences).America's Children in Brief: Key National Indicators of Well-Being - The Federal Interagency Forum on Child and Family Statistics released the 2008 "America's Children in Brief: Key National Indicators of Well-Being" View the report at the Federal Interagency Forum on Child and Family Statistics. ( PDF 
)
State-Funded Preschool and Home-Based Child Care: The Community Connections Model - Describes the model, in which preschool-aged children in home-based care settings are transported to a half-day center-based preschool program. The home-based providers receive support through project coordinators, who provide monitoring and technical assistance to the centers and to the home-based providers. View the report at the Center for Law and Social Policies (CLASP). ( PDF )
Complementary Learning: Emerging Strategies, Evolving Ideas - With concrete examples throughout, the paper highlights emerging strategies for creating complementary learning, including establishing strong leadership; leveraging existing efforts, resources, and partnerships; engaging families; building communication; and learning from research and evaluation. View report from the Harvard Family Research Project.
Distance Education Highlights
Do lessons in your home — when it's convenient and you have time!
Course Work
Are you aware that the Better Kid Care Distance Education lessons are grouped by Courses? Better Kid Care Courses offer a comprehensive overview of early childhood professional development. The course titles are organized by early childhood and child development topics. You can sign up for one lesson or the entire Course.
Why try a Better Kid Care Distance Education Course?
|
 |
Register today for a lesson or register for the entire Course! Try the following recommended Course:
Ages and Stage Course – one-hour Web-based lessons
View a complete listing of all distance education lessons and information about how to register by visiting the Better Kid Care Distance Education page.
Connect For Kids Obesity Resources
Children who are overweight are at increased risk of serious health problems. Many health and nutrition experts believe that children today may actually have a lower life expectancy than their parents, an astounding reversal of continuous progress in extending the life span. Thanks to the hard work of the Council for Excellence in Government Youth Obesity Results team, Connect for Kids offers a comprehensive collection of resources to help Americans understand and take action on this tough issue. View the resources.
Turn the Page:Beginning With Books: Center for Early Literacy lists its “Best Books for Babies 2008”
Fruit, by Sara Anderson, published by Handprint Books, ISBN 1593541880Vegetables, by Sara Anderson, published by Handprint Books, ISBN 1593541899
Maisy’s Amazing Big Book of Words: 300+Wonderful Words and 25 Flaps, by Lucy Cousins, published by Candlewick Press, ISBN 0763607940
Tip Tip Dig Dig, by Emma Garcia, published by Boxer Books, ISBN 1905417586
A Good Day, by Kevin Henkes, published by Greeenwillow Books, ISBN 006114018X
Global Babies, published by Charlesbridge, ISBN 1580891748
Black & White, by Tana Hoban, published by Greenwillow Books, ISBN 0061172111
Peek-a-Baby, by Karen Katz, published by Little Simon, ISBN 141693622X
Trucks Roll! by George Ella Lyon, published by Atheneum Books for Young Readers, ISBN 847381251
Whose Chick Are You? by Nancy Tafuri, published by Greeenwillow Books, ISBN 0060825146
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 child care providers.
Leaving Your Child at Child Care Saying goodbye can be hard for a young child being dropped off at child |
 |
October 16, 2008
What Does "Time" Mean to Children?
What do children of different ages know and understand about time? Why do children and adults struggle when it's time to clean up? Learn ways to build on children's understanding of "yesterday," "today," and "tomorrow."
Professional Development Code K2C1 topic code 14
CDA Competency 2 - Steps to advance children's physical and intellectual development
Pennsylvania Early Learning Standards Key Learning Area: Social Studies
Want to share your ideas from past satellite sessions or ideas for future satellite sessions? Contact Better Kid Care by e-mailing us at betterkidcare@psu.edu or by phoning 800-452-9108 to share your comments.
Visit the Satellite Workshop link for more information. Missed a show? Visit the Past Satellite Workshop page to view video online. If you live in Pennsylvania, contact your local extension educator for information to attend a workshop in your area. Live outside of Pennsylvania? Visit the Out-of-State Information link.
 |
CDA scholarship information from the Council of Professional Recognition - Funding may be available for the CDA assessment fee and other costs of earning or renewing the credential. Please contact the appropriate agency in your state for information about eligibility requirements and funding availability (linked contacts below). Unfortunately, not all states participate in this program. If your state is not listed, The Council of Professional Recognition suggests you contact the child care licensing agency in your state or your local resource and referral agency. They are excellent sources of information about free or low-cost CDA training. For more information, visit the CDA Council or contact the Council at 800-424-4310. |
In Pennsylvania, contact:
T.E.A.C.H. Early Childhood® PENNSYLVANIA Scholarship Program
2300 Vartan Way, Suite 103
Harrisburg, PA 17110
Toll-free number: 877-51-TEACH (83224) or 717-657-9000
Fax: 717-657-0959
info@pacca.orgPA Keys - Financial support information: The professional development refund voucher program provides the opportunity for reimbursement for courses that earn college credits (including Child Development Associate Professional Development Programs) and payment for the CDA assessment fee. Visit the PA Keys.
Need more CDA help? Visit Better Kid Care's "What is the CDA?" newly revised link and get answers to your CDA questions! Get CDA support! Call Christine at 800-452-9108. E-mail your CDA questions to Christine at crb16@psu.edu.
 |
Professional Development Highlights |
The following information highlights upcoming professional development opportunities available for early childhood practitioners:
In Pennsylvania:
Other:
Outside Pennsylvania:
 |
Announcements of Interest |
EARLY EDUCATION
 |
Better Kid Care Resources |
Better Kid Care Kit
Need ideas in your work caring for children? When you enroll in the Better Kid Care Program and sign up for the Better Kid Care Kit, child care providers will receive several free publications in the mail. Family home child care providers will also receive The Basics of Caring for Children in Your Home notebook to organize and store your Better Kid Care publications. Have you signed up to receive a Better Kid Care Kit yet? Complete our online registration form or call 800-452-9108 to order.
Preview notebook contents: Tip Sheets, Activities Pages and Lunch and Snack Ideas
All publications are available online to print and share with your friends, family, and other childcare providers. Select issues are also available in Spanish.
New Staff Orientation curriculum is specifically designed for new staff members in child care centers. Meets the Keystone STARS Performance Standards. Order at no cost by calling 800-452-9108.
Home-Based Caregiver Orientation - Meets the Keystone STARS Core Series Training Requirements. Order at no cost by calling 800-452-9108.
Do you have questions about caring for other people's children, such as:
 |
|
Call the Better Kid Care Mentoring Line at 800-859-8340 or e-mail your questions to betterkidcare@psu.edu for information about child care and children's issues.
Subscribe to the BKC E-Newsletter!
New subscribers can join by sending an email to:
BetterKidCareNews-subscribe-request@lists.psu.edu.
View archived Better Kid Care E-Newsletters
Upcoming Feature Article in
October E-Newsletter:
Move On; Reversing Children's Sedentary Lifestyles
Reflections...
We would love to hear from you! E-mail 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.
