August 12, 2025 Child Mind Institute Provides Resources to Prepare Students for College The Child Mind Institute has shared a list of resources for caregivers whose children are preparing to leave for college. Learn More Getting ready for college involves more than just buying the necessary clothing or dorm-room bedding, the Child Mind Institute writes. Students need to be prepared to get to class on time, get enough sleep, balance academics with social life, and learn to handle inevitable challenges on their own when they arise. The institute has put together a College Readiness Kit that identifies challenges that college students face, especially if they are spending their first year away from home. It also offers strategies for managing these challenges. The toolkit is designed for students to use before they leave for college. It covers everything from how to manage money in college as well as how to troubleshoot challenges such as difficulty getting along with a roommate or failing a midterm. It offers parents guidelines for playing a supporting role, such as how to help a student who is nervous about leaving home or how to support children with ADHD or a learning disorder. Here are the Child Mind Institute’s resources: How Do You Manage Your Money in College? You’re Having a Conflict with Your Roommate: What Should You Do? How to Support a Child Who is Nervous About Leaving Home What Parents of Students with ADHD or Learning Disorders Need to Know Before Their Kids Go to College Medication Management in College Procrastination and College Students Preparing for College Emotionally, Not Just Academically
August 11, 2025 August Is National Immunization Month National Immunization Month is an annual observance held in August to highlight the importance of vaccination for people of all ages. Learn More Every year, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) encourages parents to ensure that their children’s immunizations are up-to-date as part of back-to-school preparations. According to recent CDC vaccination numbers, a large majority of children – between 80% and 92% – were vaccinated for routine immunizations, such as polio, measles, mumps, rubella, chickenpox, and other diseases. However, just less than 50% were vaccinated for the flu as of late April, while only 13% of children were up-to-date with the 2024-25 COVID-19 vaccine. In Pennsylvania, the Department of Health requested that all licensed child care providers complete the Annual Child Care Immunization Survey by Friday, Sept. 19 to meet state reporting requirements. Resources Below is a list of resources for educators and parents, including information on vaccines, immunization schedules, and answers to frequently-asked questions: American Academy of Pediatrics – Healthychildren.org Immunization Page CDC easy-to-read immunization schedules CDC’s vaccine website for parents Vaccines for Children (VFC) Program: Information
PBS Kids for Parents Recommends Books from Around the World for Kids PBS Kids for Parents has released a list of books for young children that includes recommended stories from around the world. Learn More The “It’s a Small World” book list features stories for children, from birth to age 9, that include a tale of a Chinese American who becomes a matador in Spain and another about the various things first graders from around the world do with a lost tooth. Children, PBS for Kids writes, do not need a passport to be able to explore the world. The list includes: All the Way to Lhasa: A Tale from Tibet (Barbara Berger) – ages three to 6 El Chino (Allen Say) – ages 6 to 9 Get Ready for Gabi: A Crazy Mixed Up Spanglish Day (Marisa Montes) – ages 6 to 9 Head, Body, Legs: A Story from Liberia (Won-Ldy Paye) – ages three to 6 I Am America (Charles Smith) – ages three to 6 Mr. Popper’s Penguins (Richard Atwater) – ages 6 to 9 Sitti’s Secret (Naomi Nye) – ages 6 to 9 Stories to Solve: Folktales from Around the World (George Shannon) – ages 6 to 9 Throw Your Tooth on the Roof: Tooth Traditions from Around the World (Selby Beeler) – ages three to 6 Tortillas and Lullabies (Lynn Reiser) – ages three to 6 To view the descriptions of the books, visit PBS Kids for Parents’ website.
August 7, 2025 PA Chamber of Commerce Leaders, Teachers, and Parents Discuss Teacher Shortage Pennsylvania chamber of commerce leaders, child care teachers, and parents gathered on Zoom Wednesday to discuss how the ongoing state child care teacher shortage is forcing classrooms to close and leaving working families scrambling to find child care. During the event, participants said that the teacher shortage – driven by unlivable wages – is limiting care options for working parents and called on state lawmakers to address the shortage. Learn More Participants urged state lawmakers to prioritize child care in the 2025-26 state budget by including Gov. Josh Shapiro’s proposal to invest $55 million in a new and recurring Child Care Recruitment and Retention line item to boost the pay of the state’s child care teachers by $1,000. “As chamber leaders, we know that child care isn’t just a family issue – it’s an economic issue,” said Ron Aldom, executive director of the Somerset County Chamber. “This is why more than 70 of Pennsylvania’s local chambers of commerce are urging the General Assembly to invest in our child care teachers. When parents can’t find reliable, affordable care, they can’t work. When child care providers struggle to recruit and retain staff, classrooms close and employers lose valuable employees.” Albom cited the results of a statewide PA Chamber survey of employers on the impact of limited child care options on Pennsylvania businesses. The survey found that: A total 81% of employers said they have moderate or significant recruitment and retention issues due to child care challenges. A total 69% of businesses indicated that it is extremely or very important to help their employees meet their child care needs. According to the survey, he said, a total of 60% of parents reported being late for work because of child care problems, while 27% had to quit jobs and 18% were fired. Aldom also cited economic analysis from the nonprofit ReadyNation and the PA Early Learning Investment Commission that showed gaps in Pennsylvania’s child care system costing working families, employers, and taxpayers $6.65 billion annually in lost earnings, productivity, and tax revenue. Briana Tomack, president and CEO of the Greater Latrobe-Laurel Valley Regional Chamber of Commerce said that Pennsylvania has lost 460 of its child care providers since 2019. “In Southwest PA specifically, the numbers are at critical levels,” she said. “Fayette County has lost over 30% of its providers, Greene over 25% of their providers, and Westmoreland has lost over 11%. Imagine trying to keep a job, run a business, or even put food on the table when child care is out of reach – not for weeks, but for years.” A September survey conducted by the Start Strong PA Campaign of 1,140 state child care providers showed that 92% of child care programs reported challenges in recruiting staff, with 85% struggling with teacher shortages that are leaving more than 3,000 unfilled positions statewide. Programs could serve an additional 25,320 children if they could recruit and retain the necessary staff, and these numbers represent less than 18% of the total open registered programs in Pennsylvania. “Right now, we serve 120 children,” said Brie Rice, program specialist at Irwin’s JB’s Bright Beginnings. “But here’s the heartbreaking reality: We’re licensed for 350.” Amy Bradley, president and CEO of the Cambria Regional Chamber of Commerce, said that in a September survey, 100% of the 23 providers that responded in Cambria County said they face challenges recruiting the staff they need, resulting in 64 unfilled staff positions and 748 child care spaces unavailable for working families. Dr. Leah Spangler, CEO of Johnstown’s The Learning Lamp, said there are 48 unfilled child care educator jobs in Somerset, Cambria, and Fayette counties. If fully staffed, a total of 297 more children could be served. “I wear two hats that feel impossible to balance most days,” said Sara Sisler, parent and director of curriculum, environment, and development at Judy Early Education Group. “I’m not only a parent of two young children who rely on child care, but I’m also an early educator in the field. I have witnessed the recruitment and retention challenges firsthand, as the turnover rates in our centers are at an all-time high.” Stephanie McAdoo, director of Indiana County’s Indi Kids said it is challenging to fill open child care positions because “teachers make less than cashiers at Sheetz or Target.” And Dan DeBone, president and CEO of the Westmoreland County Chamber, noted that polling data has shown that Pennsylvania voters overwhelmingly support increased funding to grow early childhood care and education programs. A Susquehanna poll found that Pennsylvania voters believe that early childhood education is an important component of a child leading a healthy and productive life (98%), support increasing state funding for teacher recruitment and retention (83%), and back more funding to increase pre-k teacher compensation (72%). The discussion between the county leaders, educators, and parents can be viewed online.
August 6, 2025 Confluence Podcast Episode Focuses on How to Prevent Challenging Behaviors Challenging behaviors in early learning classrooms can disrupt routines, affect classroom safety, and frustrate even the most experienced educators. Learn More A new episode of the Confluence Podcast focuses on how to prevent such behaviors before they even start. In the episode, Preventing Child Behaviors That Challenge Us and Resources Available to Providers, hosts Ruby Martin and Chris Loos discuss the real-world prevention strategies to help reduce challenging behaviors in early learning programs. Listeners will hear about proven ways to foster positive behavior before issues escalate. Staci Kenney, division chief of the Bureau of Early Intervention and Family Supports, is a guest on the podcast. She provides insight into when and how to request early intervention support, helping providers know which signs to watch for and how to connect families with the right services at the right time. The episode provides practical tools and resources to help educators – whether they are seasoned child care providers, supporting children with specific needs, or new to early education – create safer, more supportive learning environments. The podcast is available on The Pennsylvania Key website.
Pennsylvania Selected to Participate in Action Research Partnership Initiative The Pennsylvania Office of Child Development and Early Learning (OCDEL) announced that Pennsylvania has been chosen as one of three states to participate in the National ECE Workforce Center’s Action Research Partnership, a yearlong initiative to drive meaningful systems change for the early childhood education workforce. Learn More Through this initiative, OCDEL will reimagine Pennsylvania’s ECE Career Pathway in collaboration with providers and in direct response to feedback from the field. The initiative is a direct response to what has been heard from early childhood education professionals across the state. Providers, educators, and community stakeholders have voiced the importance of honoring experience, reducing barriers to advancement, and recognizing the full scope of skills and roles within the field. The goal is to create a more comprehensive, flexible, and supportive system that recognizes the true value and complexity of the early childhood education profession. The effort builds on work already underway, including human-centered design workshops, extensive community engagement, and insights from OCDEL’s recent workforce study. As part of the Action Research Partnership, OCDEL will receive targeted support, collaborate with national peers, and work closely with a dedicated change team of state leaders, educators, and partners across sectors. The aim is to build a system that centers the voices of early educators, supporting recruitment, retention, and long-term growth in early childhood education across the state.
Harvard University Report Examines Relationship Between Place, Race, and Early Childhood Development Harvard University’s Center on the Developing Child has released a new resource that examines the relationship between place, race, and early childhood development. Learn More The report, released in late June, noted that over the past 20 years the American public’s understanding of early childhood development has evolved and that, today, people have a general understanding of the negative impacts of significant adversity. As a result, they tend to appreciate the power of supportive relationships in building and protecting the developing brain. But, the report notes, there is still work to do when it comes to the impacts of our broader environments on children’s development, especially considering that these environments are shaped by racism. According to the Center on the Developing Child’s research, the American public does not readily connect the concepts of place, race, and early childhood development. The center identified a strategy for talking about the connections between these three things and provided a set of recommendations for advancing the strategy in early childhood educational settings. The report includes: The main ideas that the new framing strategy is designed to communicate – for example, racism affects how we design place and creates unequal impacts on children The primary ways of thinking Americans rely upon when thinking about child development, place, and racism – for example, the idea that families alone influence children’s development Four types of frames that can be used to advance greater understanding of the connection between place, racism, and development – values, narratives, explanatory examples, and metonyms More information on the Center on the Developing Child’s research can be found in an accompanying toolkit.
August 5, 2025 Kidsburgh: Children Shouldn’t Use “Energy” Drinks for Boost During Exercise Last year, Kidsburgh wrote about a pediatric nutritionist who investigated a mystery regarding why high school football players practicing for the coming season were battling dehydration and muscle cramps worse than ever. While the weather was hot and the teens were sweating, the culprit turned out to be “energy” drinks that are high in caffeine. Learn More The pediatric nutritionist, Laura Cordero, learned from coaches and players that the players had been drinking popular energy drinks – such as Red Bull, Rock Star, Monster, Bang, and Reign – for energy boosts. The drinks, Kidsburgh wrote, are canned in brightly-colored packaging and feature co-branded flavors that are popular among youth, such as Swedish Fish or Sour Patch Kids. Many of the canned drinks contain 200 mg of caffeine – which is the equivalent of two cups of coffee or six cans of caffeinated soda, while Bang contains 300 mg, the same as three cups of coffee. The Cleveland Clinic recommends that children under age 12 avoid caffeine entirely. The Kidsburgh article noted that teens might stop at drive-thrus to get large iced coffees before or after school and, as a result, might consume 400 mg of caffeine per day without realizing it. One of the problems, the article notes, is that social media influences post about using these highly-caffeinated drinks while working out, giving young people the idea that energy drinks are merely an intense type of sports drink. Instead, they are the opposite. Caffeine is a diuretic, so caffeine- heavy energy drinks dehydrate those who drink them and can cause other health issues, such as increased heart rate, cramps or tremors, irritability, and anxiety. What Caregivers Can Do Cordero made several recommendations regarding what caregivers can do to combat the popularity of “energy” drinks. She encouraged high consumption of water, and suggested flavoring it with fruit to replace the intense flavors of canned rinks. Other recommendations include: Milk – even chocolate milk – is a better post-exercise hydrator and daily fuel because it provides protein and carbohydrates. If a child or teen is taking ADHD medication, caregivers should talk to pediatricians or pharmacists to discuss potential interactions with caffeine. Caregivers can teach their children to tally their daily caffeine consumption and learn the difference between “energy” and sports drinks. To read the entire article on “energy” drinks, check out Kidsburgh’s article.
APOST Announces Professional Development Courses for Fall Allegheny Partners for Out-of-School Time (APOST) has released its list of professional development course offerings for the fall. Learn More All of APOST’s fall workshops take approximately two-and-a-half to three hours and locations vary. Registration is required for all courses and closes three days prior to an event or when a session is full. In the event of low registration, Weikart Workshops may be cancelled. Advance notice will be provided. For workshops that take place at CoLab18, APOST will provide parking validation for attendees who park in the Nova Place garage. SEL Series Participants are encouraged to complete a full set of SEL (Social & Emotional Learning) Youth Work Methods Workshops, a new series this season from The Forum for Youth Investment. It is recommended to register for and take all three workshops in a single season because they build off one another. All three workshops are offered this fall. More information about the SEL series is available online. Fall Lineup The complete lineup of courses that APOST will offer this fall includes: Ask-Listen-Encourage (Thursday, Aug. 21 from 10 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. at AIU) Foundations & Self Awareness of Social Development (SEL Series) (Friday, Aug. 22 from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. at AIU) Reframing Conflict (Thursday, Sept. 18 from 10 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. at Homewood CEC) Foundations & Self Awareness of Social Development (SEL Series) (Friday, Sept. 19 from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. at CoLab18) Reframing Conflict (Thursday, Oct. 16 from 10 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. at CoLab18) Fostering Teamwork (SEL Series) (Friday, Oct. 17 from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. at CoLab18) Planning & Reflection (Thursday, Nov. 6 from 10 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. at CoLab18) Structure & Clear Limits (Friday, Nov. 7 from 10 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. at CoLab18) Youth Voice (Thursday, Nov. 20 from 10 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. at CoLab18) Promoting Responsibility & Leadership (SEL Series) (Friday, Nov. 21 from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. at CoLab18)
August 4, 2025 Reading Ready for Pittsburgh Offering Free Books for Teachers in August Reading Ready for Pittsburgh is offering Fill a Bag Month for teachers to freshen up their classroom libraries with a bag or box of free books. Learn More Any teacher or professional who works with children is eligible for free books during August’s Fill a Bag Month at Reading Ready for Pittsburgh’s B is for Books. Eligible participants will be able to come to the B is for Books store, located at 222 E. 8th Avenue in Homestead, this month to pick out the books. Or, the book store can pick out a selection for teachers or professionals who need a little assistance. Those who are interested in participating should fill out this form.
