June 9, 2021 Healthy Eating Guides: At the Grocery Store Healthy Eating Guides Do you want to learn how to promote good nutrition and healthy eating at home? Check out the following healthy eating guides and more from Nationwide Children’s Hospital! What topics are covered? The guides include information on food groups, portion sizes, how to read food labels to better understand ingredients, how to save money at the store, and tips for shopping in your local grocery store. All resources are available in English and Spanish. To get started, check out the following resources: Plan Your Meals Using MyPlate Nutrition Facts, Labels, and Ingredients Picking Your Dairy Picking Your Protein Unit Prices: Healthy Weight and Nutrition View More Resources To view the full list, visit the Nationwide Children’s Hospital website! For other healthy eating tools, read our news post about MyPlate. For extra fun, try Grocery Store Bingo!
April 23, 2021 Video Series: Exceptional Care with a Team Approach to Inclusion In January 2021, Trying Together hosted a Virtual UnConference on Exceptional Care with a Team Approach to Inclusion. These workshops covered topics such as educational support in the early childhood environment, creating inclusive support teams for children, using ASQ questionnaires, early intervention services, and lesson development. Video recordings of these sessions are available to view.
December 14, 2020 The Science of Early Childhood Development, Center on the Developing Child About Are you interested in learning why early childhood is such an important period of growth? Watch this video from the Center on the Developing Child at Harvard University! Featured Quotes “If a child is preoccupied with fears or anxiety, or is dealing with considerable stress, no matter how intellectually gifted that child might be, his or her learning is going to be impaired by that kind of emotional interference.” “When we talk about healthy development in the early years, and particularly when we talk about preparing children to succeed at school, we cannot separate cognitive development from social and emotional development. You can’t have one without the other.” “Excessive prolonged stress early in life is associated with a higher prevalence later, not only of learning problems and behavioral difficulties but also physical and mental health problems.” Watch the Video More Information To learn more, visit the Center on the Developing Child website.
The Brain Architects Podcast, Center on the Developing Child About Launched in January 2020 by the Center on Child Development at Harvard University, The Brain Architects Podcast explores common questions that parents and caregivers have during the early periods of their child’s life. The podcast brings together experts and practitioners from pediatrics, social services, education, and other fields of study to help guide caregivers in improving the lives of their young children. Featured Topics The podcast explores a variety of early childhood topics, including, but not limited to self-care, toxic stress, serve and return, brain architecture, mental health during COVID-19, and more. Learn More To start listening, visit the podcast webpage.
The Lying Down Song, Early Childhood TLC About Looking to get active with your young child? Try crab walking, bear crawling, doing the superman, and more by watching this video from Early Childhood TLC. If you’re looking to get creative, try creating your own song and dance moves! For more videos like this, visit the Early Childhood TLC YouTube page. Watch the Video
Walk It Like An Animal Activity, Early Childhood TLC About Are you looking for a fun physical activity to do with your young child? Watch this video from Early Childhood TLC to jump like a kangaroo, swing like a monkey, walk like a bear, and climb like a sloth! For more music videos, visit the Early Childhood TLC YouTube page. Watch the Video
Exercise Together with Darnell Campbell Exercises for Families Are you looking for simple but effective exercises to get your family up and moving? Watch this video from Darnell Campbell to learn four exercises your family can do right at home. Darnell Campbell is a Physical Education Teacher at Winchester Thurston, CPR Instructor, and Personal Trainer. Watch the Video
June 15, 2020 Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood: The Songs About Through his songs, Fred Rogers translated the concepts of child development into musical messages in a language that children could understand. Some songs celebrate good feelings. Some are calming. Others are for times when children are struggling with a particular issue like jealousy or persistence or being apart from a loved one. View the List To listen, access the full song list on the Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood website.
Power of Play: Building Skills and Having Fun, Zero to Three About Children are eager and determined to understand how the world works. But did you know that play is how children learn to communicate, problem-solve, test ideas, and get along with others? In their video “Power of Play: Building Skills and Having Fun,” Zero to Three highlights the importance of play and opportunities to nurture your baby’s development. View the Video To learn more, view the video on the Zero to Three website.
May 29, 2020 Call It Child Care Child care supports children’s healthy development and a lifetime of learning. That’s why we call it child care. In June 2018, the Pennsylvania state legislature passed House Bill 1677 to update Pennsylvania’s regulations and code to use the term “child care” rather than “day care” to reflect the work of early learning programs more accurately. Trying Together worked closely with the bill’s prime sponsor, Representative Jason Ortitay, who represents Allegheny and Washington counties. Thanks to advocates like you, and Rep. Ortitay’s persistence, HB 1677 passed and was signed by the Governor. Why Call It Child Care? Trying Together recognizes that shifting commonly used language can be difficult. However, by using the term “child care” instead of “day care,” you recognize that: 1. The impact of child care is much longer than a day. Early childhood programs support lifelong success for children and families. Research has shown that high-quality child care builds a strong foundation from which children grow and thrive. By having access to early care and education programming, families experience multi-generational benefits, with young children achieving higher test scores and graduation rates, committing fewer crimes, and earning higher wages, to name a few. Caregivers are able to reenter the workforce, increasing the financial stability of the family and the long-term professional success of the caregiver. 2. The words we use matter. The words we use affect the public’s perception of the early care and education field and affect the field’s own accountability in providing high-quality care. Using “child care” rather than “day care” recognizes the important work of these professionals, in addition to the work children put in to learn, develop, and grow. Accurate language is critical to gaining respect, validation, and investments in currently under-resourced systems. 3. “Child care” acknowledges the complexity of high-quality early care and education programs. High-quality child care programs employ, develop, and retain educated credentialed staff. Child care professionals use a curriculum, lesson plans, and family engagement activities to promote the cognitive, social, emotional, and physical development of the children they serve. How You Can Help Please join us in the coming months as an advocate for the “Call It Child Care” initiative. If you’re an early care and education professional, use the term “child care” when speaking about your work and update your materials as needed. If you’re a family or community member, embrace the term “child care” and use it when referencing your child’s program! DIGITAL RESOURCE TOOLKIT Interested in doing more? Use our digital resource toolkit to advocate for “Call It Child Care” today! Help spread the word about using the term “child care” by having conversations with your colleagues, family, and friends. Use our talking points for help with responding to colleagues, family, friends, and others who use the term “day care”. Share a graphic on social media and tell your followers about the initiative. Write a letter or email to the families in your early learning program. Print Call It Child Care posters and post them around your office or program. Read a letter from the Trying Together Executive Director. Watch This Video Learn More To learn more about the initiative, visit our Call It Child Care page.
