May 3, 2023 Inclusion Series: Partnering with Families to Support Inclusion Sharing developmental concerns with families can be challenging, but there are strategies that program staff can use to support families to learn about and act on these concerns. Join the Office of Head Start and its National Center on Early Childhood Development, Teaching, and Learning (NCECDTL) for this webinar exploring how program staff can engage families in ongoing conversations about their child’s development that are responsive to family concerns and priorities. Attendees will hear from families about their questions, concerns, and priorities when a concern was first raised about their child’s development. Session Details Tuesday, May 23 | 3 – 4 p.m. Virtual Register Learn More This webinar is offered with English and Spanish captioning. To learn more, visit the NCECDTL website.
March 27, 2023 Intersection of Kinship Care and Culture: African & Caribbean Communities in America Kinship care is a survival strategy that has historical significance for African and Caribbean families because it is linked to a tradition of help and a broad base of support. Join the Grandfamilies and Kinship Support Network for this webinar on kinship care to learn more about family structures and how understanding them can improve family engagement. Session Details Thursday, April 12 | 2 – 3:30 p.m. Virtual Register Learn More In this webinar, panelists will highlight the strengths, support needs, and service models for working with kinship families in African and Caribbean communities. Information presented will include: demographic profiles of these two groups definition of what “kinship care” means to these populations description of traditional family patterns of these populations that include cultural dynamics and norms conflicts between Afrocentric and Eurocentric perspectives on kinship care identification of the best access points (locations and persons) for engagement and services that are culturally responsive to these kinship families suggestions for reframing policy and practice for kinship services for these populations To learn more, visit the Grandfamilies and Kinship Support Network website.
March 2, 2023 Be My Neighbor Day 2023 Join WQED, PNC Grow Up Great, and Fred Rogers Productions for Be My Neighbor Day in Homestead! Be My Neighbor Day is a free event for families to celebrate kindness and what it means to be a caring neighbor. It invites children and families to participate in family volunteer activities that aid neighbors in need, and is a great way to help children understand how to support others and how one kind act can lead to many. Event Details Saturday, March 25 | 1 – 4 p.m. Visit any of the following locations to participate in service projects and activities, and possibly meet Daniel Tiger: Barrett Elementary School Carnegie Library of Homestead Steel Valley Family Center Dragon’s Den Learn More Be My Neighbor Day is sponsored by WQED, PNC Grow Up Great, and Fred Rogers Productions in collaboration with Homestead community partners. To learn more about Be My Neighbor Day, visit the WQED website. Celebrate Visit the PBS website to find Be My Neighbor Day resources to celebrate at home.
June 17, 2022 New Text4FamilyServices Available for Head Start Professionals On June 16, The National Center on Parent, Family, and Community Engagement (NCPFCE) launched its new Text4FamilyServices. The text messaging service is dedicated to supporting and enhancing the vital work of Head Start and Early Head Start family services professionals, supervisors, and other staff who work directly with families. About Text4FamilyServices is a messaging service that supports the work of Head Start and Early Head Start family services staff, their supervisors, and other program staff who work with families. Individuals who sign up, will receive free text messages, including: Two to three texts messages per month with information and links to helpful resources to strengthen their practice with families Additional messages about: Upcoming parent, family, and community engagement (PFCE) professional development opportunities and new resources Office of Head Start campaigns and initiatives Subscribe To subscribe for Text4FamilyServices, text PFCE to (toll-free) 833-302-0206. Select your job title [family services staff, supervisor, other] and preferred language [English or Spanish] to start receiving free PFCE (Parent, Families and Community Engagement) text messages. Text STOP to (toll-free) 833-302-0206 to unsubscribe or HELP for technical assistance or reach out to pfce@ecetta.info. Learn more about Text4FamilyServices.
February 3, 2022 Ultimate Play Day Join the Playful Pittsburgh Collaborative and CitiParks for the Ultimate Play Day this spring! Ultimate Play Day is a celebration of playfulness for people of all ages. Hosted by the Playful Pittsburgh Collaborative, this annual event is an opportunity for people from throughout the Pittsburgh region to play together and raise awareness of the benefits of play for everyone—from birth to 199 years. Partner and community organizations offer play activities for all ages at a different venue each year. Location Liberty Green Park 100 Larimer Avenue Pittsburgh, PA 15206 Additional Information This event is a part of Remake Learning Days. Remake Learning Days Across America is an innovative learning festival for families and youth! Taking root in regions across the nation, these hands-on and engaging events are designed for kids of all ages at libraries, schools, tech centers, museums, play spaces, community centers and more. This year’s festival is from April 22 – May 23, 2022. More details for this event will be available in the coming months. Please subscribe to the Trying Together newsletter for more details.
January 20, 2022 Co-Creating A Healing Community of Equity & Trust Join Trying Together for an upcoming session, “Co-Creating a Healing Community of Equity & Trust”. Communities, however defined, are made up of people who bring a range of experiences and histories. Remaining open, curious, and culturally humble is essential to understanding a community’s resilience, strength, and wisdom. Claudia Woody says, “Inclusion means not ‘just we’re allowed to be there,’ but we are valued there.” Participants will explore the 5 Blocks of Building Restorative Relationships that allow caregivers to create holistic and supportive spaces that are responsive to historical trauma and equity literacy which holds us accountable to doing the work of learning together, seeking understanding, and creating a safe, valued, and heard community. UnConference: Creating a Safe Place with Trauma-Informed Care This session is a part of Trying Together’s upcoming UnConference. Between February 8-18, expert-led workshops will share content related to trauma-informed care. We begin the UnConference with keynote speaker Dr. Veirdre Jackson and dive into how we can create an environment of healing through equity and trust. Following the keynote, workshop sessions include how to identify family stressors, how to provide responsive care-giving for children experiencing trauma, and an overview of the recently launched Rapid Response Team from Trying Together. Individuals can learn more and register on Trying Together’s website.
October 13, 2021 Promoting Mental Health and Family Well-Being in Today’s World Workshop Series Are you interested in learning more about promoting familial mental health and well-being? Join Brazelton Touchpoint Center for a series of three sessions on various ways that professionals can support the families that they serve. Sessions This series features three sessions, each costing $35 or $90 for all three sessions. Registration is available online. October 20: Enhancing Partnerships Between Parents and Staff October 27: Understanding Depression and Fostering Resilience November 3: Talking with Children about Difficult Issues More Information Social-emotional wellness is essential for young children, their families, and the providers who work with them. Yet, promoting wellness and responding to the mental health needs of children and families may be challenging, especially during the ongoing pandemic. In this three-part series, you will learn knowledge and skills to strengthen relationships with adults and children and promote family well-being. You will: Learn practical strategies for building strong partnerships with families Learn the signs, symptoms, and causes of depression Explore communication challenges that can occur between staff and parents, and how to overcome them Enhance your understanding of resilience and how to partner with families to strengthen their resilience Learn how to talk more effectively with children about difficult issues Enhance your ability to support families seeking access to mental health services This series is for all professionals who work with families of young children, including early care and education providers, family child care providers, home visitors, and more.
June 3, 2021 Parent Café: The Homewood Early Learning Hub and Family Center Parent Cafés are physically and emotionally safe spaces where parents and caregivers talk about the challenges and victories of raising a family. Through individual deep self-reflection and peer-to-peer learning, participants explore their strengths, learn about the Protective Factors, and create strategies from their own wisdom and experiences to help strengthen their families. To join the Parent Café, please complete the online registration form. About The Homewood Early Learning Hub & Family Center The Homewood Early Learning Hub & Family Center supports the early learning needs of young children, families, and early educators in the Homewood communities. The Hub & Family Center offers: developmentally appropriate activities for children from birth to age nine; individual and group support for parents to set and meet goals for their family; and professional growth opportunities for center-, family-, and home-based early learning programs, and relative-providers. The Homewood Early Learning Hub & Family Center is a community resource of Trying Together. Please share this flyer with your networks.
February 2, 2021 Family Engagement Toolkit Now Available When adults come together to support children, profound changes can happen. To reinforce parents, caregivers, and early learning professionals in their work to create strong partnerships, Trying Together created the Family Engagement Toolkit. About When early learning programs implement family engagement practices, they invite parents, caregivers, and other important adults to learn the best ways to connect, build trust, and join in true partnership for the wellbeing of their child. In fact, research shows that active family engagement leads to better outcomes for children and builds stronger learning communities. In an effort to support caregivers in bolstering their family engagement practice, Trying Together created the Family Engagement Toolkit, an online toolkit of printable resources that enable families and early childhood educators to: access strategies that strengthen the relationships that nourish a child’s growth and sense of belonging, find ideas and resources to enrich relationships in their learning community, learn ways to increase equity and access for all involved, and take the opportunity to reflect on the family engagement practices in their home or program. The Toolkit is best suited for families and child care providers of children ages birth to nine years old. The Toolkit provides information and resources on family engagement practices in a variety of settings, including: child care centers, family child care homes, group child care homes, and relative provider locations. For more information, visit our About the Family Engagement Toolkit page. Featured Resources Trying Together’s Family Engagement Toolkit includes resources for families and child care providers. Continue reading below to view some of our featured resources. Resources for Families Each family brings its own unique talents, customs, and vibrancies to their child’s child care program. Because of this, it is essential that each family offers its own knowledge, lived experiences, and partnership to best support their child. To assist in this process, Trying Together developed the following resources: Create an Engagement Plan for your family. Fill out this questionnaire to help your provider learn more about your family. Learn about your rights as a parent or caregiver. Access a curated list of family resources on topics such as Choosing a Child Care Provider, Preparing for Transition, Anti-Racism Tools, Child Behavioral and Mental Health Support, Child Development Milestones, English as a Second Language Support, Food Assistance, and more. Resources for Providers Family engagement is a process in which educators and families build intentional, authentic relationships toward the shared goal of supporting a child’s healthy growth and development. To assist providers in achieving this goal, Trying Together developed the following resources: Download the Family Engagement Toolkit to access family engagement ideas and resources. Use this questionnaire to get to know more about the families you serve. “My Day” documents can help communicate about the child’s day (infant and toddlers) (pre-k). Create a Family Engagement Plan. Create a Provider Family Engagement Plan. Create a Relative Provider Family Engagement Plan. Access a curated list of provider resources on topics such as Creating a Family EngagementPlan, Making the First Connection, Strengthening Existing Connections, Supporting Transition, Professional Development, and more. More Information Support, inspiration, and insight for the Family Engagement Toolkit were drawn from several sources, including Jefferson Regional Foundation. To view the full Toolkit, visit our Family Engagement Toolkit page. For assistance with creating a family engagement plan, contact Trying Together at 412.421.3889 or info@tryingtogether.org.
February 1, 2021 Base Rates for CCW Reimbursements to Increase March 1 On February 1, 2021, Governor Tom Wolf announced an increase to base rates paid to child care providers participating in Child Care Works (CCW), Pennsylvania’s subsidized child care program. About Effective March 1, 2021, base rates for CCW reimbursements will be increased to the 40th percentile of the market rate for child care in the provider’s region, up from approximately the 25th percentile where most of Pennsylvania’s child care providers currently sit. This change brings Pennsylvania closer to the federal government’s recommendation of reimbursing at the 75th percentile. This increase equates to an additional $28.8 million in federal funding for the 2020-21 fiscal year and $87.2 million in the 2021-22 fiscal year. This change will also regionalize rate calculation based on Early Learning Resource Center (ELRC) regions rather than calculating rates by county for each of Pennsylvania’s 67 counties. Pennsylvania is currently the only state that does not regionalize rates. Regionalization of rates creates a larger pool to more accurately represent rates across provider types licensed by the Office of Child Development and Early Learning in each region rather than calculating rates by county with limited sample sizes and provider type representation. No provider will see their rates decrease with this new structure. The average increase across all regions is $4.59. Every three years, a child care market rate survey is conducted to guide rate setting. The last Market Rate Survey was completed in 2019 and released in 2020. Why It Matters “Child care is essential for a functioning economy. Investments in this industry benefit us in two different ways. They support communities and the families that rely on care to join the workforce every day and nurture the growth and development of young minds as they prepare for grade school and later long-term success,” said Gov. Wolf. “Increasing base reimbursement rates is an investment in the dedicated professionals that do this work every day and for countless parents and children. We all seek to weather the challenges created by the pandemic and the recovery ahead.” According to the announcement, nearly two-thirds of children enrolled in CCW are in a lower-rated child care provider, and higher quality providers serve fewer CCW families. By providing increased base payments for care for children enrolled in CCW, more child care operators will increase operating margins allowing them to potentially retain more highly qualified staff and engage in enhanced quality activities. “Child Care Works makes quality, affordable child care accessible for working families across our commonwealth,” said Department of Human Services Secretary Teresa Miller. “By investing in base rates, we invest in quality across our child care industry – an investment that will help providers grow, develop, and retain staff and continue to improve services and care for our youngest Pennsylvanians.” What is Child Care Works? Child Care Works is Pennsylvania’s subsidized child care program that helps low-income families pay their child care tuition and fees. To be eligible, families must earn 200 percent or less of the federal poverty guidelines at application and meet work or job training requirements. Eligible families are able to choose to enroll at any participating child care provider, which can be impacted by convenience, transportation, cost, and working hours. Families enrolled in CCW pay a co-pay, and providers that participate in CCW are reimbursed a set base rate per child from the state with the opportunity for add-on funding. More Information For more information, read Governor Wolf’s full announcement.
