June 29, 2023 Resources for July Observances Various organizations, states, and nations recognize a number of observances each month. Resources help parents, caregivers, and child care professionals acknowledge and navigate them. Here is a list of resources for July observances: Month-Long Observances National Parks and Recreation Month City of Pittsburgh Department of Parks & Recreation, CitiParks Summer Program Guide, Pittsburgh Parks Conservancy Top Green Spaces and Public Parks in Pittsburgh, Visit Pittsburgh Growing Equity in City Green Space, Eos Rocking and Rolling. Fresh Air, Fun, and Exploration: Why Outdoor Play Is Essential for Healthy Development, National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC) Why Kids Need to Spend Time in Nature, Child Mind Institute Free Worksheet: Thank a Park Ranger Card, Education.com Become a Junior Ranger, National Park Service Five Fun Activities for Teaching Kids About Conservation, National Recreation and Park Association Allegheny County Shares Summer Safety Guidance, Trying Together National Make a Difference to Children Month 5 Pittsburgh Organizations supporting Our Most Vulnerable Children–and Inspiring Us to Help, Kidsburgh Most Popular Pittsburgh Children & Youth Nonprofits and Charities, Great Nonprofits Positive Parenting, National Institute of Health The Power of Positive Parenting, UC Davis Health 8 Ways to Strengthen a Parent-Child Relationship, Family Services of Northeast Wisconsin Bonding with Stepchildren: 7 Tips for Building a Strong Relationship, Care.com Three Principles to Improve Outcomes for Children and Families, Harvard University Center on the Developing Child Strategies to Support Black Students, Teachers, and Communities in Schools, Education Northwest 12 Powerful Statistics That Prove Why Teachers Matter, We Are Teachers Family Engagement, Office of Head Start and Early Childhood Learning & Knowledge Center Raise Child Care, Start Strong PA National Minority Mental Health Awareness Month Prioritizing Minority Mental Health, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) BIPOC Mental Health, Mental Health America Mental Health Disparities: Diverse Populations, American Psychiatric Association Contextualizing BIPOC Youth Mental Health, National Black Women’s Justice Institute Mental Illness Doesn’t Discriminate, so Why Do BIPOC Communities Have Difficulty Accessing Care?, Jefferson Center for Mental Health Erasing Mental Health Stigma in the Black Community, National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) BIPOC/AAPI Mental Health Resources, NAMI New Hampshire Where to Find Mental Health Services for Children and Adolescents in Pittsburgh, The University of Pittsburgh: Youth and Family Research Program Anti-Racism Resources for Families, Trying Together Multilingual Trauma Resources, The Child Mind Institute Days of Recognition July 4 is Independence Day Ways to Celebrate Independence Day in Pittsburgh in 2023, VisitPittsburgh 23 Crafts and Activities for Independence Day, WeAreTeachers The History of Independence Day, History Channel A Nation’s Story: “What to the Slave is the Fourth of July?”, National Museum of African American History & Culture (NMAAHC) The Fourth of July is a Black American Holiday, The Washington Post 19 Children’s Books to Inspire Courage and Activism, HarperCollins Publishers July 14 is International Non-Binary People’s Day Gender Identity Development in Early Childhood, Trying Together Resource List: LGBTQ+ Organizations, Trying Together A Guide to Gender Identity Terms, NPR & WESA Understanding Nonbinary People: How to Be Respectful and Supportive, National Center for Transgender Equality 10 Ways to Step Up as an Ally to Non-Binary People, Stonewall 20 Picture Books to Help You Raise Kind, Tolerant Kids, Today Early Childhood Book List: Learning About Gender Diversity, Social Justice Books July 24 is National Parents’ Day 7 Fun Ways to Celebrate Parents’ Day This Year, Parents Caring for the Caregiver, Trying Together Positive Parenting Tips, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Developmentally Appropriate Parenting Series, Trying Together Outside Gender Norms: Father’s Day and Mother’s Day Aren’t Easy First for LGBTQ Families, The Standard-Times Parenting Resources for Foster Parents, Child Welfare Information Gateway Being a Step-Parent and Raising Your Partner’s Child, Raising Children Resources to Share with Expectant Families, Office of Head Start Find Child Care, ELRC Region 5 July 25 is World Drowning Prevention Day Drowning Prevention, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Drowning Prevention & Facts, American Red Cross Water Safety at Home, Safe Kids Worldwide Water Safety Tips for Families, Seattle Children’s Hospital Toddler Water Safety: 14 Ways to Keep Safer, Stop Drowning Now Water Safety for Your Special Needs Child, Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia Resources: Learn to Swim, Allegheny County 4 Places To Get FREE Summer Swim Lessons For Kids In The ‘Burgh, Macaroni Kid How to Perform Child and Baby CPR, American Red Cross Trying Together and ELRC Region 5 Partnering to Offer First Aid & CPR Training, ELRC Region 5 July 26 is National Disability Independence Day Guide to Disability Rights Laws, U.S. Department of Justice: Civil Rights Division Ideas for Celebrating the ADA, ADAAnniversary.org Disability and Autism Supports, Allegheny County Department of Human Services Disability Resources in the Community, University of Pittsburgh Medical Center (UPMC) 16 Shelf-Worthy Children’s Books About Disabilities for All Students, WeAreTeachers Representation Matters: Kids Books That Embrace Disability and Difference, New York Public Library Service Dogs 101—Everything You Need to Know, American Kennel Club Assistive Devices for Children: Walking and Mobility, KidsHealth
March 6, 2023 Harm and Healing: The Mental Health of AAPI and LGBTQ Children Join the Brazelton Touchpoints Center and Burke Foundation for the second episode of their Learning to Listen: Conversations for Change webinar series, featuring Dr. Warren Ng, president of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry. Attendees will learn about the mental health of Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) and LGBTQ+ children, the harms they experience, how those harms have been exacerbated by the pandemic and political polarization, and the ways that we can help them heal. Session Details Wednesday, March 15 | 3 – 4 p.m. Virtual Register Learn More To learn more, visit the Brazelton Touchpoints Center website.
July 5, 2022 National Maternal Mental Health Hotline Available Are you pregnant or a new mom who is feeling overwhelmed, sad, anxious, or exhausted? Are you finding it hard to care for yourself, care for your baby, or even do basic daily tasks? The National Maternal Mental Health Hotline can help. About the Hotline The National Maternal Mental Health Hotline provides 24/7, free, confidential support before, during, and after pregnancy. The hotline offers callers: Phone or text access to professional counselors Real-time support and information Response within a few minutes, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week Resources Referrals to local and telehealth providers and support groups Culturally sensitive support Counselors who speak English and Spanish Interpreter services in 60 languages Call or text 1-833-9-HELP4MOMS (1-833-943-5746). TTY users can use a preferred relay service or dial 711 and then 1-833-943-5746. Frequently Asked Questions about the National Maternal Mental Health Hotline also are available.
January 27, 2022 Parenting While Black: Virtual Webinar Series Join Brazelton Touchpoints Center for their virtual webinar series, “Parenting While Black: Reclaiming, Centering, and Affirming our Joy in Raising Black Children.” Events will take place every other Monday from March 7 to May 16. This free webinar series offers a safe and welcoming space to hold conversations for and by Black families. Topics will include Embracing Black Joy and Excellence; Parenting While Black in White Spaces; Birthing While Black; Black Mental Health and more. All are welcome to join and engage in these powerful conversations. Registration is required to access this event virtually.
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.
October 12, 2021 New Resources for Parents and Caregivers New resources have been added to the Trying Together website for families and caregivers. These resources further Trying Together’s mission to supports high-quality care and education for young children by providing advocacy, community resources, and professional growth opportunities for the needs and rights of children, their families, and the individuals who interact with them. New Resources DAP Series Parts VII, VIII, and IX As an early childhood nonprofit, Trying Together recognizes that a child’s parent is their first and most important caregiver. That’s why we created the Developmentally Appropriate Parenting (DAP) Series to assist parents and caregivers in creating high-quality learning experiences at the earliest stages of their child’s life. The series features digital and print content that provides information on critical early childhood topics. New topics in the DAP Series include Part VII: Childhood Mental Health; Part VIII: Race and Equity; and Part IX: Transitions & Routines. Families and caregivers may also access previous parts of the DAP Series: Part I: Developmentally Appropriate Practice; Part II: Childhood Physical Health; Part III: Child Care; Part IV: Early Intervention and Inclusion; Part V: Safety and Emergencies; and Part VI: Social-Emotional Development. Resources will continue to be added through 2022 as additional Parts are finalized. Additionally, families and caregivers may now request a set of cards in the mail at no cost. These cards provide an overview of each part of the DAP series with a quick reference to local and regional organizations. Parenting Together Pathway The Parenting Together Pathway is a video-based learning series to provide high-quality information on early childhood development to parents and caregivers in Allegheny County and surrounding areas. Launched in April 2021, the Parenting Together Pathway provides families the opportunity to learn more about: brain development; play; interactions and relationships; technology; child care; and advocacy to better support their children’s healthy growth. Two additional videos have been added to the Parenting Together Pathway: Early Intervention and Safety and Emergencies.
January 28, 2021 Virtual Conference: Finding Joy through Playful Learning Finding Joy through Playful Learning aims to bring together educators, researchers, policymakers, and practitioners who have a variety of experiences related to education, play, and learning. The conference will take place via Zoom over the course of several days covering six topics related to playful learning. The goal is to generate dialogue among different stakeholders and share best practices to support children and families in learning through play. About Join Playful Learning Landscapes Action Network, Playful Pittsburgh Collaborative, and Trying Together in February for a virtual conference bringing together educators, researchers, policymakers, and practitioners to discuss and share best practices to support children and families in learning through play. Act 48 and PQAS credits are available. PPID and PD Registry numbers will be collected during the sessions. The following discount code is available for early educators who wish to participate in individual sessions or the entire series: EDU-ALL for $25 price for all six workshops EDU-CHOOSE for $5/per workshop Available Sessions Rethinking Education During and Post COVID-19 Wednesday, February 3, 2021 | 3 – 5 p.m. Join featured speakers Dr. Kathy Hirsh-Pasek, Dr. Scott Miller, and the Pittsburgh Parks Conservancy for discussions of how playful learning can change education during and after COVID-19. Featured Speakers: Dr. Kathy Hirsh-Pasek (Temple University, Brookings Institution), Scott Miller (Avonworth Primary Center), and Pittsburgh Parks Conservancy. How Play Can Improve Mental Health and Wellbeing Thursday, February 4, 2021 | 9 – 11 a.m. Hear from Sarah Grubb, Cindy Eggleton, and Sheba Gittens about play’s role in mental health and wellbeing. Featured Speakers: Cindy Eggleton (Brilliant Detroit), Sarah Grubb (ELRC Region 5), and Sheba Gittens (University of Pittsburgh). Addressing Equity Issues Through Playful Learning Thursday, February 4, 2021 | 3 – 5 p.m. Dr. Nikole Hollins-Sims and Dr. Mandy McGuire will present their work on using play and playful learning to address inequity. Featured Speakers: Dr. Nikole Hollins-Sims (PaTTAN) and Dr. Mandy McGuire (University of Texas at Dallas). Activating Communities Around Playful Learning Tuesday, February 9, 2021 | 3 – 5 p.m. Ariana Brazier, Justin Forzano, Shari Hersh, Gamar Markarian, and Sarah Siplak, will discuss what it means to activate communities and how their communities inform the work they do. Featured Speakers: Ariana Brazier (ATL Parent Like a Boss), Justin Forzano (Open Field), Shari Hersh (Mural Arts), Gamar Markarian (New School), and Sarah Siplak (Playful Pittsburgh Collaborative). Using Technology to Strengthen the Way We Learn and Play Wednesday, February 10, 2021 | 11 a.m. – 1 p.m. Learn about technologies and applications from Katie Gullone, Megan Rooney, Javier Maisonet, and Project Rangeet. Featured Speakers: Elias Blinkoff (Temple Infant & Child Lab), Katie Gullone (Trying Together), Javier Maisonet (Math Talk), Simran Mulchandani (Project Rangeet), and Megan Rooney (La Escuelita Arcoiris). Replicable and Low-Cost Ideas for Playful Learning Wednesday, February 10, 2021 | 3 – 5 p.m. Explore low-cost and replicable ways to encourage playful learning from Shannon Merenstein, Amy Kronenberg, Rebecca Fabiano, and Aishwarya Narayana. Featured Speakers: Rebecca Fabiano (Fab Youth Philly), Amy Kronenberg (Learn to Earn Dayton), Shannon Merenstein (HATCH Art Studio), and Aishwarya Narayana (HUME). Registration To register, visit the online registration page. General Admission tickets cost $55 and include admission to all sessions. Single session registration is also available for $10 per session. Attendees will receive the Zoom link for each day’s session prior to the start of the event. More Information For questions, contact admin@playfullearninglandscapes.fun or 267.468.8610.
October 30, 2020 Mindfulness-Based Skills to Promote Resilience and Connection Are you interested in learning how mindfulness practices can impact a child’s ability to deal with stress, anxiety, and trauma? Join Megan Davis on November 19 for “Compassionate Classrooms: Mindfulness-Based Skills to Promote Resilience and Connection.” About The goal of this webinar is to introduce mindfulness skills that educators, therapists, and paraprofessionals can integrate into the classroom to build resiliency, distress tolerance, and connection. At the end of this session, you will have gained insight into how simple mindfulness practices directly impact our body’s ability to downregulate in the face of stress, anxiety, and trauma. You will be able to integrate concrete skills into your classroom to support students’, as well as your own, wellness. Featured Topics In this webinar, Megan Davis will: define a basic understanding of how stress impacts the nervous system and our ability to self-regulate, demonstrate breathing exercises to calm and balance an activated nervous system, demonstrate mindfulness exercises to regulate and widen the “window of tolerance”, help professionals plan for how and when to integrate skills into a typical school day (virtual or in-person), and provide opportunities to reflect on current self-care practices and how they translate to the culture of classroom wellness. Registration This webinar is best suited for K-12 teachers, librarians, school leaders, therapists, and counselors. To register, visit the EdWeb website.
How Educators Can Avoid Mental, Physical, and Emotional Exhaustion Are you interested in learning strategies to avoid exhaustion and burnout? Join Dr. Tina Boogren and Dr. Timothy Kanold on November 18 for “Attend to Your Well-Being: How Educators Can Avoid Mental, Physical, and Emotional Exhaustion.” About To counter the pressure, stress, and chaos around us, professionals need to practice healthy, practical habits, and routines of wellness and self-care. They also need to rise up to the expectations of taking care of students and their colleagues, amidst the challenges of this unprecedented school season. In this engaging, fun-filled webinar, Dr. Tina Boogren and Dr. Timothy Kanold will provide practical strategies to avoid exhaustion and burnout and give you the courage and permission to attend to a more balanced and joyful professional life! Time for questions will be provided. Registration This webinar is best suited for prek-12 teachers, librarians, and school and district leaders. To register, visit the EdWeb website.
August 19, 2020 From Mourning to Meaning-Making Join Highmark Caring Place on September 2 for their webinar, “From Mourning to Meaning-Making: How to Meet the Needs of Grieving Families.” About This webinar will discuss the ways in which grief and mourning are both unique and universal. Presenters will look at Alan Wolfelt’s six “reconciliation needs” and discuss the ways mourners can recognize and address these basic grief needs in order to find hope and healing. This is a free webinar. When registered, you will receive a Zoom link the evening before the webinar. No Continuing Education Units (CEUs) will be provided. Presentation materials can be provided upon request. Learning Objectives By attending, participants will be able to: explore both the personal and the communal elements of grief, understand Alan Wolfelt’s “reconciliation needs” model of mourning,” and discuss creative and helpful ways of addressing the needs of mourning. Registration To register, visit the event webpage. Registrations must be submitted no later than September 1 at 6 p.m. More Information For questions, contact Patrick McKelvey at patrick.mckelvey@highmark.com. Share this flyer with your network.
