July 18, 2023 Tools to Monitor Harmful Air Quality Conditions in Pittsburgh Air quality has emerged as one of the most prominent environmental aspects to monitor for daily health and wellness. Now there are many tools to help Pittsburgh families better protect themselves when air quality conditions are poor. Understanding Pollution Breathing in particle pollution from fine particulates (PM2.5) can increase the risk of health problems like heart disease and asthma. Fine particulates can come directly from a source, such as fire, construction sites, and smokestacks, or form in the atmosphere from pollutants emitted from power plants, automobiles, and industrial manufacturing. How to Monitor Air Quality Using the AirNow tool, residents of Pittsburgh can monitor the air quality in real-time in their neighborhoods by simply typing in their zip code. The AirNow tool tells users how the air is in their current area based on the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Air Quality Index, a six-tier, color-coded scale representing different levels of pollution. It’s measured from 0 to 500, and higher values indicate greater air pollution; anything above 100 is unhealthy. Pittsburgh residents may also use the interactive map feature to get a closer look at the air quality activity in a specific area. If it smells bad outside, it could mean that toxins are in the air. Report foul odors, and track other reports in the community with the Smell Pittsburgh app. Stay Safe If EPA’s Air Quality Index indicates unhealthy air, close windows, limit time outdoors, and run air filters to avoid the toxins. You may also elect to wear a mask or construct a DIY air purifier to protect yourself from inhaling pollutants and toxins. Related Content & Resources Air Quality Tips and Training Available for Families and Educators Third Annual Community Health & Wellness Summit A Guide to Caring for Yourself While Caring for Others Practicing Mindfulness for Parents Live Well Allegheny Launches “Rethink Your Drink” Campaign to Promote Healthy Water Drinking Habits PADHS and ACDHS Renewed Recommendations for End of Public Health Emergency
July 11, 2023 Third Annual Community Health & Wellness Summit One of Homewood’s signature community events is back! Don’t miss out! Join several organizations, businesses, and agencies throughout the Homewood community on Saturday, August 12 for the Third Annual Community Health & Wellness Summit for a full day of events, resources, and health-focused opportunities for all community residents. Here is the current schedule for the Summit: 8 a.m. – Olivia Jones 5K Walk/Run/Ride/Skate/Loop 12 p.m. – Double Dutch Competition 1 p.m. – Fight For Peace Boxing Exhibition (tickets to be purchased at the door) 5:30 p.m. – Kirk Whalum Smooth Jazz Concert There will be opportunities to participate in health screenings and receive health-related resources and services. There will be plenty of family fun with aerobic line dancing, children’s activities, giveaways, music, and more! The Summit is presented by the Community Empowerment Association.
January 14, 2022 Healthy Homewood Project Join a free 10-week program to get on track to feeling like your best self! These classes will help you stay accountable to a healthier lifestyle with exercise classes, motivational coaching, and professional wellness advice. Meetings will be held at the Homewood YMCA. To join, contact Brandon Marzke at 412.315.0991 or bmarzke@ymcapgh.org. Goals of the Program This program is sponsored by the University of Pittsburgh, Homewood YMCA, and the Community Engagement Center. The program seeks to aid individuals in the following ways: Improve Health: Individuals can get help lowering their blood pressure, blood sugar, and cholesterol Fit Friends: Individuals can make lifelong friends, bonding through a healthy lifestyle Enjoy Exercise: Individuals can learn different types of workouts Fun Foods: Individuals can get advice on how to make healthy meals
January 11, 2021 Virtual Vitality Cafés If your family receives Early Intervention and/or Family Support services in Pennsylvania, join other families virtually for conversations focused on self-care, health, and wellness. About Café sessions are intended for family members of children enrolled in Early Intervention Services or Family Support Services. To support participation, a stipend of $40 will be offered. A child care reimbursement will be offered if needed to participate in the Cafes. Information on how to access the stipend/reimbursement will be provided after registration. Forms to be submitted for the stipend will be provided at the end of each Café. Virtual Vitality Café Dates Virtual Vitality Cafés will be held on the following dates: January 27, 2021 | 12:30 – 2:30 p.m. February 24, 2021 | 12:30 – 2:30 p.m. March 24, 2021 | 12:30 – 2:30 p.m. Receiving Support Support for families of children who are deaf/heard of hearing is provided from the Pennsylvania Department of Health. For other families of children receiving EI services that do not have diagnosed hearing loss and children receiving Family Support Services, support is provided by The Office of Child Development and Early Learning. This will require ALL participants to pre-register and indicate what program(s) your child is receiving services and whether or not your child has a diagnosis of hearing loss. Registration To register, complete the online registration form. Any accommodations (language or ADA) must be requested at least two weeks in advance of each cafe, during the registration process. Families are encouraged to join as many sessions as they would like to attend. More Information For questions, call The Alliance for Infants and Toddlers at 412.885.6000.
November 24, 2020 Stay and Play! Early learning programs: Are you interested in participating in music, movement, wellness, science, and creative expression activities with your children? Join Trying Together and the Playful Pittsburgh Collaborative for the eight-week virtual “Stay and Play!” series. Stay and Play! Many providers face the challenge of juggling virtual learning for school-age children while keeping younger children engaged. To help support this work, Trying Together and the Playful Pittsburgh Collaborative reimagined the Come Play! experience. As part of the eight-week “Stay and Play!” series, we invite early learning programs to participate in a weekly virtual playdate. Join in music, movement, wellness, science, and creative expression activities that make play a joyful part of the day. Available Sessions December 10, 2020 | 10:30 a.m. Register December 17, 2020 | 10:30 a.m. Register January 7, 2021 | 10:30 a.m. Register January 14, 2021 | 10:30 a.m. Register January 21, 2021 | 10:30 a.m. Register January 28, 2021 | 10:30 a.m. Register February 4, 2021 | 10:30 a.m. Register More Information Registration preferred 24 hours in advance. Contact Sarah Byrne-Houser at sarah@tryingtogether.org to register at any time. Please share this flyer with your networks.
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.
September 17, 2020 Recess Helps Students Reach Their Full Potential As we begin a very different school year, the Recess Advocacy Team continues to elevate play and provide support to educators and families. Recess is key to helping students reach their full potential within the classroom and beyond. Several studies show that recess increases children’s attention span and productivity in the classroom. New Resources from the Recess Advocacy Team Send a letter to your child’s teacher The Recess Advocacy Team updated their student letter asking teachers to remember the importance of play to reflect our current times. Instructions: (1) Download the letter (2) Enter information for the teacher, your child’s name, and your name in the editable boxes (3) Save the letter with your information (4) Send the electronically signed letter via email If your child is attending school in person, you can still download, print, and share a hard copy. Play and Physical Activity Resource Guide for Educators and Families The Recess Advocacy Team compiled a list of resources for educators and families to make sure play and physical activity are a part of childrens’ days and serve as a foundation for their learning, growth, and development. This list includes resources, activities, and considerations for ensuring play shows up in our daily lives—and ways that educators and families can incorporate play/physical activity into children’s learning. Families are encouraged to share this resource when sending the letter to the teacher. Learn More About the Recess Advocacy Team The Recess Advocacy Team is a group of organizations dedicated to health, wellness, education, and play with a focus on recess practices and policies in pre-k through sixth grade. You can learn more about the Recess Advocacy Team on the Playful Pittsburgh Collaborative website.
August 11, 2020 Free Virtual PD Sessions Available Are you interested in hearing guidance from child development experts? Join Trying Together on August 19 and September 2 for our free virtual professional development sessions! Each session will offer one PQAS credit hour. Both sessions are a part of our interactive Connections and Conversations Virtual Check-In series that features guidance from child development experts, information on the highlighted topic, and opportunities for early learning professionals to share questions, experiences, and expertise. Available Sessions Magda Gerber’s Philosophy of Care for Infants & Toddlers Wednesday, August 19, 2020 | 6 – 7 p.m. Join Trying Together on August 19 to explore the core principles of Magda Gerber’s RIE philosophical approach to educaring for infants and toddlers in the early childhood setting. Participants will have an opportunity to engage in conversations around developmentally appropriate practice for infants and toddlers while reflecting on how to best create a safe, challenging, predictable environment for all children. Supporting Children’s Emotional Wellness with Digital Technologies Wednesday, September 2, 2020 | 6 – 7 p.m. More than ever before, early childhood practitioners play a critical role in supporting children’s social and emotional wellness. Join Trying Together on September 2 for a conversation on promoting children’s communication skills and emotional development through the use of technology and media. Participants will engage in discussion and reflection on their current practice and the impact of COVID-19. More Information For questions or more information, please contact Rosie Hogan at rosie@tryingtogether.org.
August 4, 2020 Supporting Children’s Emotional Wellness with Digital Technologies More than ever before, early childhood practitioners play a critical role in supporting children’s social and emotional wellness. When used intentionally, digital technologies can serve as tools to help children navigate emotions and express thoughts and feelings. Join Trying Together on September 2 for a conversation on promoting children’s communication skills and emotional development through the use of technology and media. Participants will engage in discussion and reflection on their current practice and the impact of COVID-19. About Connections and Conversations Virtual Check-Ins are interactive sessions that highlight topics of interest to the field of early childhood education. Participants will engage in virtual discussions via Zoom with child development experts while interacting with early learning practitioners to share questions, experiences, and expertise about the highlighted topic. Participants will receive the course Zoom link via email within 24 hours before the start date for the course. For questions, contact Rosie Hogan at rosie@tryingtogether.org. Session Details Session Date: Wednesday, September 2 | 6 – 7 p.m. Instructor: Katie Gullone CKC: K1.4 C2 Registrations must be submitted by Monday, August 31. Space is limited. Sessions will be offered biweekly and will offer one hour of PQAS credit. Act 48 credit will not be offered. Learning Objectives Identify strategies to address children’s social and emotional development through the use of technology and media. Reflect on current practice and the role of technology tools in early childhood environments. Registration To register for this session, complete our online registration form. Session Rules and Guidelines These virtual discussions are designed to provide educators the opportunity to grow professionally and share knowledge on early childhood topics. During the meeting, participants should follow the guidelines below to ensure a successful virtual meeting for all participants. Please allow all participants a chance to speak. Listen respectfully and actively. Commit to learning about each other, not to debating the topic. Embrace differences of opinion as healthy and support each person’s authentic self-expression. Participants will be muted for the beginning portion of the session. Participants may use the “Raise Hand” feature in Zoom to request an opportunity to comment or ask a question. Individuals will be temporarily unmuted by the moderator. Participants may type a comment or question in the Chat or may send comments or questions directly to the moderator for them to share. To receive PQAS credit, you must complete an evaluation at the end of the session and include your PD Registry number. Have fun, make connections, and engage in the conversations! More Information For questions or more information, please contact Rosie Hogan at rosie@tryingtogether.org.
June 10, 2020 Infant/Toddler Movement as a Foundation for Learning Are you interested in exploring movement as the foundation of learning? Join the National Center on Early Childhood Health and Wellness (NCECHW) on June 23 for their webinar, “Tummy Time: Infant/Toddler Movement as a Foundation for Learning.” About Infants enter the world prewired and primed to move. In this session, participants will learn about the impact tummy time has on brain and muscle development and its influence on developmental milestone progression. Additionally, participants will learn their role in how to create an environment that stimulates, promotes, and supports motor development. This webinar is best suited for early childhood education teachers and administrators; family child care providers; infant/toddler coaches, consultants, and specialists; Child Care Resource and Referral leadership and staff; parents; and guardians. Featured Topics Topics include the following: gross motor development, tummy time best practices, creating an environment that supports an active child, and the caregiver/parent’s role in tummy time. Registration To register and learn more, visit the event webpage. More Information For questions, contact NCECHW at health@ecetta.info or 888.227.5125.
