Wednesday, May 31, 2006

The Garden School Tattler


One of the exciting things about teaching very young children is coming up with new and innovative ways of teaching, and using new themes and new resources. At the faculty meeting on Wednesday, where Miss Kelly served Cordon Blue, baked pastries and a splendid fare of veggies, we discussed summer rules, but more important we jokingly began with "If you think about each summer day as a play, with a beginning, a middle and and end," and as I was about to continue, Edith piped in, "And I suppose lunch is intermission?" Well it took off from there and it's continued all day with jokes about old cartoon characters with hilarious names like Cad Lackey, and Boris Badinoff, and old Vaudevillians, old TV actors and shows.

While we were cooling off with summer coolers today - sprite and left over ice cream - we wondered if a summer spent using theatre jargon and showing some old movies like Shirley Temple movies, and some old cartoons and talking about old Vaudeville jokes, if the kids would fine this culturally interesting. Old pictures, old movie costumes, jewelry, hats, makeup - what a lark.

Beve Pietrowski is taking pictures on Thursday, June 8. It would be fun to do some shots of the kids in big floppy hats and droopy dresses and top hats and starched collars. Let me know what you think. It could be a day-day getting the kids ready.

Remembering is only half the fun. Using the old as a wonderful fun part of the present is what learning is all about. Being aware of things that make life fuller, and give more meaning to the moment is what children should strive for their whole life long.

Pick your favorite cartoon character or movie star and remember - it's really fun. Anyone remember Mr. Lucky with Carey Grant? Anyone remember High Noon with Gary Cooper? How about the magpies Heckle and Jeckle? Has anyone seen The Casket of Dr. Caligari? Forgive the spelling.

Please feel free to add some of your old favorites. Not sure of what we will do, but your ideas and ours will give this summer some special laughs and a new dimension.

Tuesday, May 30, 2006

Another Good Article


I really like these Babyfit articles.

3Tips for Your Healthiest Pregnancy -- By Becky Hand & Nicole Nichols

Protect Your Daughter from Breast Cancer

Recently, scientists studied the effects of diet on mice that were genetically modified to develop breast cancer. Once bred, they fed female mice a diet high in either omega-3 fatty acids or omega-6 fatty acids throughout pregnancy and while breastfeeding their young mice. Once weaned, the young female mice continued on either the omega-3 or omega-6 diet. All the baby mice on the omega-6 fatty acid diet showed tumor development by 6 months of age, while those on the healthy, omega-3 fatty acid diet had only 13% incidence of tumor development.

Most people’s diets are high in meat, eggs, poultry, snack crackers, chips, sweets, baked goods, vegetables oils, and margarine—foods high in omega-6 fatty acids and low in omega-3 fatty acids. This type diet may actually increase the risk for breast cancer.

BabyFit Tip: Your daughter’s risk of developing breast cancer is likely reduced when you:
eat foods rich in omega-3 fatty acids during pregnancy and lactation, and
continue to feed her a diet rich in omega-3 fatty acids after weaning.

Include 2-3 servings of foods high in omega-3 fatty acids (foods such as flaxseed, flaxseed oil, canola oil, soybeans, soybean oil, walnuts, fish and shellfish) each week.

*Due to t he concern of mercury contamination during pregnancy and breastfeeding, read “Casting Your Net on Seafood Safety” for guidelines.

Take a Good Look…at Your Kids

Today so many people are overweight or obese that it is sometimes viewed as the norm. This can make it difficult for parents to recognize if their child has a weight problem. A recent study surveying the parents of almost 300 children found:

Only 25% of the parents with an overweight child recognized that the child had a weight problem.

When the child was obese, one-third of the mothers and one-half of fathers indicated that the child’s weight was "about right".

Parents who were overweight themselves were no better or worse at identifying a weight problem in their child.

BabyFit Tip: At well-child check ups, discuss weight issues with your child’s pediatrician. Seek out ways to involve the entire family in healthy eating habits and fitness routines. Check out these websites for ideas: International Food Information Council, American Heart Association, and American Academy of Pediatrics.

ZZZZZZZ...

A recent study conducted by the UCSF School of Nursing found that inadequate sleep during late pregnancy (this study took place in the ninth month) influences labor length and delivery type. Compared to women who slept on average seven or more hours each night, researchers found that:

women who averaged less than six hours of sleep per night had significantly longer labors and were 4.5 times more likely to have cesarean deliveries, and women who averaged between six and seven hours of sleep per night were 3.7 times more likely to have a cesarean delivery.

BabyFit Tip: While this is the first study of its kind, making it hard to apply these findings to all women, it’s no secret that both sleep problems and chronic fatigue have adverse effects on your physical and psychological well-being. If you have trouble meeting your sleep requirements, try:
Increasing the amount of time you spend in bed. Going to bed earlier, or merely relaxing in bed (even if you don’t feel tired) will help you fall asleep sooner.

Be sure to discuss your sleeping patterns with your healthcare provider. "Similar to advice that women should 'eat for two' when pregnant, healthcare providers should consider recommending that women also sleep for two," says study author Kathryn Lee, RN, PhD, FAAN, professor and the James and Marjorie Livingston Chair in the UCSF School of Nursing.

For more tips on relieving stress and getting better sleep, read: ”Slip Into a Steady Slumber”, ”Pregnant and Feeling Stressed”, and the ”Relaxation and Meditation Survival Guide”.

The Garden School Tattler


I'm posting some great pictures of one of our families on vacation.

I got an email from my daughter about comfort zones and how one thing is more comfortable than another, some places more comfortable than others, some routines - etc, and I started to think about it, shared it with E after Mass this morning, and then took it over to Molly's and presented it to her.

Expectation - what will be demanded of me, and how well will I be able to comply - will I be able to manage, and will I shine or will I just take up space? The questions are probably never asked about ordinary things, places and days, but in the back of our minds, I think people are regularly concerned about expectation, and especially children. "What will I have to do today" is a big worry with some kids. It's important that they come to school and do well at least most of the day. A pat on the back, a hug, a kind and encouraging word goes a long way. Safety counts.

Moving one peg over, what about home? What do we expect at home or from our homes? My home is a workshop. It's my workshop set up for me to experiment in any way I want - gardening inside and out, cooking, sewing, making, doing, mending, writing, searching, creating, while R&R is probably the farthest thing from my mind.

Does that necessarily mean it's comfortable for the people around me? I suppose it depends on what you think home should be, and it's a good question to ask over and over again. If home is where you relax, my home is going to make relaxers uncomfortable. I hate soft furniture. If you want to take a nap, go upstairs. I once thought to have wooden chairs and benches in the playroom but was out voted, so I have wooden chairs in my room.

And so it is with children - what are their perceived expectations about going to school and about going home? Will I be expected to eat when I go home? I had a big snack tday and it was late, and I'm not hungry, but mom will be mad if I don't eat dinner. I'm really tired, and I left out all those toys this morning, will I get in trouble if I don't pick them up? I got a blue face today, will that mean I miss TV tonight when I'm so tired from the playground games? I really don't want to go home.

Maybe the best thing to do is talk about expectations - immediate and long term. Sometimes children as well as some adults think the expectation load is so monumental at work, in public or at home, they are on the defensive just walking through the door. If that's the case, communication needs some work.

Think about it - what are your expectations and what do you think are the perceived expectations of those you live with?

Babyfit Article


I really like these articles. If in doubt, or if you're picky, eat half and in some cases, a quarter of what is served, eat it slowly - I wish I could - or with a gulp of water between bites.

Babyfit's Dining Out Guide

It’s almost impossible to drive down the street today without being ambushed by a few themed restaurants and fast-food joints ready to throw a burger down your throat and ruin your best nutritional intentions. But in this ruthless wilderness, you can still discover some hidden healthy treasures. Here are some that we’ve dug up. If you find ones you like, forward them to nicole@sparkpeople.com along with any details.

APPLEBEE’S
Low-POINT appetizers, desserts and entrees for dieters

BURGER KING
Chicken baguette sandwiches have just 350 cals and 5g fat.

CHIPOTLE
Instead of Chicken Burrito (1179 calories, 47g fat), try a Burrito Bol w/chicken, minus the rice, cheese, and sour cream (369 calories, 12g fat)

FAZOLI’S
You make your own pasta bowl, controlling the ingredients you want to include or eliminate.
You can also substitute whole wheat pasta.

JACK IN THE BOX
Chicken Fajita Pita is filling with only 10 grams of fat. Leave the shredded cheese out and make it 3 grams.

Skipping the mayonnaise or mayonnaise-based sauces can skim 100 or more calories and 12 grams of fat. Or use the Low Fat Herb Mayonnaise, with only 4 grams of fat.

OLIVE GARDEN
Restaurant encourages you to choose whole wheat linguine with your pasta selection. Whole wheat pasta has three times more fiber and roughly 17% fewer carbohydrates than traditional pasta.

OUTBACK
Order Grilled Shrimp on the Barbie without butter and seasonings and with cocktail or BBQ sauce
Try Tangy Tomato (fat free), Mustard Vinaigrette, Olive Oil & Red Wine Vinegar dressings

Order Grillers without butter or glaze during preparation
Order Outback Lamb without sauce
Order Chicken on the Barbie without butter.
Request bbq sauce to be used during preparation.
For Botany Fish of the Day and Salmon , order with cocktail sauce or fresh lemon instead of Remoulade Sauce.
For Barbie Chook ‘n Bacon , order prepared without butter or bbq sauce, and without the bacon and cheese.

PANERA BREAD
The Strawberry Poppy Seed Salad is a seasonal favorite.

Monday, May 29, 2006

The Garden School Tattler


So.... what does a teacher do when school is out and she has free time to play? Well, this morning I saw my daughter off at 5:30 for a flight back to Alabama, fed the wild cats and my raccoon, went to Mass, had breakfast with Edith and then we went over to school.

I cleaned the grease trap while she combed good donated lettuce from the slimy stuff for the animals. We transplanted and watered plants, fed the animals, cleaned the refrigerators, moved furniture, redesigned places for table work and eating, cleaned out the "shed" and the bathrooms, sorted summer clothes, bathing suits and then left about 9:15.

I went over to Miss Molly's made eggs and pancakes for her boys and then da da, she arrived at the door, rang the bell and announced she had a "delivery" for Mr. Rob Snyder. In she walks with the new baby who the other children had not seen yet. The faces of Wilbur and Jack could have been framed. Their little faces lit up and they couldn't take their eyes off their new brother. It was so heartwarming, I cried. Jack said, "He looks just like me." Then they all nestled down on the sofa to hold the baby.

Life is beautiful.

We will "faculty meet" tomorrow to talk about all the little programs this summer. We will discuss any graduations or children who will move from their class to the next one. We will talk about pool rules, jobs, and responsibilities. We will talk about class time, weekly themes, and accomplished readers and projects pertaining to them. We will talk about teaching videos, classroom projects and art. We will talk about food, transportation and schedules. Should take about two hours.

On Wednesday we will meet with the bankers, shop for groceries and give the place a final cleaning, call the people necessary to make field trips happen, and take the afternoon off.

So... just in case you were wondering -

Sunday, May 28, 2006

The Garden School Tattler


It's been a few days since I've put anything new on this blog. It's been a whirlwind of activity here and not all good. We've had children visiting, and another grand baby.

My daughter Molly has been at the hospital over a week with her preemie. They can't get his bilirubin count to stabilize. He's doing fine otherwise, but the family is stressed having her away for such a long time. She's trying to spend time at home and at the hospital nursing the baby, but it's been very hard on everyone. I got to feed him yesterday. He's a lovely little boy, beautiful and good. He's a joy with his big round eyes and his little bird mouth. He LOVES to eat, and finds Miss Molly's built in food a joy to behold.

Friday was a hectic day, and we thank Miss Kelly's sister, Miss Mandy for all her help. She's a fine young teacher and will be volunteering her time this summer at the GS. She teaches first grade in Henderson KY during the school year. I think what I like best about her is her approach to the children. She works hard at having them figure out the details of a situation, and coming up with the maintenance solution all by themselves. That makes her the queen of independence and that goes a long way with us.

The little awards ceremony at school went well. The children were adorable as usual, and well behaved. We gave out our religious awards and a secular classroom award and report cards. All the children did very very well. It's always a pleasure to give a compliment and offer a reward for hard work. I don't think I've ever realized just how hard our children work at behavior, manners as well as their academics.

An apology for the heat, but that wasn't my doing. We don't mind the heat at school because we are constantly out in it. We start the children out in the fresh sunny air in April, and we get out as much as we can until summer. So when we go on long trips or spend a lot of time in the heat, the children aren't bothered as much by it.

We encourage parents to do the same. At my house we don't even turn on the air most of the summer. Neither my husband nor I like hot weather. We like blizzards, and I am particularly fond of those cold wet rainy days with the low flying clouds and the damp hanging in the air. But we do live in an ancient house with three full stories, so perhaps..., but we still think it's a matter of acclimating to the heat a little at a time and turning the air DOWN so the expectation is less and the summer heat not so shocking when you first get out in it.

As well, exercise plays an important part of heat acclimation. Those people who exercise vigorously and often seem to be more comfortable in the heat than those who don't. That's why we have included things like relay races, tug of war, and yoga at the school. At the same time, exrcise for parents does not have to be formal either. It can be a part of daily activity by simply doing things like taking the stairs instead of the elevator, parking at the end of the lot, bending down twice to pick up a pencil, and squatting instead of bending from the waist. Doing some brief exercises at the desk like leg extensions, stretches while standing or sitting and deep breathing also make you feel better. Wouldn't it be great to do squats down the hallway or is that too much?

At the same time water drinking is helpful in minimizing summer discomfort. We have talked and talked about drinks for the children, and sweet drinks seem to make children thirstier and thirstier. Water seems to put an end to thirst. So often children come to the GS soda and sweet drinkers. We can always tell because they can't drink OJ, only a facsimile. That's frustrating to the teachers, because once you turn on the sweets, it's a hurdle to go back to water. Lots of people say they would like to go to water, but can't give up the carbonation or the sweet.

If you are not a water drinker and don't like to choose water over soda or coffee or other sweet drinks, here's a helpful tip that will help push water and at the same time keep the sugar drinks to a minimum: next time you go to the bathroom, let the washing of your hands remind you to fill a cup with water and drink at least eight gulps. Every time you use the bathroom after that during the day, do the same thing. The drinking of water will send you back to the bathroom within a shorter span of time, and you will find that you are drinking at least eight glasses of water every day. You will be surprised at how little the thirst bug will bite when you drink that much water. At the same time, you will find your weight down, and your skin better, your digestion remarkably improved, and your energy level at an all time high. Water drinking is good for every part of the body, and will refresh the body while sweet drinks put a high demand on insulin, affect digestion, and put stress on kidneys.

Back to the party:

At the awards day on Friday, we noticed that the children dressed for the heat were not uncomfortable, and we mentioned at the ceremony that short clothes are the ticket for success. Please remember that the longer swim suits, the long heavy shorts are a real nuisance to play and comfort. Please remember to dress children in either swim shoes or shoes and socks. Children who are dressed in long sleeves or pants will be sent home.

Thanks to all the parents who brought the wonderful food to the party. Everything tasted really good. Edith and I each had a hot dog and discovered we had dressed them the same - with a long pickle. We had a good laugh.

If anyone wants anything just call. I'm in the handbook.

Wednesday, May 24, 2006

The Garden School Tattler


It's been a busy week. Miss Molly had her baby Tuesday morning at 7:50. She did a great job and little Robby was born a perfect little 6.13 oz 20.5 inches. He was early however, and has been in NICU with breathing problems. He is coming along just fine, but it always takes time.

I am always so interested in how young women bear up under the avalanche of emotion that a sick child offers. He will be fine in a few days, but now it's that endless worry and the suffocating attention that must be paid moment by moment.

As I watched her feed him, I looked at her face and realized all over again what it means to love a child unconditionally, and what it means to bond with another human being with your whole heart and soul. She lovingly cradles that baby with everything she's got, and he responds with long deep sighs and the one eyed look as if to say, "Are you still there?" sigh, "Good."

There is nothing quite like motherhood with the exception of fatherhood. When big Rob saw him for the first time hooked up to fifteen machines, he broke down and cried.

I'm glad I'm watching from the next generation.

School has been one surprise after another. The kids are just wonderful. It's hard to decide who gets what awards. Picnic on Friday after the awards ceremony at 3:00.

Monday, May 22, 2006

Rwanda


allAfrica.com
May 19, 2006
Grace MugabeKigali

Mother's Union to Promote Childcare

Mothers' Union, a Christian women group under the umbrella of the Anglican Christian Women Network (ACWN) intends to promote children rights countrywide.

This was revealed to the press on May, 14, by Pastor Agnes Mukandoli, a member of the net-work, during an event organised by Mothers Union for 400 women.

The purpose of the event was to review the role of women in regard to societal family development, according to Pastor Mukandoli.

"As mothers of the nation, we have taken a decision to consider all children in the country as our own and vowed to promote their rights. We are doing all this because we want to fulfil Madam Jeannette Kagame's vision of treating and caring for Rwandan children. We intend to spread that message to all women across the country," she promised.

The group has already commenced addressing family education problems with a purpose of solving problems caused by the 1994 Genocide.

She said that women throughout the country have been doing parental work by offering to look after or adopt some children especially those who lost their parents in 1994.

Women were advised to continue caring for every child in an attempt to help Rwanda rise again.
The Anglican Women Network in Rwanda has members totalling to one million.

Today's Baby Fit


When you consider all we do and all we have to do, it's plain to see how we can make our lives benefit us at the same time we are benefiting everyone else. This is a really good article.

The "Real-Life Woman's" Workout
Find Ways to be Inefficient -- By Carrie Myers Smith, Exercise & Health Writer

Recently, while bringing the wood in for our wood stove, a friend of ours said, "With all those boys, you’re bringing in the wood?" By "all those boys," he was referring to our four sons. I quickly explained to him that while we do have the boys help out with the wood, I often volunteer to do it myself, because it gives me some exercise on the days I don’t otherwise work out. In fact, I purposely only carry in two pieces of wood at a time, so that I have to make extra trips in and out, increasing its cardio effect. "Consider it the Country-Girl’s Workout!" I quipped.

Well, we both got a good chuckle out of that, but it brought up a very valid point: you can find fitness in many aspects of your own life that you may not normally consider. Here’s another example:

At one of my sons' soccer tournaments, we had to park quite a ways from the field, because the parking lots were filled up (not to mention they were playing at the field furthest from where we were parked!). My reaction? "Cool! Time to get a little cardio action in!" I offered to carry the chairs and backpack, knowing it would just give me that much more of a workout. But the reaction of those around me wasn’t quite so positive. "I can’t believe we have to walk so far just to get to the field!" and "We should have just driven around – there must have been some empty spots somewhere that would have been closer."

My kids can give many examples of times we walk when it’s not really necessary, usually when running errands and shopping. You see, when you change your mind about physical activity, you will inevitably change your body. Studies show that just by adding moderate activity to your daily repertoire, you will positively change your health status. This moderate activity includes doing things such as parking further from your destination and hoofing it, taking the stairs rather than the elevator, raking your lawn, hoeing your garden, doing your housework with vigor. Yes, I said vigor! What? Haven’t you ever done the polka with your vacuum?

Here’s another one: purposely being inefficient. That can be a tough one to swallow, because we work so hard in our society to be efficient. My bringing in wood is a good example of inefficiency. Maybe you don’t heat with wood. How about purposely making extra trips from the car to the house with the grocery bags? Rather than load up on as many bags as you possibly can (and we all know how many we can carry, just barely brushing the ground and yet, not really touching it at all!), carry just one in each hand, briskly walking to and from the house.

You see, finding fitness throughout your day doesn’t just happen by chance. You must make it happen! You must live consciously, rather than subconsciously (or in some of our cases unconsciously!), living intentionally, rather than unintentionally. Just floating through your days without really thinking about what you’re doing will keep you heading on the same course you’re currently headed, in which case you must ask yourself: is the destination desirable?

Sunday, May 21, 2006

Drummer

Lawrence Journal World
Preschool Prodigy a Smashing Success
Little Drummer Boy
By Dave Ranney
Thursday, May 18, 2006

For their birthdays, most 5-year-old boys want Hot Wheels, a bicycle or a computer game.
Not Robbie Matthews.

“The only thing he wanted — and I mean the only thing — was a pedestal for his drum kit,” said Robbie’s mother, Kris Matthews. “We couldn’t talk him into wanting anything else.”

She wasn’t surprised. “Since he was 10 months old, he’s never had a security blanket, never had a teddy bear,” Kris said. “For him, it was drum sticks. They were his security.”

Robbie and a three-piece band led by his father, Paul Matthews, on piano, performed three Beatles’ tunes — ”Help,” “All My Loving” and “Eight Days a Week” — and The Troggs’ chestnut “Wild Thing” during a morning assembly Wednesday at East Heights Early Childhood Center, 1430 Haskell Ave.

Also in the band were Doug Byers on guitar and East Heights custodian James “Mr. T” Thomas, on bass.

They had the joint rockin’. Or, as Robbie said afterward, “That was awesome!”

Paul, 45, plays drums in the local band Blue Orleans, and with Billy Ebeling. He also gives lessons.

“Robbie can play,” Paul said.

Five-year-old Robbie Matthews beats away on a miniature drum set as he sings “Wild Thing” on Wednesday at East Heights Early Childhood Center, 1430 Haskell Ave. He also performed several Beatles songs for his school friends in a band with his father, Paul Matthews, on piano; Doug Byers on guitar; and East Heights custodian James “Mr. T” Thomas on bass. Robbie has been interested in drums since he was 10 months old.

Though Robbie writes and draws right-handed, he plays drums, Paul said, “like he’s ambidextrous.”

Paul said his son has been diagnosed as “high functioning autistic,” adding, “I really haven’t taught him that much; he watches instructional videos and just picks it right up.”
Robbie also sings while he plays drums.

“That’s not as easy as it sounds,” Paul said.

The family recently watched the “Monterey Pop” video, which features a 24-year-old Jimi Hendrix and one of Robbie’s favorite drummers, The Who’s Keith Moon.

“That was a mistake,” Paul said. “Not too long after that, (Robbie) smashed his ukulele imitating Hendrix, and he tipped over his drum set imitating Keith Moon.”

Robbie wanted to play The Who’s “My Generation” during Wednesday’s assembly, but Paul said no.

“I was afraid he’d knock over his drums,” Paul said laughing.

In the fall, Robbie will be a kindergartner at Sunset Hill School.

His parents are sure he’ll do well. “East Heights has been great,” Kris said. “They’ve really worked on his strengths and, at the same time, made him a more well-rounded kid. This is a wonderful program.”

One drawback: East Heights preschool is all-day, but kindergarten at Sunset Hill will be half-day.

“That’s a disappointment,” Paul said. “We were really hoping for all-day kindergarten.”

Earlier this week, Lawrence school officials said the district’s state-aid allocation wasn’t enough to cover the costs of converting half-day kindergarten to all-day.

The Matthewses also have a 3-year-old daughter, Leah.

Stress, Caffeine, Bonds


I like this one - put the pot on and share it with the kids. Can't tell you how many children love to stick their fingers - clean of course- into my coffee cup. Somehow Miss Judy's coffee is a mysterious thing. I was Miss Stress America when I was pregnant and all of my children were trained before they were two. Brendan knew all his letters and Molly could recite the entire Night Before Christmas at two.

BOSTON -- In medical news Wednesday, Heather Unruh had three stories just for mom, including one for those moms who've ever wondered if their child loves their day-care provider more than their parents.

Stress
If you are pregnant and stressed out, there's one less thing to worry about.
Johns Hopkins surveyed women who were six to eight months pregnant and then followed up with them six weeks and two years after their babies were born.

They found the children of women who reported being the most stressed out did not have any developmental problems. In fact, children born to the most anxious and stressed women tended to be the most advanced by the time they were 2.

Caffeine
Any new parent could use a java jolt to offset the sleep deprivation that comes with a newborn, but a study in the New England journal of medicine shows premature babies may benefit from caffeine, too.

Small doses appear to reduce lung problems common in tiny newborns, at least in the short-term. Researchers plan to follow up with the preemies for a couple more years to see if the benefits last.

Preschool Bonds
If you worry your child is more attached to their day-care teachers than to you, don't.
A review of dozens of studies shows even preschoolers who form strong bonds with sitters or teachers are still most closely connected to Mom and Dad. In fact, children who were most secure about their parents were more likely to grow close to their day-care providers.

New York


This is an excellent article. I've heard providers say they are more important or the child is better off in child care, and those who maintain that should not be in the field at all. A parent/child relationship is absolutely sacred and the provider at best helps the parent rear the child. The parent is always the primary educator. The provider an image of the parent.


Day Care Providers No Substitute for Mom
By LiveScience Staff: 17 May 2006

Dropping an infant or toddler off at day care can be a wrenching daily experience for harried modern parents who feel they don't see enough of their son or daughter.

One worry: The child will grow more attached to the day care providers than the parents.

A new review of 40 studies on this topic by European researchers indicates parents can rest relatively easy on this concern. The review involved studies of nearly 3,000 children with an average age of two-and-a-half. It did find reliable associations in how children feel about their parents and child-care providers. But significant differences were found, too:

Children are less likely to form secure attachments to care providers.

The longer children had been enrolled, the more likely they were to have secure relationships with their care providers.

A child's feelings about a care provider is strongly related to the provider's behavior toward all the children.

"In contrast to earlier concepts on childcare providers' functions," said lead researcher Lieselotte Ahnert, "we should not see care providers in public care as mother substitutes, dealing sensitively with individual kids, but understand how they regulate groups of kids while providing a harmonic climate to play and learn."

Ahnert is a psychologist at the University of Berlin and the University of Applied Science. The results are presented in the May/June issue of the journal Child Development.

The study also found girls are more likely than boys to have positive relationships with care providers. It is possible that girls attract more positive attention from care providers, who are overwhelmingly female, the researchers speculate.

Saturday, May 20, 2006

Auntie Pat

'Auntie Pat' Leaves Her Day Care After 39 Years

By Erik Zygmont

Estabrook, 70, will retire at the end of this school year, after 39 years of teaching and caring for young children in the community. Estabrook has run the nursery since 1967, after she was laid off from Western Electric. She modeled her day-care methods on her experience raising her own two boys, and countless kids have since benefited from her casual, motherly care.

"It’s been very not formal, very informal," she said. "I’ve always tried to make it their second home."

In the beginning, Estabrook said, she ran the nursery from her basement. She charged 50 cents per day for school, and $10 per week for day care, including food. Estabrook’s first graduation class, in 1968, had 15 children. They wore graduation caps cut from bleach bottles and cardboard boxes.

After 10 years, Estabrook moved her day-care center and school from her basement to the building next door. She has a preschool program and a kindergarten program and is state-licensed. She has taken various courses over the years to retain her certification.

In a career field with high turnover rates, Estabrook has had dedicated employees. One woman, who just left, worked with Estabrook for 38 years. She has had two other employees stay for 25 and 15 years respectively. The steadfastness of her help indicates that she must be doing something right.
And Estabrook has been doing it right for a very long time; long enough, in fact, that she has cared for more than one generation in a few families.

In many schools, a teacher will often look knowingly at a new student and say, "I had your brother." Estabrook is one of the few who might say, "I had your father."

"Two or three of the children I have this year, I had their parents when they were little," she said.

And Estabrook has enjoyed every minute of her life’s vocation.

"It’s just a very rewarding job," she said. "I love the job and I love the children. It will be very hard to give up."

The children, also, will have a hard time giving up "Auntie Pat." One little girl told her, in a four-year-old’s direct words, "Auntie Pat, I don’t think you should close. It’s not fair to us. You need to stay open longer."

But Estabrook said she feels ready for a change. She plans to take the summer off, and then look for something part-time. "I’m going to really miss the kids," she said.

An open house celebration is being held to honor Estabrook at the Teddy Bear Nursery on Saturday at 1 p.m. A flier for the event says, "Please join us for this ‘Teddy Bear Tea’ as we honor Pat Estabrook and her years of dedication and love to the children in this community.
Remember to bring your stories, memories, and smiles as we honor this special lady and celebrate her retirement."

Today's Baby Fit

I'm including some articles I received this week from a site called Today's Baby Fit. The articles are helpful, short, and easy to read. The site is written by a group of doctors and health experts.

What is the best way to do Kegels?

Here's the scoop on Kegels (pelvic floor exercises).

First, make sure you are contracting the correct muscles (the ones that you contract to stop urine flow), not your buttocks or thighs.

You can squeeze and hold for 10 seconds; contract slowly to the count of 10 and relax slowly to the count of 10; or just do "quick flicks" of fast, short contractions.

All of these methods help strengthen your pelvic floor and reduce your risk of developing incontinence. The key is to JUST DO THEM!! Try to do some long contractions and holds, and mix in a few quick contractions several times each day.

Think of a time you'll remember to do them every day, like when driving to work, showering, or brushing your teeth. Don't worry too much about the perfect way to do the exercises.

Just try to include 20-50 contractions every day!

Today's Baby Fit

How to Read a Nutrition Facts Label

Solve One of the World's Greatest Mysteries -- By Laura Bofinger, Staff Writer

You know that, as a mother to be, it is actually healthy to gain around 25-35 pounds before you deliver your baby. So you head to the grocery store and scour the aisles for the good stuff, the healthy food that will satisfy your tastes and nourish your body, as well as your baby’s. What do you look for when you’re checking out the nutrition facts on that macaroni and cheese box?

Whether you’re one to zoom in on total calories or total carbs, you might be missing the real picture. Nutrition facts should be a part of your decision in what to eat or even what to buy. But interpreting the facts requires a bit of know-how, so make sure you aren’t misleading yourself.

Understand the Power of “Serving Size”The most important rule is to know your serving size and the number of servings in the package or can. If the labels says “one cup” for serving size and “two servings per container,” that means there are two cups in the whole package. If you know you’ll eat the whole package by yourself, you are going to consume two cups (1 cup x 2 servings/container = 2 cups).

That means that you must double all the nutrition facts measurements to know your total intake of each nutrient – the good and the bad. Using the mac and cheese example, eating the whole package means you will have consumed 500 calories, 220 of which are from fat. You will have consumed 24 g of fat, of which 6 g is saturated fat. That’s not exactly a balanced meal to fuel yourself for the day.

The only time you can avoid doing the math is when you eat the exact serving size that is listed. Always compare the listed serving size to how much food you think you’ll eat and compute calories from there.

Crack the Code in “Percent Daily Value”Confused by what all those percents really mean? The percents refer to “percent daily value” and they’re a bit trickier to interpret. The FDA bases these percents on a 2000-calorie-a-day diet. Only problem is that your caloric needs increase. By your second and third trimesters, you will need an additional 300 calories each day. This will throw off the percentages. It will require a bit of mental adjustment to correct for this. Just use the given percentages as a frame of reference, realizing that you’ll need to be above the percents shown, per serving. You may find it simpler to keep track of grams and milligrams instead of the percents. The Nutrition Facts footnote gives a scale in grams and milligrams for recommended amounts of fat, cholesterol, sodium, carbs, and fiber based on a 2,500 diet as well.

Looking at cholesterol on the mac and cheese label, the FDA says that you are getting 30 mg and this is 10% of the recommended amount of cholesterol for a person eating about 2,000 calories per day. (Remember, you’re getting 20% if you ate the whole package.) So how do you know if 10% is a good or bad number?

For ease of explanation, let’s break this down into a guide that will helps us look at a percent and immediately know if it is high or low for one food source. The magic numbers are 5 and 20%. Anything listed in the percent daily value column that is 5% or less is a low number for nutrients. This is a good range for things that you want to limit (fat, saturated fat, cholesterol, and sodium), but too low for things you want to eat plenty of (fiber, calcium, and vitamins).

Anything listed as 20% or more is high. This is a bad range for things that you want to limit (fat, saturated fat, cholesterol and sodium), but a good range for things you want to eat plenty of (fiber, calcium, and vitamins). Use 5 and 20% as benchmarks when interpreting numbers between 6 and 19% (look at what is closer to “high” or closer to “low”).

Look at “Total Fat” on the mac and cheese label. The 18% daily value is close to the high point, but if you ate the whole package, you actually ate 36% of the recommended daily amount of fat (well above our benchmark of 20%!). That amount, coming from just one source of food in a day, contributes a lot of fat to your daily diet. It would leave you 64% (100% - 36% = 64%) of your fat allowance for all other meals, drinks, and snacks you would eat that day.

The percent daily value also offers a great way to watch your diet without completely giving up your favorite foods. For example, if you ate one serving of macaroni and cheese but ensured you had a low fat intake for all other foods you ate that day, you made a successful trade-off. When you really want a food that is high in fat, always balance it with healthy low-fat foods in the same day.

Quick Interpretation Guide

Start at the top with Serving Size and Servings Per Container. Adjust all measurements below this point according to the serving size you will eat.

Look at the number of calories per serving (including how many calories are from fat).

Limit these nutrients: total fat (including saturated and trans fat), cholesterol, and sodium.
Get plenty of these nutrients: fiber, vitamins, calcium, protein, and iron.

Use the % Daily Value to determine what is a high or low number for your daily diet. 5% or less is low; 20% or more is high.

Don’t just use the nutrition facts to track the nutrients you want to cut back on. Use it to track the nutrients you want to increase (like fiber, calcium and vitamins)! Whether you’re a stickler for tracking every fat gram and calorie per day or someone who just wants a rough estimate of her daily nutrient intake, the nutrition facts label is a handy tool. Learn how to use it for foods you eat frequently and anything new that you are tempted to incorporate into your regular meal plan.

Today's Baby Fit


Exercising While You're Pregnant

A Pregnancy Fitness Guide

There was a time when exercise during pregnancy was discouraged-but not anymore! Times have changed and we've gotten smarter about women's health. Most experts now encourage exercise during pregnancy.

In 2002, the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists began recommending that pregnant women should exercise moderately for 30 minutes most days, if not every day (unless there are medical reasons prohibiting it).

Exercise benefits mom by:

Improving muscle tone and cardiovascular fitness
Reducing the risk of developing gestational diabetes
Preventing excess weight gain
Improving sleep patterns
Preparing you to hold and carry your growing child
Improving appearance and posture
Promoting circulation and stimulating the digestive processes (which help prevent hemorrhoids, constipation, varicose veins, leg cramps and swelling in the ankles)
Alleviating some of the discomforts of pregnancy, such as lower back pain
Strengthening the muscles needed for labor and delivery, which can ease delivery and labor time

Exercise benefits baby by:
Preparing the fetus to transition to the non-maternal environment
Increasing placental efficiency for blood circulation, which supplies oxygen and nutrients to fetus
Decreasing fetal fat without decreasing overall growth of the fetus
Increasing newborn's readiness to self-calm and self-quiet
Increasing fetal movement, which possibly helps develop oral language skills by age 5

The exercises you can do during pregnancy depend on two things: your current health and how active you were before you became pregnant. If you were not active before, don't use pregnancy as the time to begin a strenuous fitness regime; if you did exercise before pregnancy, you can continue your program with some slight modifications.

Before you begin (or continue) any exercise program, discuss it with your healthcare provider. Together, the two of you can plan an exercise program that is consistent with your current level of fitness and health conditions. It is mandatory that you consult a doctor first, especially if you have any of these conditions:
Anemia
Heart Problems
Asthma or chronic lung problems
High Blood Pressure
Diabetes
Thyroid Problems
Seizures
Extremely over or under weight
Muscle or joint problems
History of spontaneous miscarriages
Repeated C Sections
History of previous premature labors
Carrying multiples (e.g., twins, triplets)
Incompetent cervix
Persistent bleeding

A previously sedentary lifestyle NOTE: If you experience problems such as bleeding, premature labor, dizziness, severe abdominal pain, or feeling unusually tired, during or after exercise, you should stop immediately and contact your healthcare provider before continuing.

Swimming is probably one of the best all around exercises for pregnant women. The buoyancy takes stress off the joints, the water offers smooth movements, falling is not an issue, and the water prevents you from overheating. Other good activities include brisk walking, stationary bicycling, low-impact aerobics, and some forms of yoga. Many health centers offer special exercise classes for pregnant women. Below are demonstrations of a few exercises and stretches you can do at home to help you stay fit throughout your pregnancy.

Today's Baby Fit



Question: Is it safe to eat Asian foods and other foods that contain MSG?

Monosodium glutamate (MSG) is the sodium salt of the amino acid "glutamate". It is used as a flavor enhancer in a variety of foods. Glutamate itself is found naturally in many living things such as our own bodies and protein-containing foods, such as cheese, milk, meat, peas, and mushrooms. Unlike salt or other seasonings, MSG does not alter the actual taste of food.

Instead, it enhances taste by exciting and increasing the sensitivity of taste buds. MSG works much like a drug, altering taste buds’ sensitivity. This affects the flavor perceptions of the person who has ingested food or drink that contain MSG. It basically tricks your brain into thinking the food you are eating tastes good. While not all people react to the current MSG levels found in foods, about 30% of the population does develop adverse reactions, including:

tingling, warmth and weakness
facial pressure or tightness
upset stomach
chest pain
headache
nausea
rapid heartbeat
difficulty breathing (in MSG-intolerant people with asthma)
drowsiness

MSG has been classified by the Food and Drug Administration's (FDA) GRAS
(Generally Recognized as Safe for consumption) list, along with other GRAS substances such as sugar, salt, and baking soda. However, if you have had problems tolerating high MSG foods prior to pregnancy, it would be advisable to avoid MSG during pregnancy. Pregnant women are advised to use MSG in moderation and to drink extra water to help offset the high sodium intake of MSG-containing foods. When preparing food at home, check labels. Legally, MSG must be clearly documented. When dining out, some restaurants will label selections that are MSG-free, but you should also ask specific questions before making your menu selection.

Tanya Jolliffe, Babyfit Nutritionist

Thursday, May 18, 2006

The Garden School Tattler


Lots to report:

Last week the totals on the Hop'ining for Easter Seals were announced. We won a $75.00 prize for collecting the biggest sum after 3 k-8 schools with 250 or more students. Our school has fewer than forty students and that's quite an accomplishment. Thank you parents for your support for this worthy cause.

We took the gift card from Easter Seals and went over to Walmart and bought some of our summer equipment. As I went through the line, the price was exactly $75.00. We had a good laugh. We bought a big water barrel for dunking for apples, a bunch of swimming noodles, some "go fish" for the pool. These delightful 8" fish are battery operated and are turned on and they swim around the pool, and the children discover them as they swim. We bought a rope for tug of war which the boys and girls will just love. We bought relay equipment for races, diving weights and goggles. Swimming is a most enjoyable and educational activity.

Summer is developing nicely. We are searching for some good local alternatives to long distance travel. I think parents will be surprised. One of the things we want to do is to take the children to an Amish farm. We are searching the possibilities. As ever, all parents are welcome to come as our guests.

Parents are welcome to talk to Molly about summer Garden School T-shirts.

This week we've been studying insects. The kids have had some fun with discovering hundreds of insect names and identities. They are particularly interested in spiders and the habits of spiders. And no, I don't think we will get a tarantula for the pet room.

And speaking of things that could be pets, we've had five little guinea pigs born this week. The kids discovered some of them and were delighted.

Justin and Taylor have been putting a rather advanced King Tut puzzle together. There are five puzzles in a big book, and the children discovered they could clamp the pages shut until they had put all the pages together. These boys are focused on completion; it's hilarious and heartwarming. Our next project is the five hundred piece!

We had a call today from a woman who had an abandoned child. She wanted to bring the child to the Garden School because the parent had not picked up the child last night and she needed to get to work. The bells and whistles went off on that one, and I suggested she call the sheriff's office as her only legal option. Childcare is not a last moment, drop in idea. Childcare is a safe, loving chosen environment that encourages children to grow, not scare them to death because adults have been abusive.

Abuse is a common thing in today's world, and children suffer as much today as ever. It's sad to think that someone has a child and then finds every possible surrogate care option they can so that they are literally never with the child. So many of our parents lament too many hours in childcare, but we're a family, and the children have bonded with us, and it's a chosen understood option. I always know because I rarely if ever miss work, and today I had a check up and when I got back to school, the children all ran up and hugged me. It felt good. I get multiple hugs all day, and so do our other teachers. I count on those hugs.

Today we had breakfast for lunch. We had polish snausage, egg pie or quiche, taters, honey dew melon, cinnamon toast, a big salad with tomatoes and cheese, and milk. Then because the children were so quiet, we had Sunshines on the patio - 75% orange juice and 25% sprite. It would have been elegant if the plastic cups had had stems.

Tomorrow it's pancakes and strawberries, and we bought the most wonderful cookies! Prizes for bug identifications and bug modeling. You can't build enough bugs!

Life is a beautiful thing when it involves children. I'm a most blessed lady and my life is complete.

Wednesday, May 17, 2006

China

When my son was in China, one of the things he said upset him the most was the large number of beggar children. Dozens of children will encircle a foreigner in order to procure money. He said it is at times frightening. It's a strange culture creeping out of a lost century very quickly.

Shanghidaily.com

Preschool kids to get education in death, life issues
Yan Zhen
2006-05-17

MORE than 12,300 preschool children will take part in a new program teaching them how to cope with emotional difficulties, and even death.

Accepting and talking about death - a topic shunned by many Chinese - is a major and controversial part of the program being implemented over the past three years. Children may even visit graveyards.

Zippy's Friends, the education program developed by the UK-based charity Partnership for Children, began in 31 kindergartens yesterday.

It aims to compensate for lack of psychological education for children up to age 6.

Shanghai is the first mainland city to implement the program used worldwide, said officials of East China Normal University, the program implementer.

Based on the story of an insect named Zippy, the program is about a group of children facing everyday difficulties - making and keeping friends, communicating with others, loneliness, conflicts, coping with change and loss, and adapting to new environments.

Courses will be given for 30 minutes weekly in kindergartens where teachers have been trained.

Role play games

Activities, such as drawing, role-play and games, will teach children how to cope with difficulties, sadness and daily pressures.

For instance, teachers will hold group discussions about children's reactions to their parents' arguments or "cold wars."

Children might be taken to graveyards to learn about death and loss.

Zhu Jiaxiong, director of ECNU's preschool education research center, said a major aim is to develop realistic and accepting attitudes towards death.

"Chinese people always consider death something dreadful and unlucky. They always try to avoid talking about death with their children," said Zhu, adding that some parents won't take young children to grandparents' funerals.

A recent survey by ECNU suggested that 63 percent of parents were uneasy about "death education" in kindergartens. Currently, no kindergarten has systematic courses about life, death and children's psychology.

"But death education is needed to teach kids to cherish their life. That is important thing in a world of increasingly high pressure," Zhu said.

Batswana


The article shows how much we have in common all over the world.

Gaberones, Botswana

Encourage Children To Unleash Potential Freely
16 May, 2006

MOCHUDI - The Early Childhood Care and Education Programme is meant to provide a holistic approach to developmental needs of children in preparing them for primary education, says Acting Deputy Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Local Government.

Thato Raphaka said children should be encouraged to unleash their potential, freely express their creativity and knowledge at the early stages of their childhood.

Raphaka said Saturday officially opening Tapologo Day Care Centre in Mochudi that children come to daycare centres with different individual experiences and backgrounds and then learn, adopt and adapt new things in life.

We need to continue to search for ways and means of providing more of such facilities particularly with a view of reaching out to children from poor families and marginalised communities who are more likely not to access early childhood education and thereby remain socially and economically deprived, he said.

He said Youth for Christ and Apostolic Faith Mission should be congratulated for having joined hands in establishing Tapologo Day Care Centre for orphans and vulnerable children.

I am informed that the centre has received donations from different oragnisations in order to complete construction of the premises, as well as purchase educational materials and therefore wish to commend all those who contributed towards the development and daily operations of the center, he said.

We need to inject and maintain a transparent culture in our operations, which are in line with the national principles and ideals of vision 2016. We should comfortably continue to encourage other organisations to be compassionate, just and caring with a view to attaining our Vision 2016 pillar.

Raphaka said to realise Batswanas satisfaction, there was need to work with Non Governmental Organisations within a transparent culture to get honest feed back and avoid duplication of efforts in what the nation did or planned to do.

He commended Youth for Christ and Apostolic Faith Mission and all other stakeholders involved for their selfless effort in having appropriate strategic vision in implement the project.

He added that government was committed to providing children with quality and relevant education.

He said the government recognised Batswana as a major resource and on the other hand considers education as a fundamental human right.

As a result the nation aimed at investing in its people a quality education necessary for national development.

The partnership between non-governmental organizations, government and private sector was key and crucial to the proper development, upbringing and education of the children.

Raphaka said three stakeholders should be able to create a climate that was conducive to the practice of the nations norms and traditions but all the time ensure that its traditions augur well and were in keeping with the good that development and change brought.

Tuesday, May 16, 2006

Evansville

Here is an example of where the money is going from the huge childcare grant from Welborn. To me it seems a far cry from childcare. If the childcare world of providers does not already know that story time is essential as a part of early learning, we are farther behind than I thought.


By JOHN MARTIN Courier & Press staff writer
May 16, 2006

Evansville's education roundtable is working on initiatives to increase the number of local college degrees awarded and push high school graduation rates higher.

To accomplish the latter, the roundtable chaired by Mayor Jonathan Weinzapfel is focusing on preschoolers. The Welborn Baptist Foundation has contracted with the National Center for Family Literacy, based in Louisville, Ky., to assist the roundtable in developing a communitywide early literacy program.

An efficiency and effectiveness study done this year for the Evansville-Vanderburgh School Corp. recommended the creation of such a program. EVSC Superintendent Bart McCandless said ages 3 to 5 represent "a tremendous brain-development stage," and when those children are exposed to books and other learning opportunities, "the better they will do" in school.

The National Center for Family Literacy's senior director, Cindy Read, said her staff will do needs assessment studies in Evansville and develop an action plan for the roundtable.

That plan will have several planks, one of which will involve getting information to parents about ways to help young children learn to read, said Phyllis Bussing, director of the Diocese of Evansville Schools.

Bussing and EVSC Assistant Superintendent Cathy Gray co-chair a roundtable subcommittee on improving high school graduation rates. Early childhood reading, said Gray, "was the main thrust of our conversations."

The other subcommittee roundtable, on higher education degree attainment, is utilizing resources of the National College Access Network to develop a plan, said Ivy Tech Chancellor Dan Schenk, who co-chairs the panel with Evansville businessman Robert Koch.

The National College Access Network is a nonprofit organization that will expose the roundtable to model programs aimed at improving college access, Schenk said.

Wisconsin

I couldn't believe I was reading this. It's what I've been working on for WFIE. I can't imagine docking pay because a teacher is ill or has an ill child. It would be tantamount to theft. But this is what the childcare world is all about.

The Capitol Times
Madison Wisconsin

Ruth Schmidt: Paid sick leave is crucial for child care providers
By Ruth Schmidt

Passing the sick leave ordinance would have a positive impact on child care and education programs. The issues inherent in the proposed sick leave ordinance affect child care providers in Dane County in competing and compelling ways.

As small businesses, a majority of child care centers operate with little to no profit margin or as nonprofits with no reserves. In theory, providing paid sick leave to their work force has the potential to further financially stress a system already woefully underfinanced. Yet we know that most child care centers in Madison already do provide this benefit. Why? Because the early childhood community understands that adequate paid sick leave is critical to sustaining the public health of our city, which in turn sustains families, children and those who care for them.

Child care providers see the personal face of this issue, and they see it more often than is acceptable in this city today. They see the face of a worried parent bringing a sick child to care, hoping they will not be turned away, forced to choose between staying home to care for their child and losing a day's wages, perhaps a job, because of absence. They know the personal struggle of a low-income mother or father who cannot make the best choice for a sick child because of economic constraints imposed by a business climate that disproportionately disadvantages the low-wage work force.

Family child care providers and centers alike know this all-too-familiar scenario. More than any other sector, it is perhaps the people who provide child care and education and the children themselves who are affected by employers' decisions not to provide paid sick leave.

What are the ramifications to the child care work force when one analyzes this issue from a public health perspective? It is helpful to peel away layers of factors that complicate this issue.

First, we know that children in early childhood programs are often sick. Illnesses such as colds, flu, pink eye and diarrhea are some of the most common brought into child care centers, family child care homes and preschools. Not only does this expose other children (most with still-developing immune systems) to these illnesses, it exposes every child care worker.

Second, we know that individuals in the child care work force in Wisconsin are less than half as likely to receive employer-provided health insurance benefits compared to the general Wisconsin work force 24 percent vs. 67.7 percent.

The result is that workers who are frequently exposed to illnesses lack adequate health insurance to get medical attention when they are ill. It is documented that uninsured individuals receive fewer preventive services, less care for chronic illnesses and poorer hospital-based care.

The stark reality is that uninsured adults tend to be sicker and at higher risk of premature death: 25 percent higher mortality rate at age 65 than insured adults.

Add to these factors the fact that the child care work force in Wisconsin earns only 64 percent as much as the state work force as a whole (the median hourly wage for a child care worker in Wisconsin in 2001 was $8.31), and you can begin to understand the crisis that early care and education professionals face routinely in performing their jobs.

Passing the sick leave ordinance would have a positive impact on child care and education programs. Sick children would not need to attend child care or school, making it less likely that other children or staff would get sick. This could reduce the spread of illnesses in the city and could actually reduce the need for child care staff to take sick leave.

Child care programs that do not currently offer paid sick leave to their staff will incur costs to implement such a policy, a cost that is likely to be passed on to parents. This is a justifiable trade-off to protect the health of individuals in our community.

When did it become acceptable to expect child care workers to sacrifice wages, health benefits and a healthy workplace to care for our children, even our sick children? Child care workers have historically shouldered this burden, and as an industry we have struggled to calculate the cost of this sacrifice.

Paid sick leave does cost money. No one disagrees with this. But it makes so much sense for the sake of children, working parents, child care providers, centers and schools trying to provide loving, healthy, safe environments. Therefore, the Wisconsin Early Childhood Association supports the proposed sick leave ordinance.

Ruth Schmidt is executive director of the Wisconsin Early Childhood Association.Published: May 12, 2006

Saturday, May 13, 2006

California

Strong readers will be strong because parents are strong readers. If children see parents read, they will also read. If TV has taken the place of reading in a home, then books will have a lesser value, and the stretch to investigate reading will be too far to go.

A preschool program with undirected play won't do a thing for reading readiness.

Preschool for All Will Help More Kids Become Strong Readers in Elementary School

California Chronicle Beverly Hills California
California Political Desk
The California Political Desk provides information, news releases, and announcements obtained from communication and public relations offices throughout the state.

May 10, 2006
Top Education Leaders Release New Report, Support Prop. 82 as Smart School Reform.

May 10, 2006 -- California’s leading educators today called on voters to support Proposition 82, the preschool for all initiative on the June 6 ballot, as a critical strategy to ensure that more California children enter kindergarten ready to read and succeed in school.

“Providing quality preschool programs to all children is one of the smartest investments we will ever make to help our children succeed in reading, and throughout K-12,” said California Superintendent of Public Instruction Jack O’Connell. O’Connell and other top educators said their support for Prop. 82 is inspired in part by a growing body of research showing that reading difficulties in young children are preventable, and that quality preschool is a critical strategy in preventing them.

That research is highlighted in a new report, Building Blocks of Reading, released today by the non-profit, nonpartisan Preschool California (available at www.action.preschoolcalifornia.org/).

The report includes an introduction signed by the current and former state superintendents of public instruction, a bipartisan team of former state secretaries of education, and the heads of the California Teachers Association, California Federation of Teachers, California Kindergarten Association, and the association of California county superintendents of schools.

Many of those leaders gathered today at a preschool in Sacramento, where they read to 4-year-olds during circle time and formed a united front for Prop. 82.

“Any classroom teacher will tell you that attending a quality preschool gets children off to a strong start in school,” said Barbara E. Kerr, president of the California Teachers Association and a kindergarten teacher. “Kids need to master reading in order to do well in school, and preschool puts them on the reading path.”

According to the California Standards Test, an annual exam given to all students, 37% of California third-graders are failing basic reading (county- and school district-level reading scores available at www.action.preschoolcalifornia.org/reading/). Educators say that reading would improve if more children had access to preschool programs that lay a strong foundation for literacy.

“Every child deserves the chance to get ready to read,” said Armando William Argandoña, president of the California Kindergarten Association, a former preschool and kindergarten teacher and presently a literacy coach at Eastman Elementary School in East Los Angeles. “Too many children enter kindergarten lacking reading readiness skills and rich oral language. These are two important stepping stones needed on a child’s literacy journey. We need to expand students’ access to this critical lifetime skill starting in preschool.”

Building Blocks of Reading compiles extensive research showing that a quality preschool experience provides a springboard to strong reading skills in later years by fostering early literacy. Studies show that children who attend quality preschool programs are stronger, more advanced readers than their non-preschool counterparts.

Through developmentally appropriate learning–through-play activities with trained teachers, quality preschool helps all children, regardless of family background, to develop important social skills as well as build important pre-reading skills that predict their later reading ability, including earlier recognition of letters and words, an important factor in reading readiness; greater awareness of printed language and increased vocabulary.

Once they enter K-12, children who have been to quality preschool benefit from higher reading achievement test scores in elementary school; lower rates of being held back a grade or designated for special education; and higher rates of high school graduation and college attendance.

Tragically, too few California children have access to quality preschool programs. Just 20% of California 4-year-olds are enrolled in a quality preschool program the year before they start kindergarten. Private programs can cost more than tuition at a state college, and 75% of publicly funded programs have children waiting in line to get it.

“Quality preschool has been out of reach for too long,” said Preschool California President Catherine Atkin. “By voting for Prop. 82 on June 6, Californians can support smart school reform and make sure all families who want good preschool for their children will have access.”
Preschool California is a nonprofit, non-partisan organization working to achieve quality preschool opportunity for all 4-year-olds in California. www.preschoolcalifornia.org.

India


The Daily Star
Metropolitan

Poor Have Little Access to Better Education

Speakers tell publication ceremony of HalkhataStaff CorrespondentPrincipal Secretary to the prime minister Kamaluddin Siddiqui yesterday expressed deep concern over the division in education system saying its consequences will be dangerous if the division between the rich and the poor is not minimised on an emergency basis.

Kamaluddin Siddiqui said the rich are sending their children abroad or educating them in the best educational institutions, whereas children of the poor are getting education at lower standard institutions.

"As a result children of the rich are getting better jobs depriving the poor and this deprivation will bring dangerous consequences," he cautioned while speaking as chief guest at a publication ceremony of Halkhata, an annual report on primary education by Sushikkha Andolon, a citizens' movement on quality education.

The principal secretary said irregularities in teachers' recruitment, low standard textbooks and lack of teachers' training have downgraded the standard of education.

He specially blamed the authors assigned by the National Textbooks Curriculum Board (NTCB) for making many mistakes in the textbooks.

"I had to blacklist a number of such teachers as they failed to play their due role in writing text books," he added.

The demand of the poor for quality education should be strongly articulated, Kamal said, adding that the Sushikkha Andolon is contributing to the process by creating awareness among the people at all levels.

Speaking as special guest Bangladesh Bank Governor Salehuddin Ahmed said education today has become coaching-centred and teachers-centred where the poor have little access to better education.

Mismatches between the need for education and curriculum of the textbooks are also a setback for better education, he said, adding, "Money is never a constraint for education sector, but what we need is goodwill and participation of all."

Considering quality education as the crucial challenge AKA Shamsuddin, secretary to primary and mass education ministry, said early childhood education, participation of citizens in primary education process, regular monitoring of school activities by thana and district level officials are must to meet the demand.

Activating the school management committees, building adequate infrastructures and reducing the teachers' involvement in non-educational activities are also important to fulfil the goal of quality education, he said.

Presenting the annual report on primary education Sushikkha Andolon member Khandaker Sakhawat Ali said allocation for primary education has increased, but it is not utilised properly.
He suggested community's participation and regular school visits by eminent personalities of the localities as a means to create awareness for quality education in the society.

Education expert Mamataz Jahan considered nutrition of poor children, completion of syllabus and complementary activities for primary education are some major conditions for developing quality education.

Presiding over the publication ceremony Prof Wahiduddin Mahmud said Bangladesh has achieved a number of successes in different sectors including reduction in birth and child mortality rate and increasing enrolment of girl children.

"This is a revolutionary change in comparison to African and some South Asian countries, but we need to sustain the achievements," he said.

Hua Du, country representative of Asian Development Bank (ADB), said a number of measures including building infrastructures, balancing teachers-students ratio and training of teachers have been undertaken to ensure quality primary education under the Second Primary Education Development Programme (PEDP II).

Modernisation of madrasa education can contribute a lot to the development of quality primary education in the country, said Hua Du of ADB, one of the donors in PEDP II.

Co-ordinator of Sushikkha Andolon Dr Hossain Zillur Rahman, Prof Amirul Islam of North South University, Prof Bazlul Mobin Chowdhury of Independent University and Muhammad Mohsin of Plan Bangladesh also spoke on the occasion.

Montana

The enthusiasm is there, now let's see the program.

Billingsgazette.com

Guest Opinion: All-day Kindergarten Valuable, But Raises Funding Concerns

Gov. Brian Schweitzer has announced his support for an initiative to make all-day kindergarten available across our state. Rural schools are well aware of the compelling research that continues to point to the importance of early childhood education, and we support the governor in identifying this priority. Many of our schools have been leaders in innovative programs designed to expand early childhood and kindergarten opportunities across our state.

Our support of all-day kindergarten and the increased funding that this will involve at the state level are, however, something that rural schools consider with mixed emotions. While the increased funding necessary for this worthy program will be touted by many as they point to the state's increased commitment to adequately funding K-12 education, the harsh reality is that this new increase, like much of the money handed to schools during the 2005 special session, continues to be distributed using a completely broken and illogical system of school funding.

Rural schools worry that the great failures of the legislative process during this interim period will continue to haunt Montana as we strive to fairly and adequately fund schools, both large and small, across this state. The fact is that the Quality Schools Interim Committee established by the 2005 Legislature failed in its mission to design a new school funding system after months of agonizing meetings and thousands of taxpayer dollars spent on the process.

Here's just a few (of the dozens) of the issues and challenges related to our state's continued use of a broken system that would shock the private citizen, taxpayer and business person if the same were true of their personal finances or business accounts:

Our state has never penciled out what it actually costs to provide the quality education as identified by the full Legislature during the regular session in Senate Bill 152. In short Montana has no clue what it should actually cost to provide a quality K-12 education as guaranteed by our state constitution!

Montana has virtually no useful information with regards to school facilities and buildings and how these critical capital expenditures relate to providing a quality education.

Funding provided by the 2005 special session, channeled through the same old broken distribution system, placed over 100 schools districts across our state in the situation of needing to return to the local voter to ask to return to previous budget levels or to request a modest increase over last years funding levels. Projections on the funds that would be given schools included huge seemingly illogical increases for some districts while slighting others, forcing them to return to local voters.All-day kindergarten deserves to be a priority for the state of Montana.

Rural schools will swallow hard and support this worthy program knowing full well that the increased funding will not be distributed fairly to our schools because of a broken funding system that, despite a Supreme Court opinion, still has not been fixed.Dave Puyear is the executive director of the Montana Rural Education Association representing school districts across the state and headquartered in Helena.

Indiana

Indiana - in the southern part - has a problem with day care. Apparently it is not age appropriate to teach very young children - that's a kindergarten job. If early childhood educators can't find room to teach children who attend day care, why should there be funding?

Group Says Indiana Lags in Funding for Preschool

A national early education group on Wednesday singled out Gov. Mitch Daniels among leaders of states still in the "pre-k wilderness."

The report from Pre-K Now, a Washington-based advocacy group, says governors in most states are proposing expansions of state-funded prekindergarten programs for the third year in a row. But Indiana is among 10 states that offer virtually no money for preschool.

"Governor Daniels presides over a state with a more stable revenue projection than it did just one year ago," Libby Doggett, the group's executive director, said in a news release. "Leadership and continued discussion of young children's educations is still very much in need in Indiana."

Romania

Romania Says Child Care Woes Not Rampant

May 11, 2006

ASSOCIATED PRESS

TIMISOARA, Romania -- Romanian health officials acknowledged problems Wednesday in caring for disabled and abandoned children, but disputed allegations by a U.S. human rights group of widespread neglect and abuse.

The government confirmed findings in a report by Washington-based Mental Disability Rights International (MDRI) that children had been living in inhumane conditions in a psychiatric ward for adults in the eastern city of Braila.

Officials said the Braila case was uncovered in 2005 and authorities have since closed the hospital and moved the children to a new facility.

"I was in Braila and I saw that the conditions there were absolutely inhumane," said Bogdan Panait, who heads the National Authority for Protection of Children's Rights.

He conceded that problems still existed and said some of the most serious shortcomings should be resolved this year.

The western city of Timisoara's Center for Nutritional Recuperation also was criticized in the report.

On Wednesday, toddlers there napped on quilts, wearing clean pajamas in modern wards with clean, tiled floors.

Local officials disputed the group's findings.

The report is "confused, incomplete and irrelevant to the situation in Timisoara," said Mihai Gafencu, who manages the center.

MDRI experts reported that the 65 children housed in the facility weren't allowed to get off their beds because the institution was short-staffed.

Gafencu, who is also deputy chairman of Romania's Save the Children group, said MDRI had visited the hospital in February, while children were resting and napping after lunch.

Romania's poor treatment of those with mental illness, especially children, became known after leader Nicolae Ceausescu was overthrown and executed in 1989.

Romania

Lest we forget...

Prezent - Images from Romanian child care centers

A team formed of Prezent weekly reporters and journalists from the American TV station ABC went to several children care centers to see the living conditions of mentally disabled children.

The American journalists were interested both in the children who were mentioned in the report made public by the Mental Disability Rights International (MDRI) organization, quoted on Wednesday by the New York Times but also in the children in other centers that had not been visited by the American organization.

In some of these centers, the patients are given a correct medical treatment, they live decently and are given proper food, in other centers (which were not quoted in the MDRI report but were visited by the ABC-Prezent team), the buildings are almost collapsing on the children and the latter are beaten almost daily.

The feature made by ABC-Prezent was broadcast by ABC on May 10 and was also quoted by the Washington Post. The team of journalists was accompanied by one of the MDRI investigators. It has to be noted that, despite the hurried excuses made by the Romanian authorities, none of the images presented are from 2004 or older, as they were filmed in the last couple of months and the more recent were shot at the end of April this year.

The Prichindel center in Alexandria is well supported financially and the children here live in decent conditions. The 16 children have a doctor and live in rooms of one or two people. The investment in Prichindel was of one million euros and the patients are carefully treated. They call the nurses "mom" and the latter actually behave like mothers.

Unfortunately the situation is not the same in all such centers in Romania. In the center in Costesti, Vrancea County, there are 46 children and only four nurses in one shift. The hospital is in renovation and the patients survive in conditions that are hard to imagine. In some of the beds there are two children sleeping. The team of reporters found a room with "vegetable-children" which were eating thread.

"What can they do? They are consuming their energy," a nurse "reassured" us, being not at all worried by the children's behavior.

Thursday, May 11, 2006

The Garden School Tattler

We had an interesting day today. It was rainy, so we stayed indoors for breakfast, and after breakfast, we put the kindergarten and first grades together and played a new bingo game with words. I made the bingo game with the words we have been studying in my class. There were about 40 words in blocks on a page. Every child got an 11 x 14 sheet and a handfull of pennies.

I called out the words one by one, and the children scrambled to find the word on the page and put down their penny. Then they turned to their neighbor to see if they could help. I was excited to see Jackie Snyder get up every word and show the preschool children at the next table where they could find the word. Not one teacher suggested that anyone help another, but several children including Ty acted with such social awareness, I was thrilled.

One of the big day cares is closing in EVV. We've already gotten some calls. It's hard to explain to people exactly what we do and why. Today's activity with the word bingo would have been an excellent explanation. We're a cohesive group that cares about the next guy.

With all the studies, the comments, the cries for 4-K across the nation, it always stuns me that the same old day care plan is the only thing that can be discussed. When nearly forty places on the map can easily be identified by the children, when four year olds can do addition, can find words on the page, when they can learn a foreign language, the same old day care plan seems really fraudulent - almost like theft.

What are parents paying for when the learning is non existent? Miss Kelly told me that in her former teaching gig, she was told not to teach the children anything, that teaching and learning were not "age appropriate" and that learning was for kindergarten. This is from the best childcare in EVV.

Teaching and learning is for everyone. We all read Jabberwocky the other day, and Miss Jana and Miss Kelly laughed as they slowly managed Lewis Carroll's words. I laughed too and gave my own rendition of a few lines that sounded different from the others, but then I'm on the other side of the great vowel shift, so my pronunciation is slightly different. Just then, Mrs. St. Louis came from the kitchen with the whole thing memorized and trilling off her lips like a rosary prayer. It was really a funny occasion, and all the teachers learned while the children watched. This is what they should see, this is what learning means. It was great exchange.

There are so many occasions when we learn from one another and the children should be part of that, so how do you explain all that to new people?

Wednesday, May 10, 2006

Picking the Right Preschool

It's always a combination of classroom activities and play activities. When you combine the work and play, the children learn best. Children like to work at things - provided they are discovering new information and new angles on play.

Picking the Right Preschool
Amanda Dobbins / Parenting

Carey Killian of Portland, Ore., was torn about where to send her daughter to preschool: one that spent a lot of time on academics, to prep Skylar for kindergarten, or one where the kids were mostly playing?

Many parents worry that their children will miss out or fall behind if they don't learn letters and numbers in preschool.

This couldn't be further from the truth, says Kathy Hirsh-Pasek, Ph.D., coauthor of "Einstein Never Used Flashcards." "Children learn by doing, exploring and having fun," she says.

Learning faster isn't necessarily better.

When you visit a school, ask these questions to get a sense of whether it'll be a good fit for your child:

What do the lesson and activity plans look like? Find out if there's an emphasis on things like singing and sharing.

Are there goals that kids are expected to reach during the year? Watch out for ones that seem too strict (count to 20 by December) and look for more socially oriented ones (play well in groups).

How much structure is there in a day? Kids do well with some order in their days, but there should be plenty of time for free play.

United Arab Emirates

DM To Set up Dhs8 m Day Care Centre at Dubai Women's College

Dubai Municipality will set up a Dhs8 million day care centre at Dubai Women's College to serve children of the college's students and staff.

United Arab Emirates: Monday, May 08 - 2006
Essa Al Maidour

Announcing this, Essa Al Maidour, Assistant Director General of the Municipality for General Projects Affairs, said the civic body's initiative is aimed at encouraging female students, who are mothers, to carry on with their studies.

"Educating women means their empowerment. Being a mother does not mean the end of the road and we at Dubai Municipality are proud to announce this initiative which will go a long way in helping young mothers to cope with the double pressures of attending classes and caring for their new-borns," said Al Maidour.

He added that the project, to be set up at an area of 2333 square meters, would include eight divisions with a total capacity of 150 kids in the age-group of 3 months to 4 years. The centre would consist of a playground, activities hall, multi-purpose hall, cafeteria, administration and services blocks.

"The centre was designed in a unique way as there will be natural lighting from all parts. The premises will be covered in lush green vegetation thereby providing a fitting atmosphere for the toddlers to spend the day time," Al Maidour added.

Dubai Municipality is planning to finalise designs of the project by the end of this month and start construction works by June 2006. The centre is expected to be ready by the end of this year.

Tuesday, May 09, 2006

The Garden School Tattler

Near Question: I see that you can't post a thought on this blog without getting belittled.

Who is "you" and what constitutes thought?

What we try to teach the children at the Garden School is the vast human difference between thoughtless knee-jerk reactions - impulses, and truly thoughtful impressions, questions and responses. It takes a few weeks for some children to catch on, but there is a difference, and learning the difference at 3,4,5,6 and 7 gives any child a big head start.

Responsibility is another misnomer in the world today. The idea that I take responsibility for my thoughts words and deeds is all but gone, and the blame is always someone else's. It's tantamount to tattling. It's never my fault, and I never meant, and I was only. HMMMM. I never inhaled.

Communication is an act of love. Whether it is affection or admonition, everything we do should be done because we love. Is our brief time worth spending on hostility and hatred? I don't think so.

Today was another gorgeous day. We are expecting rain tomorrow. We had lunch on the patio. We started reading a book about Tinkerbell who is the pot and pans fairy. It's well done.

My little champions are dashing through math and reading like pros. Today we tackled: this, that, is, a, an, and, but, the, and the number words. Most of the children know the printed number word because of the hints that each word has: One has one little head. Two has two cross bars, three has ee at the end, four has one, two, three, four letters, five has an Ichabod with one eye, six has two sticks, seven has a hallow on the s to rhyme with heaven, eight has a number eight in it, nine is that ninnie number, and ten is easy because we can sound it out.

Our printing is fabulous, and the spacing is coming along nicely.

We pointed out Chile, the Gulf of Mexico and South Africa today. I'm sharing some of the book I'm reading at home with the children. It's about whaling and South Sea travel and adventure. It was published in the 30s.

Homemade cookies for snack - chocolate chip with granola.

The rest of the day was uneventful.

Garden School Tattler

Response: It just seems the way you wrote it that you meant the others weren't as good because they couldn't or didn't make it as far. Sometimes you are too vague and it is difficult to tell what you mean.

If I were the kind of person who preferred one sex to another, one child to another, or who thought a child was not as "good" for any reason, I wouldn't have lasted in this job for 25 years.

Vague exists in not in what I write but in what the reader is looking for. If you are looking for negativity, you can find it anywhere. In fact, you can make it up as you go.

To honor one child because he did something wonderful is not to condemn the other children. We are not all going to glow at the same time, and what I find with children is that each one shines in his or her own way, and I want to comment on those things. This is where you find the talent and this is where you point the child.

If the idea was not to reward those children who did well, where would the bonding come from and where would the trust come from?

Monday, May 08, 2006

The Garden School Tattler Question and Answer

Q: It is insane to think you can get children of that age to write 1-100 in the same amount of time. Maybe you didn't give them enough time. If most of them made it to 40-60 than that is the norm. Correct?

If stupid was for sale...

If it were insane to think a child can do something they can do then the world is upside down. This child wanted to do it, and at age four it is imperative that he be told he can do anything he puts his heart and head to. To discourage a four year old is planting the explosives that will destroy his life. Show me an adult who can't, and I'll show you a mother who didn't.

Time is important to a classroom project. If there is too much time, the children will be bored. So letting someone struggle with something too long is not teaching - it's coercive. Setting time limitations - friendly time limitations - builds trust. Trust is essential to teaching. Children won't learn from someone they don't trust.

As far as norm goes - hilarious - there are no norms. Every child at four and five learns in a unique and gratifying way. Check out Howard Gardener. Presenting a problem to a group of four and fives gives as many project responses as there are children - duh.

The one thing a group of four and fives want more than anything is the adventure of learning and that means discovery, so a teacher offers unique and interesting things children can try out. Trying out stuff is part of learning to manage inner strengths, the passions, if you like. There are eleven passions, and each one needs to be directed.

Asking intelligent questions is the mark of an intelligent person. Asking questions that antagonize and require obvious answers is the mark of a finch.