Back to School with Q-School Readiness Starts with Quality Program

As children head back to school, a new campaign aims to shine a light on quality child care and preschool programs.“Back to School with Q – School Readiness Starts with Quality” will highlight area programs participating in the Virginia Star Quality Initiative and Smart Beginnings initiatives that are affecting school readiness.

In Virginia, the child care centers both big and small are advised to use child care software for their child care centers. Using a child care software vastly improve the productivity of the center and give high customer service to the parents. So the centers using child care software found to be more successful in finding more customers in the state.

The Virginia Star Quality Initiative gives early learning programs a rating of one to five stars based on the quality of features linked to school readiness.The program is voluntary. It was created to identify levels of quality and create ways to improve. Those who participate receive mentoring and training.

“Virginia’s quality improvement system is recognized nationally for its focus on the most important determinants of school readiness for young children, Virginia Early Childhood Foundation officials, said in a statement. 

“We are fortunate to have strong leadership and commitment to quality early learning among Virginia’s legislature, business executives, higher education, state agencies, Smart Beginnings communities, and families. We hope that Back to School with Q will galvanize investment in quality early learning as the foundation for school, life and workforce success.”

A Roanoke County student was a winner in the 2014 International Science and Engineering Fair.

The competition was held in California in May included competitors from across the country and the world. Devens, who has been successful in state and local science competitions, submitted a project titled: “Comparing Shroud Design on the Electrical Power Output of a Small-Scale Horizontal-Axis Wind Turbine.” 

She was recently recognized by the Roanoke County School Board.Melissa Carr, a chemistry teacher at William Byrd, has earned the society’s outstanding high school teacher award. Carr was recently honored by the Roanoke County School Board for the achievement. Carr has been working at William Byrd High since 2006 and was also the system’s 2013 Golden Apple award winner.

3-year-old Left in Park by Day Care Staff

Jeremiah Griffin was in his first week of day care in Wilmington when the 3-year-old was left in nearby Brandywine Park for nearly an hour after visiting with his class.It wasn't until a crossing guard found him wandering alone and brought him into Warner Elementary School, at 801 N. 18th St., that police were called, Master Sgt. Tuesday, the school's principal shared more details about what the Warner officials had done to help find the toddler's day care before he was returned there blocks away Jeremiah's parents were not informed by the day care for several hours. 

The boy's father, Jomar Brown, picked his son up at Sharon Temple Child Care Center, at 2001 N. Washington St., and that's when workers told him his son had gone missing for 10 minutes. According to Wilmington police, they received a call at 12:42 p.m. Aug. 28 from officials at Warner Elementary that they had a lost boy at the school.The initial report was that about 12:20 p.m. a crossing guard brought the boy into the school.After investigating, officers returned the toddler to Sharon Temple, where day care workers advised them that the other children returned from Brandywine Park, about a half mile away at 11:45 a.m.

Griffin, who drives a school bus for Warner, said she's been able to piece together some of the day's events. "There was a lady in the park with her kids and when she was getting ready to leave, she gave my son to the crossing guard," she said."The kids actually ate their lunch and were laid down for a nap before they noticed that he was missing," Griffin said. 

Warner Elementary Principal Chrishaun Fitzgerald said the boy had been playing with Warner school children until they returned from recess.The crossing guard stayed with him a few minutes to see if anyone would return for the toddler before bringing the boy inside the school and inquiring if he was a pre-schooler. She assigned a school coordinator to start making calls to the surrounding day cares who typically use the park to see if any of them might had left the boy behind. Upon calling the centers, no one reported having any missing children, Fitzgerald said. By the time police arrived, a day care worker from Sharon Temple had called back, saying they were missing a little boy. Fitzgerald said they were told that officers were investigating.

"You had this toddler who couldn't talk," He could say his name, but he could not articulate his teacher's name and when we asked him his mommy's name, he said, 'Mommy.' He seemed hungry so we offered him crackers."The state Division of Family Services has conducted an investigation into the lack of supervision allegation and has given the day care a "warning of probation" for six months, spokeswoman Andrea Wojcik said. She said day care officials notified the state as required on Aug. 29 about the situation and the division has placed the day care on increased monitoring.Wojcik said the day care informed the state that the boy was left unsupervised by their staff for about 45 minutes, but that he was never actually "alone," since other area day care groups had visited the same park that day.Sharon Temple Day Care Center, which was licensed in 2000, has had two unsubstantiated complaints lodged against it in April 2010 and in July 2014, Wojcik said.According to state regulations, a child care center must notify a child's parents or guardians in cases of accidents or injuries. There is no specific regulation, however, covering missing children.

Fresh Air and Ventilation for Proper Child Development and Growth

Rooms that children use should be heated, cooled, and ventilated both to keep the temperature comfortable and to prevent germs, odors, and fumes from collecting. Exchanging indoor air with outdoor air is key to reducing the density of contagious germs. Wherever people gather in groups, they exhale their germs into their surroundings. 

Software and Ventilation :

The child care centers are advised to use child care software for managing the administrative functions of the center and it will greatly increase the efficiency and productivity of the center. Indoors, good ventilation is essential to good health. Fans and vents draw stale air out of your home or bring fresh air into your home. Making sure that air is circulating will prevent mold and mildew, ease allergies and asthma, keep you safe from pollutants, and protect your home from damage. Ventilation is necessary to prevent airborne transmission of microorganisms such as measles, chicken pox and Mycobacterium tuberculosis.

Why do my kid need better ventilation?

1. Cooking scents and odors tend to linger.
2. You smell mold or mildew in closets or walls.
3. Your eyes get irritated indoors.
4. You notice condensation on the inside of your windows or on cold surfaces.

What does different air circulation lead to

1. Airborne Transmission
2. Allergens and Asthma

Ways of getting Fresh Air in the child care center :

1. Open the windows at least once a day
2. Try to keep indoor humidity between 30% and 50%
3. Try to keep indoor temperatures between 18º C and 28º C (64.4º F and 75.2ºF)
4. Odor control is essential to maintaining a clean and hygienic image and a pleasant child care center.
5. Removing trash from the container is easy and completely sanitary.

Reasons Kids Need Fresh Air :

1. Stronger bones and lower cancer risk
2. Healthy children
3. Improved eyesight
4. More creative
5. Longer lifespan and healthier adult life

http://www.globalhealthychildcare.dreamhosters.com/healthy-living-and-play-spaces/fresh-air-heating-and-cooling/

http://www.freshheatingandcooling.com.au/pages/benefits/child-care.html

Searching for a Home Day Care?

There are large centers, licensed and governed by rules covering everything from square footage per child to credentials for employees. There are also licensed family homes, with smaller numbers of children. And then there are unregulated homes, which can operate legally as long as the caregivers watch no more than five children not related to them. The unregulated face no inspections, background checks or regulations.

For parents, here are several questions to ask at home day cares.

1. Do you have a license to care for children?

Caregivers should readily provide their state-issued “family day home” license number. Department of Social Services Web site allows you to verify the license and to search for a provider’s inspection reports.

2. If you don’t have a license, why not? 

There are a few exemptions from licensing in Virginia, which adds to the confusion. Facilities with religious affiliations are exempt but must comply with some standards, such as background checks. Unregulated homes that have five or fewer children can voluntarily register with the state, which requires a background check, site visit and pledge to follow the licensing rules.

3. How many children do you care for, and what are their ages? 

There’s a big difference between caring for four infants and caring for four 5-year-olds. Infants require more attention. Children who are up to 15 months old count as four points, 16 to 23 months counts as three points, and so forth. An individual caregiver cannot exceed 16 points.

4. When is the last time you were trained in CPR? 

Licensed providers are required to have CPR credentials issued within the past two years. Ask for a certificate that proves completion.

5. How do you put infants down for a nap? 

All infants should be placed on their backs to sleep, unless a doctor instructs otherwise. In the 1990s, federal officials launched a public health campaign, called “Back to Sleep,” to promote safe sleeping.

6. What kind of sleeping environment do you provide for infants? Regulations for licensed providers prohibit placing loose bedding or pillows around infants. If a caregiver uses a blanket, it must be thin, be tucked around the end of the crib mattress and not come past the infant’s chest.

7. Do you have a land-line phone? 

In emergencies, having a land line can make a big difference. It allows 911 dispatchers to immediately locate the address.

8. Have you had a background check?

The parent  can ask unregulated providers to pay for their own background checks through the State Police and authorize a name search through the Child Abuse and Neglect Central Registry. The parent can go into any day care, whether it is licensed or not, and ask for a background investigation.

9. Who else is in the home? Request the names of all adults who live or work in the home. Ask about their background checks and credentials. Licensed day cares prohibit felons from living or working in the home. Unlicensed providers face no such rules.  

Bipartisan, Bicameral Agreement Reached to Reform Child Care & Development Block Grant Program

A bipartisan group of Senate and House leaders announced a legislative agreement to improve and reauthorize the Child Care and Development Block Grant Act. Negotiated by Senators Tom Harkin (D-IA), Lamar Alexander (R-TN), Barbara Mikulski (D-MD), Richard Burr (R-NC), and Representatives John Kline (R-MN), George Miller (D-CA), Todd Rokita (R-IN), and David Loebsack (D-IA), the agreement will enhance transparency, strengthen health and safety protections, and improve the quality of care.

The Child Care and Development Block Grant Act provides funds to states to help low-income families pay for child care while a parent works or is in an educational or job training program. The law has not been reauthorized since 1996. Today’s bipartisan, bicameral agreement is based upon legislation introduced in 2013 by Senators Mikulski and Burr that passed the Senate earlier this year.
The Child Care and Development Block Grant program is a vital lifeline for countless Americans. Working moms and dads have pursued a career, earned a degree, or acquired new skills and training because of the support available through this program. The commonsense ideas included in this bipartisan, bicameral agreement will only strengthen our support of these working families.
For working families in Iowa and around the country, access to safe and affordable child care is essential. This bipartisan bill will help to ensure working parents have access to quality, affordable child care and provide rich early-learning opportunities for children, including infants and toddlers and children with disabilities. This bill is a strong example of what Congress can achieve by working together.

Every parent, regardless of their income level, deserves to know that their child is well cared-for. said This bipartisan, bicameral bill improves child care access, makes critical new investments, and helps to ensure children are safe and are receiving quality care. Reliable care sets children on the path toward success in school and in the rest of their lives. While helping to prepare the next generation, good child care also supports working parents to promote greater workforce stability. These updates to CCDBG are vital for our children, our families, and our nation’s future. This bill helps a working Tennessee mother be able to pay for child care while she earns a degree so she can pay for it herself. Every month, an average of 39,000 Tennessee children get childcare through this program while their parents earn an education or

Illinois Child Care Providers Stop Paying Union Fees

Thousands of Illinois child care providers have stopped paying fees for union representation as part of the continuing statewide and nationwide impact of a recent U.S. Supreme Court decision focused primarily on personal care workers. Most of the childcare centers uses child care software for managing the activities in the center.

The decision by the administration of Gov. Pat Quinn and the Service Employees International Union to stop collecting “fair-share” or “agency” fees from home-based child care providers effective July 1 will save the providers up to $10 million a year that had been going to SEIU. The decision was tied to the Supreme Court’s June 30 ruling in the Harris v. Quinn case. In that 5-4 ruling, split along ideological lines, the court said “fair-share” or “agency” fees that all 26,000 Illinois home care workers had been paying violated the First Amendment rights of those workers who hadn’t decided to join SEIU.

The ruling immediately spared about 7,800 home care workers who hadn’t decided to join the union the future cost of fair-share fees. The fees, amounting to 2.5 percent of gross pay, can’t be used for political activity and represent most of the cost of full union dues.

SEIU remains legally required to represent everyone in its bargaining unit — including those who no longer pay fair-share fees — by negotiating the same pay raises for them that union members get and by defending them in disciplinary matters. The ruling’s financial impact on the union has been estimated at $3.6 million to $10 million per year.

The National Right to Work Legal Defense Foundation hailed the decision as a victory for workers’ freedom of choice. Unions saw the ruling as an attack on their ability to represent and advocate for workers — especially lower-wage, female and minority workers.

The court’s majority decision grouped child care workers with personal care workers among those viewed as not “full-fledged” state employees. The ruling didn’t directly affect Illinois child care providers whom the state pays daily rates with mostly federal funds to reduce child care costs for low-income parents while those parents work or attend school or job training.

Child Care Centers & Outdoor Activity

Physical activity can have an enormous impact on improving a child’s physical and emotional well-being. A study led by Kristen Copeland, MD, division of General and Community Pediatrics at Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center and a Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Faculty Scholar reveals that, many of the three quarters of preschool-age children in the U.S. who attend child care get insufficient outdoor physical activity.

Three primary obstacles to children's physical activity were identified:

• Financial limitations
• Injury worries
• More focus on academics than outdoor activities
• Teachers felt pressure from both upper- and lower-income parents
• Playgrounds are less physically challenging and interesting to children due to recent stricter licensing codes.

Some interesting examples of outdoor activities incorporated in some of the child care centers in USA include:

Girls on Track: is a year-long program in Vermont that uses games, interactive learning, and

training workouts to expose middle school girls to healthy lifestyle choices. The program

begins with an intensive eight-week summer session, where the girls train for a 5K race

and explore a number of relevant issues including goal-setting, addressing challenges and

overcoming barriers, building self-esteem and positive body image, and understanding the

importance of good nutrition.

VERB™: It’s what you do is a national campaign coordinated by the Centers for Disease

Control and Prevention to encourage young people ages 9 to13 to be physically active

every day.

Planet Health: is an interdisciplinary curriculum developed by the Harvard School of Public

Health to teach middle school students about nutrition and physical activity. Four simple

health themes can be integrated into physical education, language arts, math, science, and

social studies classes

The benefits of being active for young children include:

1. Growth and development
2.  Maintain a healthy weight
3. Building strong bones and muscles
4. Improving cardiovascular fitness, balance, coordination and strength,posture and sleep,concentration and thinking skills,confidence and self-esteem
5. Maintaining and developing flexibility
6. Assisting with the development of gross motor and fine motor skills
7. Providing the opportunity to develop fundamental movement skills
8. Helping to establish connections between different parts of the brain
9. Relieving stress and promoting relaxation
10. Providing opportunities to develop social skills and make friends

For more information, check below links:

http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/240274.php

http://www.researchconnections.org/childcare/resources/13558/pdf