First Steps WASHTENAW Ann Arbor
Parenting Pathways A bimonthly publication of the Ann Arbor Public Schools • Nov–Dec 2010, Vol. 10, No. 2
Housebound? Here’s Help! Have a mildly sick child, but she has a lot of energy? Or maybe it’s too cold to go outside. Here are some alternatives to screen time. Create a cave: throw a sheet over your table & add a few props—dolls, stuffed animals, etc. This little change can help make imaginative play fresh again. Boxes to blocks: Kids can be more fascinated with boxes than a gift! Here’s a new way to play with boxes. Save cereal boxes, teabag boxes, Kleenex boxes, oatmeal boxes, etc. Boxes can provide several stages of activity. You can do them all at once, or break them up into mini-activities.
1. Take the box apart carefully, opening at the seams. 2. Color the “inside” of the box. 3. Stuff with newspaper and tape or glue the box back together. The decorated side will personalize your child’s soon-to-be new set of blocks. 4. Build, build, build! Blocks are a perfect open ended activity. Besides being great for stacking & crashing, blocks can be props for imaginative play—build a castle, a zoo, a farm. Your imagination is the only limit! —Shanda Trent, First Steps Parent Educator
Marj’s Corner Ages & Stages Questionnaire
are working on this skill and it will happen soon.
One of the many things I share during an orientation is what an Ages and Stages Questionnaire is and why we do one with you.
I’d like to encourage everyone to contact their parent educator or classroom teacher and complete an Ages & Stages for your child(ren) before the end of 2010. If you have done one recently, think about doing another one in 6 months or so. We have them available in all our classrooms and you may stop by the Family Center any time to pick one up as well.
Ages & Stages is a screening tool we use (and so do some pediatrician’s offices) that has activities to do in five developmental areas: gross motor, fine motor, communication, problem solving and self-help. Ages & Stages begin at 2 months of age and new questionnaires are available every 2-3 months all the way up to 5 years of age. You and your child do the activities together so you can observe not only if they can do it but how they do it as well. For example, at 24 months, one of the gross motor activities is to jump with both feet off the ground. When you try it together you will want to make notes on what happens. My favorite example is a child who watched his mom jump, went over to a kitchen chair, grabbed hold using the chair to balance and then jumped with both feet off the ground. He solved a problem as well as successfully jumping. The mom checked not yet and wrote that wonderful anecdote to remember later. Remember, this is a screening tool and, if your child has never tried something before, you may use the activity as an opportunity to teach your child and see if they’re ready to learn it. Sometimes they are and sometimes it really is not yet as in my example. Then you’ll know they
Musical Follow Up Does your child have one of those plastic recorders? If not, perhaps this will inspire you to get one! When children first play this instrument they don’t use their fingers to play notes. Instead they play the rhythm of a familiar song. To you it may sound like they’re just making noise – and quite loudly too! Listen to the beat and see if you can figure out what they’re playing. If you can’t, ask them. If they don’t know, sing a familiar song and enjoy the music you’re making together!
Registration for Winter 2011 begins November 29 • Classes begin January 3, 2011 and go through March 26, 2011 (11 weeks) • Very detailed directions are found on the website.
News to Use
Two Steps to Register for Winter: Membership Fee (pay) then Class Choice
Make-up Policy
You will register for 2 things online: your membership (the participation fee) in the First Steps program AND your class (no additional charge for 1 class).
Possible classes for make-ups are posted on our website and in your classroom by the second week of classes. Make-ups must be arranged 24 hours or more ahead. Look on the website under Classes. Then call or email Sherri and let her know your plans and we’ll let the teacher know you’re coming. Please do not just come to a class. You may do two makeups during the Fall session for each class you take. Make-ups are also given any time we cancel a class. If there are extenuating circumstances (many illnesses) please call and discuss them with either Sherri or Marj. Thank you!
Birthday Parties! It’s fall and we’re ready to offer our space again for birthday parties. It’s a great place to have a relaxed party for your family. The cost is $115 for a 1½ hour supervised gathering. An added benefit is that all proceeds are used to fund new equipment for all our classrooms. This is available to First Steps families, not the general community. Contact Sherri to find out more.
Scholastic Books Look for November & December flyers in your classroom and check it out online too at Scholastic’s website at www.scholastic.com/bookclubs. The online link and directions are new. Use the Class Activation Code GJW4K and follow the directions. Order form(s) may also be turned in to Sherri at the First Steps office with a check. Please make checks payable to Scholastic (not First Steps). If you have any questions, contact Laurie Wilson, First Steps Scholastic Coordinator, at 975-6896 or laurie@pop-mart.com.
Upcoming dates: • November 17: Music Together lottery—Winter • November 17: Parent Meeting (“Power Struggles”) • November 22-28: No classes • November 29: Classes resume/Winter registration begins
Step One—Membership (participation fee): You register your family (all participating children) in a membership in First Steps for Winter. This is where you pay. The fee for Winter is $123 OR you need a code from us. The code will put you accurately on the sliding fee scale at your correct rate for your family. Step Two—Class sign-up: You’ll need a coupon code to bypass the second class fee of $79. It is a different code from the membership code for the fee scale. Please do NOT pay both the membership and the second class fee when taking ONE class.
Make A Book with Your Child Thursday, December 2, 6:00 – 7:15 p.m. 2775 Boardwalk Dr (Family Center) $3 Fee for materials Mary Roderique, literacy consultant and FS parent, will help you and your 3 to 5 year old child make a special book together for a Homemade Holiday. Create a story idea together. Then share the pen with your child to write and illustrate your story. Wrapping paper and ribbon will be provided if your child chooses to give it as a gift. Please do not bring younger siblings to this workshop. Limited to 12 children so register early with Sherri: 9942300 x53186 or email firststeps@aaps.k12.mi.us
Last Minute Reminder—Power Struggles and Young Children Wednesday, November 17, 6:30- 7:30 p.m. Alice Carter, former Parent Educator. Power struggles are part of every child’s development. Learn more about why they occur and how to avoid common pitfalls as you help your child manage his frustration.
Looking Ahead—Choosing a Preschool: A two-part workshop all in one evening Wednesday, January 19, 2011 6:30-8:00 pm
• December 2: Make a Book Evening
Family Center – 2775 Boardwalk Dr.
• December 17: Classes End for Fall
Su-Fen Lin, Parent Educator & Program Specialist with the Saline Schools.
• January 3: Winter Session Begins • January 17: No Classes—Martin Luther King Day • January 19: Choosing A Preschool
Contact Sherri to register. Need baby sitting? There are spots for 10 children and the cost is $3 for each. Call early to reserve a space.
Treating colds in young children Information and advice from the American Academy of Pediatrics The common cold is really an upper respiratory infection that inflames the lining of the nose and throat. For five to ten days your child’s nose may be runny or stuffy, and his eyes may be red and watery. He may sneeze, cough, experience aches and pains and have a mild fever. There is a lot of misunderstanding about how colds are transmitted from child to child. For example, despite myths to the contrary, you cannot catch colds from drafts, or from failing to wear a scarf or a heavy jacket in cool wet weather. Instead, colds are caused by viruses and are passed from one individual to another, usually through direct contact or by sharing objects such as utensils or handkerchiefs, as well as by coughs and sneezes. Colds are extremely contagious, particularly during the first day or two of the infection, when many of the symptoms may not yet be evident. Also, colds tend to be more prevalent in the fall and winter, when children are in school and are in closer contact with each other and the cold viruses.
Treating Colds There is no cure for the common cold. But until the symptoms disappear, here is how to keep your child as comfortable as possible. • When your child has a cold and stuffy nose, he will tend to breathe through his mouth. This will dry his mouth and throat and also cause some increased loss of body water. Give him plenty of fluids, such as fruit juices and water. • Your child’s appetite will probably decrease during the illness. Make sure he eats nutritious meals, even if they are small. • Use a clean, cool-mist humidifier or vaporizer to ease his stuffy nose. • Monitor his temperature and how he is feeling. • Give lots of tender loving care. Colds do not respond to penicillin or other antibiotics, nor do they respond to most of the advertised cold medications. Although it may be appropriate to treat a fever, aspirin should never be given to a child with a fever because of its association with Reye’s syndrome. Also, take steps to keep your child’s cold from spreading to others in your household. Teach your youngsters to wash their hands before meals. Encourage them to cover the mouth with a tissue when they sneeze or cough, and then dispose of the tissue immediately. Keep them from sharing eating utensils and drinking glasses. Generally, colds are self-limiting and disappear on their own without complications. However, contact your pediatrician if your youngster develops ear pain or a severe sore
throat, or has trouble breathing, or if the cold persists for more than ten days, or if a fever lasts longer than 48 hours. Children with colds may attend school as long as they feel well enough to participate. —from the American Academy of Pediatrics website, www.aap.org.
First Steps’ illness policy Please do not come to class if your child has had the following symptoms within the past 24 hours: • Fever over 100° F • Vomiting or diarrhea • Persistent cough or runny nose NOT related to asthma or allergies • Your child is lethargic or says he feels bad If your child’s cold is mild, he has no fever, and his energy level is normal, come to class. Keep these tips in mind to prevent spreading illness: Hand washing is the best way to is the best way to prevent germs from spreading. If your child coughs or sneezes into his hand, please help him wash up. If you sing the entire ABC song or Twinkle, Twinkle three times in a row and use lots of sudsy soap, your hands are clean! We try to wash toys that we’ve seen children put in their mouths. Parents are a big help with this. If you see a child mouth a toy, or if your child has a cold and you think toys he used should be washed to prevent the spread of germs, please put them in the sink. We always appreciate parents’ help washing toys.
First Steps in Ann Arbor 2775 Boardwalk Ann Arbor, MI 48104 website: www.aaps.k12.mi.us/firststeps.home First Steps phone extensions: 994-2300 x
Email addresses: @aaps.k12.mi.us
Marj Hyde, Director ................................ 53179 Sherri Polovick, Registration & Billing .... 53186 Ann Stalhandske .................................... 53182 Shanda Trent .......................................... 53187 Yvette Daniels ........................................ 53181
hyde firststeps stalhans trents danielsy
WISD consultants: Su-Fen Lin .....................sufen_lin@yahoo.com Asian populations Mayra Prince ............................(734) 528-5066 Spanish speakers Karma Basha ............................(734) 434-2443 Arabic speakers Newsletter editing & design services donated in part by Pilcrow Text & Design Parenting Pathways is published bimonthly by the Ann Arbor Public Schools
Scholarships
Did you miss applying for a scholarship through Rec&Ed for Fall session? If you think you’ll qualify, please apply now so you’re all set for Winter session. It takes about 2 weeks and it’s how we determine your income and place you on the sliding-fee scale. Our scale does NOT match Rec&Ed’s. If Rec&Ed says you get a 50% discount, that doesn’t necessarily apply to us. Please talk with us directly when you get your letter to confirm what you’ll pay to participate. You’ll have an idea by looking at our scale yourself too. Questions? Call Marj.
Did you know?
Clothing Exchange
Advertising dollars help pay for newsletter distribution costs. Contact Marj Hyde for information about placing an ad in Parenting Pathways.
A BIG thank you to all who have brought in wonderful clothing to share. Don’t forget to pick up your tax receipt if you itemize.