The Nest Matters turns 1 year old!

January kicks off the New Year and marks the 1st Birthday of The Nest Matters. The Nest
Matters was birthed by a group of Early Childhood Leaders dedicated to sharing the latest research in Early Childhood Education and Child Development with [caregivers, parents, grandparents, family & friends] that care, educate and serve children of color. In honor of our 1st Birthday we want your first steps for enrolling your child into a school to be successful.

Easy as 1, 2, 3

http://stand.org/colorado/action/right-fit-finding-school-your-child/more-about-school-choice

Step 1 - Enroll into a “Right Fit” school

Colorado is a School Choice for Kids state. Which means Colorado kids can “open enroll” into hundreds of public schools. In the past children were either placed in their neighborhood school or bused to another school in another neighborhood. Parents who wanted options had to fight to place their child in a school of their choice. Now parent’s have the choice. Parents with multiple children can place their children at different schools if they want each to have the perfect fit school. In Denver, the School Choice offices can help you select a school and complete application paperwork.  The first round of applications is now being accepted and the deadline is January 31, 2014.  Let the School Choice officers help you determine the best placement for your students!

http://www.dpp.org/news-and-events/news-room

Step 2 - Enroll into a “Right Fit” financial assistance program

(Childcare Assistance) Have little ones and want to enroll your baby into a quality rated child care, but overwhelmed by the monthly expense? Colorado Childcare Assistance Program (CCAP) offers financial assistance for low-income families for child care services. Perhaps you have a toddler and need a quality rated early childhood preschool program. Preschool programs typically run only 2 ½ hours each day, which are not realistic times for working families. If you have preschoolers, CCAP can help pay the before and after care expense. Contact your local Department of Human Services to see if your family qualifies.

(Tuition assistance) If you live in the city of Denver and have a preschooler that has one more year before he or she is eligible to enter kindergarten contact the Denver Preschool Program for tuition assistance. This program provides Denver families (regardless of income) with preschoolers that are kindergarten bound tuition credits to a quality preschool program of their choice. They also help families find quality rated preschool programs in their area.

(Scholarships) Scholarships for kindergarteners? Yes, there are scholarships for kids starting kindergarten. ACE Scholarships provides scholarships for low-income students as early as kindergarten through 12th grade. Families should have the right to select the “right” choice school for their child regardless of their income level. ACE Scholarships offers a list of tuition based schools to help families find the right fit school along with scholarships to assist with tuition costs. The application is time sensitive so contact ACE Scholarships today to find out when their application process opens and if you quality.

http://www.ppunitedway.org/ourimpact/successby6

Step 3 - Enroll a “Right Fit” eager learner

Children are born with a passion to learn and everyday experiences play a huge role in an ability to develop the different skills they’ll need to be successful in school. As caregivers it’s our duty to foster their learning experiences to help them develop those skills in order to understand how the world works, manage emotions, and believe in themselves. There are four key areas children need to develop to become eager learners:

Language and Literacy Skills

Start early with building a child’s language and literacy skills. Talking, reading aloud, and singing all help children understand the use of language and stimulate their ability to communicate. Introducing books as early as infancy help create a love for books and reading and also provides the foundation for developing literacy skills.

http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/video/preschool-obama-plan-faces-challenges-18546018

Thinking Skills

Children naturally react to the world around them and their brains develop more and more complex ways of figuring things out. They quickly learn cause and effect, when I drop my spoon it hits the ground. Allowing your child to learn about how things work and talking with your child about what he is doing requires them to think and process information. You can create teachable moments everyday. For example when you take the spoon that hit the floor and place it in the dishwater show your child how it sinks. Now your child is learning about objects that float and sink and the difference between liquids and solids. 

Self-Control

Our article last January shared the developmental stage of a child’s brain under the age of 4 years and why they lack self-control. Babies naturally act on emotions without the ability to manage their feelings. Teach acceptable behaviors and help your child learn to soothe himself. The calmer a child feels the more in control he will be. Some kids require physical contact such as hugging or rocking, while others prefer to be put down for a minute. The best way to help a child stay calm is by staying calm yourself. Stir away from always telling a child what he can’t do, instead be sure to tell and show him what he can and is allowed to do. For example if he’s not allowed to throw balls in the house try wadding up some old newspaper into balls and giving him an empty wastebasket to throw them into. This will help channel his energy in an acceptable way without taking away from his interest. 

   

https://www.auroragov.org/ThingsToDo/Recreation/Preschool/

Self-Confidence

The key to a child achieving success in school is self-confidence. When children believe in themselves they are more eager to take on new challenges. Children need a strong sense of security to develop self-confidence which is crucial for getting along with others, learning to share, and making friends. Ways to help in this area include establishing routines which will allow a child to feel safe and in control because they know what is going to happen next. Being in a school setting requires following many routines. Children need to do things over and over before they succeed, so make time for plenty of practice.

Finding the Best School for Your Child

Many parents are not aware of the timeline and process individual schools may require to get their child(ren) enrolled. Many find themselves in a last minute scatter. Believe it, school can begin for young children as early as 8 weeks old.  For many families who have multiple working parents, a great quality school is very important.  After all, these are the people taking care of your children.  

YOU HAVE CHOICES!  Whether it is an early childhood education center, a childcare, elementary, middle or high school, make sure you choose a learning environment in which your child will flourish. These helpful tips can be applied when enrolling a child into school for the first time or transitioning your child into a new school.

EARLY BIRD STARTING POINT...

http://www.catholic.org/politics/story.php?id=49528

Focus On Your Child’s Individual Needs - Think about your child’s strengths and talents. Every child is different, and different styles of play and learning are supported by different kinds of programs.  Remember, your experience with school will not be the same as your child’s experience!  Education is changing all the time, try and look through your child’s eyes.

Envision Your Ideal School - Create your list of expectations. Know what you want and why. Picture that school that will meet all your child’s needs and help them to excel! What was good enough for you may not be what you dream for your child! Dream BIG!

Research, Visit, & Ask Questions - There is a vast amount of information about schools available at the tips of your fingers. Most of which is online. Need a computer? Drop by your local library and use theirs (also great opportunity to explore some books with your child). Sites to visit include:www.greatschools.org and Colorado Department of Education’s website.  Check out www.earlychildhoodcolorado.org for information about child care programs. Once you have selected a few schools plan to make a visit or if your schedule conflicts visit the schools website and make a phone call. Ask questions! 

http://www.ednewscolorado.org/2011/05/09/18560-vegetarian-school-seeks-diverse-menu

☼ What is the school’s focus?  
☼ How do they approach teaching and learning?
☼ What specific programs are taught?
☼ How do they measure and report your child’s growth?
☼ How and when do you apply?      
☼ What are tuition costs?
☼ What assistance is available
☼ How are parents involved?  
☼ Special Programs offered?   
☼ Classroom sizes?
☼ School’s history of success?  
☼ How many teachers have been there 3 years or more?     
☼ How long has the current principal been in charge?
☼ Are there some parents you can contact?
☼ Is the school or program accredited?
☼ What kind of food are they serving?
☼ What are the hours & school year schedules?
☼ Is the environment warm and welcoming?


Ready To Enroll - It’s always important to not put all of your eggs in one basket. Have a backup plan and complete the enrollment process early for other schools and early childhood development sites you might consider outside of your neighborhood.     

EARLY BIRD CHOOSES ITS WORM..

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http://www.dpp.org/_blog/Media_Room/post/DPP_December_News_Bites/

Birth - 3: Infant Care and Preschool
What to look for when finding infant and toddler care? Many childcare settings are popping up around the city.  When selecting a place for your baby or toddler make sure it is a quality setting (if the site is rated by Qualistar remember a 4-star is the highest rating).

Applying for Early Care programs?  Generally, Early Care programs will accept applications all year long.  For younger ages such as 2 months to 36 months, many programs are year round.  When a child turns 3 and sometimes at 2 ½ they are eligible for preschool programs which usually run the same schedule as public school (9 months out of the year). When enrolling consider most programs will require specific documents when applying for services.  

Required documents can include:
proof of birth (child’s birth certificate),
proof of address (an Xcel bill, water bill, or housing lease)
proof of income (pay stubs, tax information, SSI information, TANF information),
most current physical and most current immunizations.  

Once you have gathered your documents, and chosen an organization to place your child(ren), contact them directly to figure out their process.  Every school has a different process.  Some may have a waiting list or home visits that proceed actual placement in a classroom.  

Today most preschool programs are free up to 2.5 hours a day, which forces working parents to pay for additional hours of care.

Quality care ranges from $600 to over $1,400 a month. Sure there are programs that provide assistance, but a majority are income based and/or have a waitlist.Remember the Denver Preschool Program provides some form of tuition assistance to Denver families with kids who are kindergarten bound (regardless of their income level).

What to do when affordability impacts choice? National studies say we turn to family, friends, and neighbors for care, known as FFN. Whether you want to enroll your child into a large center or leave them at home with Nana, equip yourself with the ability to provide the best fit learning environment to suit your child’s development needs. ZERO TO THREE: National Center for Infant, Toddlers and Families has a websiste www.zerotothree.org that provides tips and resources to help children thrive in FFN care settings so check them out. Good Luck!  

http://www.aplusdenver.org/

School Age & Tweens: Elementary through Middle School

Choosing the right school for your child is challenging.  Most of us want our child to go to school in our own neighborhood, close to home, and convenient for drop-off and pick-up on our way to and from work.  We also want a great quality school that will meet our child’s needs, and because districts, like Denver and Aurora and Jefferson County, offer many choices, making this decision can seem overwhelming. YOU HAVE CHOICES! Stand up and make your voice heard and find a school that is the right fit for your child.

Public, charter, magnet, and private schools - each has a different focus, and a different approach to preparing students for the future. Knowing what your choices are is the first step for making this decision. There are some great tools to help narrow down the field, but the most important thing you can do is go and visit a school you are interested in.  

Remember, a brand new school like  www.Academy-360.org will not have a track record yet, or even a place to visit, but they are likely to have room for your input and will be shaped by the community that helps them get started! Get involved and get your children what they need!

Denver offers a guide book to their choice schools that gives an overview of each school by neighborhood, and includes rankings of each school based on past performance.  There is still a good chance of getting your child into the school of your choice, so start NOW. http://schoolchoice.dpsk12.org/enrollment-guides-2013-14/

forms http://earlyeducation.dpsk12.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/Round-2-Kinder.pdf 

http://gwhs.dpsk12.org/why-choose-a-school-like-george-washington/

Teens: High School and College Level

It’s important to not let your child “follow the leader” when selecting a High School based on where all of his/her friends are going. Often times families, even single parents enroll siblings in different schools based on the learning needs of each individual child. Your child may benefit from enrolling into a Private school, IB program, or a school with a high focus in the Arts, math, science, or technology.

Start searching for Colleges as early as when your child is a High School Sophomore.When your child see’s you Did you know that your child can enroll and take college classes and in some cases for FREE while they are still in high school?  Did you know that by choosing this option, the cost of a college education, and the time it will take to complete a degree can be cut in half?  

We used to hear that college isn’t for every student, but why not try it out while it is free?  For many students the added challenge of college coursework, in many cases, means not having to attend school at the high school every day, is just the change of pace and just the added responsibility that helps a student discover his or her inner scholar and graduate.  

These programs are expanding in Denver, and Aurora has helped students to graduate high school already finished with an Associates degree and ready for the workforce, or for the last two years of college.  If this much college course work is available and possible for free, why not consider it?
3 million dollars in Grants?! 

http://www.colostate-pueblo.edu/DenverScholarshipFoundation/Pages/default.aspx

Grants and Loans

To get federal funding, and for many scholarships you will need to fill out tax information with the government.  If you need support, your local library can provide computer time and often have someone who can help you.  

FAFSA applications open in January every year.  Make sure to do this step as soon as you can in the year in order to qualify for federal pell grants, loans and scholarships. When accepting the funding choice, remember that there are big differences between federal pell grants, loans and scholarships.  Federal Pell grants are based on need and funding that you do not have to pay back unless you cannot fulfil the maintaining requirements.  Loans are funding that most often doesn’t require maintaining specific GPAs or other requirements, but they do need you to pay the funding back.  

There will be payment plans that can include postponing the payback until classes are done, or by working in the designated field as ‘earned credit’, but there will be an interest charge in most situations.  Scholarships are funding that is based on a specific application process which identifies if you meet a certain criteria.  Then funding is awarded and as long as a student can maintain the requirements then the funding doesn’t require a payback.  

For all of these options it is important to know whether or not you have to be a full time student or if you can attend part time.    The FAFSA application can be found online at www.fafsa.ed.gov . The application is easy.  Please have your tax information ready.

Scholarship searches 

When looking for scholarships think of the things you do well.  Think outside of the box at some of the unique talents and interests in your life.   Look for first generation scholarships, ethnic scholarships, sons and daughters of veterans, scholarships from organizations that you are connected to, at places you like to go, investigate fields that you are interested in pursuing and align yourself with dozens of options in order to actually acquire the funding.  There are scholarships out there from all sorts of corporations, Duct Tape, Kodak, Target, Wells Fargo,  and scholarships that are funded within the schools you are applying for.   

Attend financial aid workshops!

Whatever your child’s age or stage, getting started right now is the key to finding a best fit and making school work for you!