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.
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
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!
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.
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.
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.
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.
