Here is a quick look at some headlines from this week impacting the lives of kids 0-5 and their families. The purpose of these stories is simply to inform, and they do not necessarily reflect First 5 Kern's areas of support or efforts towards these issues.
Follow First 5 Kern on social media for more kid-centric information.
Now for the headlines........
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KINDERGARTEN READINESS IS NOT JUST ABOUT ACADEMICS
Starting kindergarten can be a challenging time for children as many are leaving home and learning to interact
with others for the first time. As such, it is important for kindergartners to receive proper support from their teachers. Now, University of Missouri College of Education researchers
have found that a readiness test
can predict kindergarteners' success in school after 18 months.
ALSO: Kindergarten is more than preparation for first grade, and we need to take it back,
says this article from the Hechinger Report. Their claim is that fusing academic and social development
can create a remarkably rich kindergarten
classroom. Rather than rows of students working quietly on practice worksheets or listening to the teacher speak, developmentally appropriate kindergarten classrooms are filled with children engaged in activities that match with their learning content.
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CALIFORNIA TAKES NEW STEPS TO STOP BLACK WOMEN FROM DYING IN CHILDBIRTH
RELATED: A new bipartisan bill in the U.S. Senate targets maternal deaths and healthcare for women during pregnancy and after childbirth.
The bill is called the
Maternal Outcomes Matter (MOM) Act of 2019
.
It would create grant programs
that would help improve rates of deaths and near-deaths related to pregnancy and childbirth. “It is absolutely appalling that here in the United States we have one of the highest maternal mortality rates in the world,” said Sen. Doug Jones, a co-sponsor of the bill.
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SAFE SLEEP ISSUES IN THE NEWS DURING SIDS AWARENESS MONTH
Experts are warning that certain social media-driven trends in nursery decor could be potentially dangerous for babies
. Draping a canopy over your child’s crib might garner likes on Instagram, but a
pediatrician has warned about the potential risk
of strangulation. During SIDS Awareness Month in October, community agencies are taking the time to stress the importance of the ABCs of Safe Sleep for your baby.
Is It Okay for Babies to Sleep in Car Seats? Recalls of inclined devices
such as the Rock ‘n Play Sleeper have parents wondering about car-seat safety.
This article from Consumer Reports
addresses sleeping in car seats and other information, including their lists of the best car seats in 2019, and an assortment of car seat safety resources.
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GOVERNOR VETOES BILL THAT WOULD HAVE ALLOWED BABIES AT WORK...
Babies will not be allowed to come to work with California state employees, after Gov. Gavin
Newsom vetoed
Assembly Bill 372.
The bill
would have allowed state workers
, starting January 1, 2020, to bring their infants to work until they were six months old or crawling, whichever came first. The Governor added that he was not opposed to the law in theory, but he feared its wording left the state open to lawsuits and that there wasn't enough time to implement it properly. He also directed CalHR to develop a pilot program.
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...BUT HE CAN'T STOP KIDS FROM INVADING THE NEWSROOM
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ADDITIONAL STORIES FROM THIS WEEK...
A new law will help child abuse prevention centers get the funding they need to avoid the staggering costs of dealing with the sociological
effects of child abuse and neglect. Senate Bill 436, authored by Senator Melissa Hurtado, who represents parts of Kern County,
will formalize Family Resource Centers as conduits
to strengthening families via family-centered, community-based and culturally sensitive services that include cross-system collaboration with the goal of helping to prevent child abuse and strengthening family connections.
A new paper in the journal Pediatrics addresses the cause of a mysterious childhood illness
that affects younger kids, causing limb weakness and paralysis. This NPR story
talks about the illness
, which appears to be caused by a virus. The illness is AFM, and could have many different causes.
Research shows that the early years are the best time for children to learn tolerance and respect for kids from other races, cultures and backgrounds.
But that’s not happening nearly enough, according to a new report
. That’s because preschools and day cares
are deeply segregated on average
. The report
found that early learning programs are twice as likely to be nearly 100 percent black or Hispanic than kindergarten and first grade classrooms.
More than 220 infants in the UK were killed or injured as a result of being shaken in the past decade
, a recent analysis has found. Serious case reviews were carried out on 1,253 children, with
nearly one in six of those reports concluding the youngster
had suffered a brain injury. Child protection expert Dr Suzanne Smith said she believed that number was "the tip of the iceberg".
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First 5 Kern was established in 1998 when California voters passed Proposition 10, which levied a 50-cent tax on tobacco products. Revenues generated from the tobacco tax are used to fund local programs in the areas of health and wellness, early childcare and education, and parent education and support services that promote early childhood development for children ages zero to five.
For more information on First 5 Kern and the agencies we support, please visit
www.First5Kern.org
and follow us on social media.
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Special thanks to
Vecteezy
for assistance on graphics
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