How to Help Your Child Successfully Transition Back to School |
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5 Questions Every Parent Should Ask Their Kids The First Week of School |
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Get Back into Routine Before School Starts
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Kids Corner
Oona from Bubble Guppies helps her friend Avi get excited for his first day of school! She tells him all the great things about school like the friends she's made and how great her teacher is! Bubble Guppies talk about their first days of school and sing a song! Join Elmo as he explores the San Diego Zoo and learns about all the different zoo animals! Enjoy over 20 minutes of fuzzy, furry, and adorable animal fun!
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Sun Safety
Use sunscreen. Apply sunscreen that has a sun protection factor (SPF) of at least 30 to protect their skin.
Protect against UVA and UVB rays. Look for broad-spectrum sunscreens that protect against UVA and UVB rays. UVA rays can cause tanning, aging, leathery skin and skin cancer including melanoma. UVB rays can cause sunburns, skin cancer and increased moles in some individuals.
Apply and then reapply sunscreen. Put more sunscreen on your child about every 3 hours or sooner when there is prolonged activity in the water.
Stay inside or in the shade during peak hours. Avoid activities during peak sunshine hours (10 a.m. – 4 p.m.) when possible. Seek shade if your shadow is shorter than you are.
Use sun protective clothing. Dress your children in a variety of available UV protective clothing that can be worn in and out of the pool/water (wide-brimmed hats, long sleeved cotton clothing and sunglasses).
source: www.childrens.com
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Help Me Grow was designed to create an opportunity for parents to track their child's developmental growth. Whether your child needs assistance with an Autism diagnosis, or you just want to check in on your child's development, Help Me Grow is here to help.
CALL 2-1-1 and ask for Help Me Grow, or use the ASQ online tool to complete your child's developmental screening TODAY!
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Get ready for the 2022-23 School Year. It is never too early for parents to start thinking about the support their children need to develop the skills, knowledge, and attitudes that will lead to success in school, later learning and life. |
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Florida KidCare offers quality, affordable health & dental insurance for ALL children in Florida from birth through the end of age 18! Children are eligible for head to toe coverage, even if one or both parents are working. Visit floridakidcare.org for information about qualifying and how to apply for health insurance at little to no cost.
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Book Lovers Day is celebrated on August 9th every year. This is a day to encourage all people to celebrate reading and literature. The habit of reading, if instilled at an early age, helps in brain development and enhances imagination. It’s never too early to read to a child and to build this habit. It’s a gift for a lifetime. But what if your child struggles to find a book to read or doesn't like reading? Read these articles to find ways you can help your child develop a love of reading.
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Recently the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) announced that 20 of the nation's internet providers have committed to lowering costs for low-income households, a step that will essentially provide free high-speed internet for those participating in the Affordable Connectivity Program.
Find out if your family may qualify for this free/reduced priced internet service.
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We have a number of videos featuring some of our early learning experts who are here to offer us tips, tricks, and sometimes more complex explanations of early child development. Take a look and be sure to follow us on Facebook for more Parenting Pro Tips coming soon!
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Check out this parenting resource from ZERO TO THREE, an organization that believes during the first three years of life, emotionally nourishing relationships lay the foundation for lifelong health and well-being.
Here’s to Healthy Eating: Habits to Start and Habits to Avoid
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Here's how to start healthy eating habits with your infant or toddler.
Habits To Start
Offer three to four healthy choices at mealtimes. Make sure that at least one of the choices is something the child likes to eat.
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Providing two to three health snacks per day. If children don’t eat a lot at a meal, they will have a healthy option for a snack.
Let children take a “dip.” Children like to play with their food. Healthy dips, such as low-fat salad dressing, ketchup, salsa, yogurt, or hummus, make eating fun. Children can dip vegetables, fruits, and even meat!
Habits To Avoid
Be silly. Make a face out of vegetable slices (cucumber slices for eyes, shredded carrots for hair, a cherry tomato nose, a red pepper slice for a smile). Or make “sweet surprise stew” where you hide fruit at the bottom of a cup of yogurt. When children are having fun, they are more willing to try something new.
Forcing children to eat. The truth is that forcing children to eat usually leads to the child eating less. Forcing also teaches children to rely on others to tell them how much to eat and what they are feeling. This does not lead to healthy eating habits.
When it comes to eating, you and the child each have your own jobs to do.
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Your job is to provide each child with healthy food choices and pleasant meal and snack times. It is the child’s job to decide which of these healthy foods to eat and how much to eat. This approach helps children learn to listen to their bodies and to make healthy food choices.
Nagging or making deals with children. “Just two more bites, just two more bites!” “If you eat your vegetables, you will get dessert.” Strategies like these don’t work in the long run. Children who learn to make deals about eating quickly learn to make deals and ask for rewards for doing other things—like cleaning up. Soon they won’t do anything unless there is a reward for it!
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America has been home to many extraordinary artists throughout history. This month is American Artist Appreciation Month, making August the perfect time to celebrate the richness of the American artistic tradition, and every child has an artist within them. Here are some tips for helping your child enjoy and create art. |
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Panama City Beach Charity Cleanup |
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Join us for a beach cleanup at Pineapple Willy's on Saturday, August 6th to help benefit the Early Learning Coalition of Northwest Florida! Come spend some time on the beach making it clean and safe while enjoying the sun and sand – all for a great cause! For each person that shows up to clean the beach, Pineapple Willy's will donate $10. Our goal is to have at least 200 volunteers – which is at least $2,000 – so help us spread the word and bring as many people as you can!
Please arrive by 8:30 AM and enter through the main entrance of the restaurant. Cleanup will take place from 8:30 AM to 9:30 AM. Raffles and door prizes will be drawn between 9:30 AM and 9:45 AM.
If you have any questions, please email Tami Valdez, our Community Relations and Outreach Coordinator, at tami.valdez@elcnwf.org.
Click the the button below to RSVP via Facebook!
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American Family Day
1. Tell family stories.
Every family has hilarious and harrowing stories of life and the people who shaped it.
2. Research your family heritage.
Do your kids know about their great-grandparents? Do they know their ancestry and how your family came to be in this country or in your state? It’s easier than ever to research family history and find important records.
3. Play some games.
Spend an evening with some favorite board games or let everyone share through High-Low-Surprise. Each family member shares their best moment, their hardest moment, and their most surprising moment from the past year. It’s a great way to recap, especially as older kids move away.
4. Affirm each other.
In the busyness of life, we often assume the people in our families know we love them. Taking time to affirm each other deepens family relationships.
5. Create a family vision statement.
A family vision statement sets values, principles, priorities, and purposes for your family. It’s unique to your family and helps define your family. Once crafted, this Family Name Mission Statement will help you remember it.
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Paint With Baby Sensory Activity
This activity could work just as well by laying the canvas on the floor and allowing baby to tap at the paint from their tummy. The idea is that by providing your baby with new and fun way to use their senses, they will better understand their environment and develop their brains. So let’s do a two for one and provide a sensory experience AND make some cute baby art!
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Ocean Sensory Bag
This Ocean Sensory Bag is a fun way to experience the deep blue sea for little hands. Babies and toddlers will delight in the squishy sensory bag that is filled with ocean creatures. Kids of all ages can help make this ocean squish bag for baby! \Setting up an ocean sensory bag is fast and easy to do. You likely have all of the items you need at home!
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Pool Noodle Pour Station
It doesn’t get much better than water play on a hot summer day. This is an exciting way to make playing with and pouring water more fun.
This pool noodle pour station will only a few minutes to set up and will entertain kids for days! This activity incorporates gross motor skills, sensory play and problem solving….not to mention it’s just plain fun!
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3 Ingredient Glitter Cloud Dough
All ages love this dough and it only takes 3 ingredients to make – Johnson’s® Baby Oil, flour and a sprinkle of glitter. We used gold glitter to look like sparkling sand, but you can use whatever you have on hand.
The dough smells heavenly because of the baby oil, making it even more fun to play with. Kids can shape, squeeze and pour the dough. Add a few small toys for hours of sensory play fun!
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Number Recognition With Cookies
This is an activity that grows with your kiddos! As they touch and explore the cookies (and count the chocolate chip dots) they are seeing numbers in real life.
There are so many other things you can do with this simple activity (simple addition and subtraction for those that are ready for it!). Here's how to make a DIY number recognition for your
child.
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Spin & Spell Easter Egg
Spin & Spell Easter Egg is a fun activity for preschool and kindergarten age kids to use plastic Easter eggs to practice spelling, rhyming & reading simple sight words.
It’s also excellent for building fine motor skills as sometimes the egg comes apart when spinning and has to be put back together.
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Simple Ways To Exercise With Your Child
Besides enjoying the health benefits of regular exercise, fit kids sleep better. Exercise improves school performance and makes kids less likely to develop depression. Kids who exercise regularly are also better able to handle physical and emotional challenges — from running to catch a bus to studying for a test. Read more...
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August Special Dates
Back to School Month
American Artist Appreciation Month
Black Business Month
Family Fun Month
National Golf Month
Summer Sun Safety Month
Elvis Week (August 9-17)
Exercise With Your Child Week (August 7-13)
National Farmers Market Week (August 7-13)
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August 1
Homemade Pie Day
Respect for Parents Day
August 2
National Coloring Book Day
August 4
Assistance Dog Day
Hooray for Kids Day
August 5
National Water Balloon Day
August 7
American Family Day
National Friendship Day
National Sisters Day
Purple Heart Day
August 9
Book Lovers Day
Co-Working Day
National Women's Day
August 10
First Day of School
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August 15
National Back to School Prep Day
National Relaxation Day
World Greatness Day
August 16
National Rollercoaster Day
August 17
National Nonprofit Day
August 18
National Couple's Day
Never Give Up Day
World Breast Cancer Research Day
August 30
National Beach Day
August 31
Eat Outside Day
National Zoo Awareness Day
World Distance Learning Day
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We exist to help grow healthy children, parents,
and the relationship between them.
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If you have applied for child care assistance and are on the Early Learning Coalition of Northwest Florida’s wait list, please call us at 850-747-5400 or toll free 866-277-9077 for other financial options. |
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Early Learning Coalition of Northwest Florida
Phone: 850.747.5400 | Fax: 850.747.5450
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Sponsored by the Early Learning Coalition of Northwest Florida and the State of Florida, Division of Early Learning |
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Your copy should address 3 key questions: Who am I writing for? (Audience) Why should they care? (Benefit) What do I want them to do here? (Call-to-Action)
Create a great offer by adding words like "free" "personalized" "complimentary" or "customized." A sense of urgency often helps readers take an action, so think about inserting phrases like "for a limited time only" or "only 7 remaining!"
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