The Collaborator
NEWS & UPDATES
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EPEL Partners,
May 25, 2022-I wrote this newsletter four days ago but had to unschedule its delivery to change how I feel in the wake of the children and teachers who have lost their lives in a blink of an eye. I was on the phone with my sister when she said, "I just got a news alert about a shooting in a Texas school." I said, "WHAT IS GOING ON IN THIS WORLD?" I immediately turned on the news, and you all know the rest of the story. I am utterly heartbroken!
I am updating this letter with tears streaming down my face in hopes that someone will read this and help make the necessary changes to keep our children and families safe. What laws need to be changed and in place? Some of you reading this are the needed change-makers, so I beg you to pull out all of your tools for families. Almost 200 children and teachers have lost their lives since the 1999 Columbine shooting. This is 200 too many. As we roll into summer making plans like vacation, family reunions, and fun days at the pool with our own families, look at the faces of the innocent children and their protectors, the teachers, and think about what can you do to make a change TODAY before this happens again. Thank you all for doing your part!
May 21. 2022-Feeling a little giddy today!! Last week we had our first full in-person early childhood collaboration meeting in two years. I wore my HOORAY FOR TODAY t-shirt and I nearly jumped off the stage in excitement to see over 60 EPEL partners show up for children and families. We discussed the status of our children in the community and how we aren't here to rebake the same cake as before COVID because our children, families and landscape are different. You, as partners, are a key ingredient to the success of the recipe of having children ready for school. When a key ingredient is left out of a recipe, what happens? A cake that doesn't rise!!
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Thank you for being a key ingredient and helping us develop a new recipe for student success for all children like this young learner!
We know that the largest measurement of our recipe is the children and families, so our time spent with parents learning and listening is part of the secret sauce. EPEL and partners are ready to engage families in seven neighborhood parks starting the week of June 6-9. The family engagement sessions will run through the last week in July. If you serve children from birth to five and their families, please share the schedule below with them. If you have families you serve in one of the seven neighborhoods, invite them for lunch, early learning, and summer fun!
Here's to making a collective impact for the best outcomes for children this summer!
Together We Can,
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Amber Peters
Executive Director
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FAMILY ENGAGEMENT/SUPPORT |
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Family Engagement refers to EPEL's work as a collaboration to build trust, collect family voice, empower parents to be their child's first and most important teacher, and offer resources ensuring all families have the support needed for best outcomes. Our family engagement collaborates with partners to build capacity to support the efforts of meeting families where they are in neighborhoods, ensuring support is offered in a culturally and linguistically appropriate manner for the journey of preparing their child for school. Family support needs to be tailored to our diverse communities' needs, a critical part of our early childhood system. |
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LEARNING ON THE GO Summer Sites
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Learning On the Go is an opportunity to meet families where they are to offer family support, early learning opportunities, networking, and relationship building and trust in the neighborhoods. EPEL and partners visit seven neighborhoods, five in Elgin and two in Hanover Park, each week through the end of July. Learning On the Go, as the name indicates, is mobile and learning comes to families in a non-traditional way rather than in your traditional classroom. Bilingual family engagement teachers will provide a read-aloud and fun activities to support the literature building early math and language skills in a fun and culturally responsive manner.
Northern Illinois Food Bank will also be holding special mobile food pantries during the Learning On the Go times in some of the neighborhoods. See the summer schedule below and please share with your families that live in these areas.
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Thank you to our funders who support Learning On the Go for
children and families.
-Elgin Township
-Kiwanis Club of Elgin
-School District U-46
-United Way Metropolitan Chicago
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WEEK OF THE YOUNG CHILD April 4-9 |
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Streamwood Park District Park Board Commissioner, Bill Wright, Executive Director, Jeff Janda, and Village Manager, Sharon Caddigan |
Mayor David Kaptain and Executive Director, Amber Peters at the Elgin City Council meeting for the reading of the early childhood proclamation. Thank you to the Village of Bartlett, Village of South Elgin, Village of Streamwood, and Hanover Township for reading of the early childhood proclamation to kick off the Week of the Young Child in their community.. |
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South Elgin Park District
Preschool Pals
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Week of the Young was a huge success. WOYC is an annual celebration that is sponsored by the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC) to promote the importance of early childhood education. EPEL, a member of NAEYC, promotes awareness, access, and action at a local level to support young children. 1,304 families and children were engaged across eleven communities to celebrate early childhood in one week. Check out a few of the family engagement events here. We look forward to this being an annual event. |
Streamwood Park District
Cottontail Trail
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Bartlett Park District Early Care Educators getting ready for Miss Jamie's Farm and open house |
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Celebrating Week of the Young Child on the Gail Borden Public Library bookmobile. |
Elgin Park District celebrating with a poptastic Mama Lee's Mr. Popcorn storytime and snack.
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Poplar Creek Public Library Talk, Play, Read, Do, Write Activities |
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Fit4Mom stroller classes with storytime |
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Thank you to the following partners who were
Week of the Young Child Champions!
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EARLY CHILDHOOD COLLAB MEETING |
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EPEL's early childhood collaboration meetings are important as a community to come together to Network, Support and Seek collaborative solutions that will improve educational outcomes for children while strengthening families. See the hard work going on below at the collaboration meeting. EPEL looks forward to sharing the outcomes of the meeting soon.
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These dynamic leaders in the community spent the morning thinking through the early childhood system and how to rebuild a more equitable and accessible system that is easier for families to navigate. |
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Ready4K FREE Texting Program for Families
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Illinois Cares for Kids is inviting all families to join Ready4K.
Ready4K is a FREE researched-based text messaging program for families with kids ages 0-11.
Families can expect to receive 3 texts a week with fun facts and tips on ways to help their child learn and grow.
Share with the families you serve.
Illinois Cares for Kids es Ready4K! Ready4K es un plan de estudios de participación familiar basado en evidencia que se entrega a través de mensajes de texto. Recibirás mensajes de texto cortos con datos divertidos y consejos fáciles cada semana. ¡Envíe un mensaje de texto con IL4Kids al 70138 o visite www.illinoiscaresforkids.org/ready4k para inscribirse hoy!
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Early Learning refers to quality experiences and interactions in the first 2,000 days of a child's life. This is a critical time when 85% of brain growth occurs while educators and families prepare children for Kindergarten. EPEL partners to strengthen the pipeline, birth to Kindergarten through our home visiting, director, and in-home care provider networks. Learning opportunities at home and in the community are vital to entering Kindergarten ready. Policies and partners work together to ensure that children have the best opportunities for success. |
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READ WHILE CHILDREN WAIT
Do you have an EPEL book basket that you had out for families to enjoy in your business and had to put in the closet during COVID? Families are out and about, and it is time to take the basket out, dust the books off and see if your basket needs a refresh. Click below to refill your basket or tell us if you would like one for your business waiting room.
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Getting Ready for Kindergarten June Calendar Pages
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We love seeing the Getting Ready for Kindergarten calendar hanging in early care and education classrooms. This shows us that teachers enjoy using the calendar as a teaching tool as much as the families do. Thank you donors for continuing to support this Kindergarten readiness strategy. |
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The first five years of life are critical to success for a child's future. EPEL collaborates with partners to assure developmental screenings and preventative care are available for healthy development so all children's needs are met.
Vision: Our Children are Happy, Healthy, and Ready for Kindergarten.
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Developmental Screenings Available at Your Pediatrician's Office/School District/Childcare Center |
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Children develop skills and reach milestones at their own pace. EPEL, School District U-46, and community partners are working together to meet families where they are to offer free developmental screenings, support, and enroll children in programs birth to five. Ages and Stages (ASQ) screening tool helps guide and keep track of a child’s growth and development during these first five years. All children enrolling in programs, birth to five, are screened as part of the enrollment process. To sign up for a free screening, click the links.
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Developmental Milestones matter! The sooner that a child is identified with any type of delay the faster the child can get the extra support they need. CDC has released updated milestones and two new checklists (15 and 30 months) to better support your child’s development*.
Track your child’s milestones from age 2 months to 5 years with CDC’s easy-to-use checklists; get tips from CDC to support your child’s development; and find out what to do if you ever have concerns about your child's development. The app is available in English and Spanish. Share this with your families.
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SHOUT-OUTS
EPEL's June Key Piece Partners
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Shout-Out St. Paul's United Church of Christ |
Thank you St. Paul's for helping continue the diaper pop-ups for families who need a little extra support. Your dedication to the families of our youngest learners makes a difference. If you know a family who is in need of diapers you can contact St. Paul's through EPEL here or call 844-KID-INFO.
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Shout-Out Kiwanis Club of Elgin |
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Thank you Kiwanis Club of Elgin for funding the Learning On the Go bags for children this summer. They will be filled with school tools and books for children to bring back and forth from the park.
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Shout-Out to the Elgin Township |
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Thank you Elgin Township for helping fund Learning On the Go. EPEL was able to expand from five to seven neighborhood sites this summer to meet more families with young children where they are and build early math and literacy skills through a lot of summer fun!
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Elgin Partnership for Early Learning (EPEL)
847-452-2457
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