Let's Talk … Child Care

We all know how important handwashing can be, and many of us have come to recognize that we can’t just leave it to chance that children are washing hands well enough or at all the appropriate times. Spend some time observing children’s handwashing practices and you’ll see the child that gets the soap and then rinses it down the sink without lathering or the one that uses water only and no soap. As early childhood caregivers and teachers, we have to give children the support they need to follow the steps. Allowing for some occasional lapses, it can be done – I’ve seen it!

North Carolina Child Care and Health and Safety has some excellent posters that you can download and print showing steps for children to wash their hands, infant handwashing, adult handwashing, proper diapering procedure, and even medication administration. They can be found here – http://www.healthychildcarenc.org/training_materials.htm

How do you support and encourage children to lather for 20 seconds? I’ve seen many providers use a song like ABC’s to help children realize the length of time needed to “make bubbles.”  I recently visited a home child care program that uses a touchless timer. Super idea! Remember if you aren’t teaching it, supporting it, and reminding children, it likely isn’t happening!

Malisa

P.S. Share with us how you support handwashing or ask questions at http://blogs.extension.iastate.edu/childcare/handwashing/

Health & Safety handwashing

Shocked, saddened, angered, and concerned. All of these are emotions we as adults are feeling after Friday’s tragic events in Connecticut. It might be easy to assume that young ones are not impacted by tragic events in other parts of the country, but children have a keen sense of radar and pick up on our body language, adult conversations, and news media stories.

All children are born with a unique temperament. Some will be more sensitive to scary news stories or worrisome about their safety and the safety of their loved ones.  We need to be mindful of what we are watching and discussing when small ears are around while also making sure we take time to listen and pick up on cues our child might be sending us. A change in behavior like clinginess or crying might be a signal that a child in your care is anxious over recent disturbing events in the news.

Parents, teachers and child caregivers can help children that are feeling distressed about safety cope with their fears. We recommend the following actions:

Keep regular routines. Stick to your normal schedule and events. Children take comfort in predictable daily events like dinner at the snack at the table and naptime rituals. Knowing what will happen provides a feeling of security.

Watch your emotions. We are all are shocked and saddened when children are victims of a tragic event. Children that are sensitive to emotions can pick up on this and become concerned for their own safety or the safety of others. When adults maintain a calm and optimistic attitude, children will also.

Have conversations. If a child is showing some signs that concern you, talk to the child’s parents. Find out if they have similar concerns, and come up with a plan for talking with the child and answering questions he or she might have. Young children might express themselves through drawing or in their play. Provide reassurance, clear up any misconceptions and point out to the child the many helpful people in emergency events like law enforcement and medical professionals. Talk with the child about what is happening to make him or her safe at home, school or in the neighborhood.

Limit TV viewing. It might be tempting to catch up on the latest news events, but resist that urge. Young children may not understand that scenes repeating on news stations are all the same event.

Find healthy ways to deal with feelings. Taking a walk together, reading a favorite book, or playing a board game can be comforting to both you and the children in your care.

Take action. If a child continues to show concern, he or she may be feeling a loss of control. Doing something such as sending a donation or writing a letter, if developmentally and age appropriate, can help bring back a sense of power and help children feel a part of the response.

Seek professional advice if needed. If a child shows symptoms of distress such as a change in appetite or sleep patterns, recommend to the child’s parents that they speak with a medical or a mental health professional. You can also contact ISU Extension and Outreach’s Iowa Concern hotline at 1-800-447-1985.

Share Resources with Parents.

• A handout from Zero to Three titled Little Listeners in an Uncertain World.
• Extension’s handout titled Loss and Grief: Talking with Children.
• Helpful tips from the Fred Rogers Family Communications Institute.
• Sesame’s Street’s You Can Ask video clips to help adults open conversations with children. There is one specific to fears.
• PBS’s article Helping Children Deal with Scary News
• NAEYC’s Tips for Talking with Children and Youth after Traumatic Events
  

Fred Rogers often told this story about when he was a boy and would see scary things on the news: “My mother would say to me, ‘Look for the helpers. You will always find people who are helping.’ To this day, especially in times of ‘disaster,’ I remember my mother’s words, and I am always comforted by realizing that there are still so many helpers-so many caring people in this world.”

In case you haven’t heard this today, thank you for the important work you do! You make care and safety of young children a priority, and we at Iowa State University Extension and Outreach are proud to work along side you.

Malisa

P.S. Please share with us your conversations, concerns, or questions as you go about your work with young children this week. You may comment on the blog at http://blogs.extension.iastate.edu/childcare/lets-talk-scary-news/

Family Relationships, Health & Safety

It is likely we have all heard by now that physical exercise plays an important part of a healthy lifestyle. For early childhood professionals a national website of resources has been established to help in that effort – Let’s Move Child Care. But did you know that the National Association for Sport and Physical Education as well as the American Academy of Pediatrics recommends 60 minutes of daily structured physical activity for preschoolers (NASPE recommends 30 minutes for toddlers). WOW! I totally understand the need for more physical activity as we work to reduce childhood obesity. It is the structured part I am still trying to wrap my brain around. For those of us that have been so ingrained in play and young children following their own interests, that 60 minutes of structured activity seems like a scary number.

So, I challenged myself to consider a full day program and if I could work in 60 minutes of structured physical activity. I figured the key was to integrate “activity” time into the daily routine. Here is what I came up with:

• 5 minutes Head, Shoulders, Knees, and Toes as part of morning meeting
• 10 minutes acting out a story as part of reading time
• 5 minutes completing an obstacle course as part of outdoor time
• 5 minutes moving like an animal transitioning to lunch
• 10 minutes of yoga poses before rest
• 10 minutes dancing to a Dr. Jean song during afternoon large group
• 5 minutes moving like a transportation vehicle transitioning to snack
• 5 minute activity with a parachute outdoors
• 5 minute game of Simon Says before afternoon story

OK, that wasn’t so hard and it is likely most child care providers are doing these activities – we just need to make sure we are intentional about them. Sesame Street has even put together some FREE resource tool kits for child care providers and parents that can be helpful.

So, what do you think? Can you work in 60 minutes of structured physical activity as recommended NASPE? What activities are you already doing that meet that recommendation?

Malisa

Early Learning, Environment, Health & Safety

It has been hot, hot, hot here in the Midwest as well as all over the United States. Did you know that 33 children in our nation died in 2011 due to being left in a car (NHTSA, 2012) and the number is already at 15 deaths for 2012 (ACF, 2012)? Here is a deadly incident that happened less than two weeks ago in Dallas when an early childhood program took children on an outing to the movies. Breaks my heart (and I’m sure yours too!) as we realize each of these deaths was preventable. For this reason, a campaign has begun called Look Before You Lock sponsored by the Administration of Children and Families (ACF), the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), and Safe Kids.

Here are the campaign’s recommendations for parents and caregivers:

• Never leave a child unattended in a vehicle – even if the windows are partially open or the engine is running and the air conditioning is on;
• Make a habit of looking in the vehicle – front and back – before locking the door and walking away;
• Ask the childcare provider to call if the child does not show up for care as expected;
• Do things that serve as a reminder a child is in the vehicle, such as placing a purse or briefcase in the back seat to ensure no child is accidentally left in the vehicle, writing a note or using a stuffed animal placed in the driver’s view to indicate a child is in the car seat; and,
• Teach children a vehicle is not a play area and store keys out of a child’s reach.

**I would add to this list for early childhood professionals to utilize an attendance sheet checked by two caregivers to insure everyone arrives at the destination and back home safely.**

Does your program have a procedure for checking vans or cars after field trips or other outings? I’m guessing that if we interviewed parents and caregivers where a child has been left unattended in a vehicle, each would respond, “I never dreamed it could happen to me.” Having a policy that is carried out each and every time can help reduce the risk of such a nightmare happening in your program.

Be sure you are providing to parents the valuable information on the Look Before You Lock campaign. Hope you will share with other early childhood professionals your procedures for never leaving a child unattended in a vehicle by commenting here – http://blogs.extension.iastate.edu/childcare/look-before-you-lock/

Malisa

Health & Safety

This weekend is a celebration of Memorial Day, a federal holiday to honor and remember the men and women who died while serving in the United States Armed Forces. Many of us will attend parades or special commemorative services where children will be exposed to military professionals carrying weapons.  Guns have had, and still do have, positive and negative uses in our society. They figure into hunting, police work, and soldiering even as they play a role in violent crimes. As a child care professional it is likely you have had families in your program from these backgrounds. Yet, for many of us in early childhood, it can be unnerving to see a young child pretending to shoot a gun.

I first began reflecting on this topic of gun play in early childhood over a year ago when I read an article on an Australian program that set up a gun center. My initial reaction was shock – what preschool teacher would encourage gun play?  As I began to reflect further, I tried to consider the culture as well as my own biases about guns. For full disclosure, I have never been around guns and, frankly, they frighten me.  I talked with friends that enjoy the sport of hunting regarding the article I read. They had a different reaction than me in seeing all of the education happening around safety, and compared it to teaching children about receiving a fishing license and allowing them the opportunity to practice that through play (how we know children learn best).

Next, I had a conversation with a colleague that works in an early childhood program in inner city Chicago. Like me, she has always worked in schools with a “zero tolerance” policy around weapon play. She shared that while she would never encourage gun play, she does believe strongly that children work through issues and share with adults through their play. She recalled a time a child was descriptive in the housekeeping area about where a gun was hidden. She spent some time observing and having a delicate dialogue with the child. At pick-up time, she respectfully shared with the child’s parent. The parent had no idea her child knew about the hidden gun and immediately purchased a lock box for it. Because of this reflective teacher, a potential tragedy had been avoided.

Let me be very clear – I am not in any way supporting or advocating for allowing pretend weapons in early childhood programs. But when I reflect on my own practices of the past as an early childhood educator, I wonder how much I considered the above thoughts when I immediately told children to break apart their Lego gun, throw their pretend gun stick over the fence, or frown at the toast bitten into the shape of a gun. Not really.  Were these learning opportunities or teachable moments that I missed? Likely. Did I unintentionally make guns forbidden fruit? Maybe. Could I have done a better job at considering what their true desire was and helping support it through a more desired behavior like setting up cans as a target to knock down with a ball? Yes.

I hope you will take some time to read this Cooperative Extension article on Ensuring that Children’s War Play is Healthy, Safe, and Positive. It discusses strategies to support the child who is pretending as well as children’s need to feel safe. Another interesting read is a blog post from Extension’s Military Families Learning Network titled Three Reason to Allow War Play in Your Early Childhood Classroom.

Do you have thoughts on this topic? Do you have program policies around weapon play? Hope to hear from you at http://blogs.extension.iastate.edu/childcare/gun-play/

Malisa

Environment, Health & Safety

Ack! Just what we needed  – more acronyms to figure out! LFTB stands for lean finely textured beef – what some have been calling in news stories “pink slime.” Have parents expressed concerns to you? Do you have concerns regarding the safety of the beef you are serving in your early childhood program?

Those knowledgeable of the beef industry and food safety issues are consistent in their message that lean finely textured beef is 100% beef and safe. To help in dispelling the myths presented about this product, a website has been created: http://beefisbeef.com/2012/03/15/top-7-myths-of-pink-slime/

Watching this unfold has been an excellent reminder to me that as I view news stories and social media posts, I need to determine what the research/evidence says. I am certainly supportive of safety when it comes to the food we serve our children and our own families. When I set aside the media stories as well as social network sharing and look at what those with knowledge of the facts are saying, it seems consistent that lean finely textured beef is safe, provides a leaner product, and keeps cost for beef low. There have been no recalls of the product in the years it has been available. The process is the same process used in other foods such as cheese and chocolate, and this process kills e-coli and salmonella (known sources for food-borne illness). Nancy Donley is the founder of STOP Foodborne Illness. Her 6-year-old son died from illness caused by eating E.coli-contaminated ground beef in 1993. Since then, she has dedicated her life to holding the food industry to the highest safety standards possible. Here are her thoughts: http://www.foodsafetynews.com/2012/03/in-defense-of-food-safety-leadership/?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=120317

Sadly, the spin on this issue has taken a life of its own, as food distributors and schools experience pressure to make choices not based on facts; and the impact has been the loss of an industry. The damage may go even further as communities and families with jobs in these plants will be negatively impacted.

Check out the facts for yourself. The Cooperative Extension System is a great place to start for objective and research-based information:  http://www.extension.org/pages/63273/expert:-facts-education-needed-about-lean-finely-textured-beef

Malisa

P.S. You can share your thoughts on this issue at http://blogs.extension.iastate.edu/childcare/lftb/

Health & Safety

Children and Nature Network (C&NN) is sponsoring an initiative in April called Let’s G. O.! (Get Outside). The idea is encouraging intergenerational groups of people to get outside together to be active, have fun, and connect with nature. Sounds like a perfect opportunity for those of us in early care and education to get outdoors with our children and families and share the benefits of connecting with nature with others in our community! C&NN provides a customizable flier and toolkit to assist you in planning and marketing an event. They would like to have every state represented, and are still hoping to hear from some in the following states interested in planning a Let’s G.O.! event: IOWA, Alabama, Indiana, Hawaii, Oklahoma, South Carolina, North Dakota, South Dakota, Tennessee and Vermont.

We hope you will check it out!  See what events others are hosting and consider organizing a Let’s G.O! event in your community. It doesn’t have to be large – could simply be something that gets you, other early childhood professionals, kids, and families outdoors connecting with nature. Let’s G.O.! and tackle that nature deficit disorder head on!!

Malisa

P.S. If you would like to share with use ways that you are helping children connect with nature (and we would love to hear from you!), you can do so at http://blogs.extension.iastate.edu/childcare/lets-g-o/

Environment, Health & Safety C&NN, nature

We hope you will consider signing up for the Let’s Move! Child Care challenge and taking the Checklist Quiz by April 8!  Malisa

Let’s Move! Child Care (LMCC) State Challenge Extension

We’re proud to have more than 5,000 providers signed up for Let’s Move! Child Care, but we believe we can get more providers involved in this initiative to improve the health of more children!  That is why we’re excited to announce that we’re extending the Let’s Move! Child Care State Challenge, a competition to see which state can have the strongest participation in Let’s Move! Child Care.

Providers who sign up and take the Let’s Move! Child Care Quiz before Sunday, April 8 will help their state compete in the State Challenge.   Two winning states/territories will be recognized at the Weight of the Nation Conference in Washington, DC on May 9 :

1.  State with the highest percentage of licensed or legally operating child care programs that sign up as LMCC participants
2. State with the highest percentage of participants that complete the Checklist Quiz

Help your state win by signing up and taking the Checklist Quiz now at: www.healthykidshealthyfuture.org/content/hkhf/home/startearly/signupnow.html

Thank you,

P.S. If you are an Iowa early childhood professional, let’s do our part in early care and education to move our state forward as the healthiest state in the nation by 2016!!  You can share with us and other blog readers what you are doing as part of the Let’s Move! Child Care State Challenge at http://blogs.extension.iastate.edu/childcare/lets-move/. Now let’s get moving!!  Malisa

Health & Safety Let's Move!

I am pleased to share with you a blog post written by Iowa State University Extension and Outreach Nutrition and Health Specialist Jody Gatewood, MS RD.  Hope you will consider the responsibility we as early childhood professionals have in addressing the growing national issue of childhood obesity!  Malisa

Recently I read a research article on the role child care providers play in obesity prevention in the Journal of the American Dietetic Association. They mentioned that more than 20% of the nation’s preschool-aged children (ages 2-5 years) are overweight or obese, an all-time high. Surveillance data of a sample of Iowa youth suggests that almost 1/3 of 2-5 year olds are overweight or obese. In addition, according to the National Association of Child Care Resource and Referral, an estimated 164,000 children under the age of 6 are in child care in Iowa. Therefore, child care providers have the opportunity to make an impact on the health of many preschool-aged children.

One of the most important things a provider can do is be a good role model. It is important that the children you care for see you practicing good health behaviors. Do you eat your fruits and vegetables in front of them? Do you drink water or do you have pop in your cup? Are you active with the children or do you watch from the sidelines? Your actions have a bigger impact on the children then your words do.

Raising Healthy Kids is a series of publications from Iowa State University Extension and Outreach online store that can help parents, child care providers, and communities address important health and nutrition questions.

Be sure to also check out First Lady Michelle Obama’s campaign Let’s Move! Child Care which calls on child care providers to offer more nutritious foods and promote more physical activities and provides great resources and support.

What are you doing to promote healthy nutrition and physical activity behaviors in the children you care for?

Jody

Environment, Health & Safety Let's Move! Child Care, nutrition, obesity

I am pleased to share a blog post from Melissa Wagner, Iowa State University’s Environment Rating Scale Assessment Coordinator.  Children’s safety is a top priority for all of us in early care and education, and we need to be informed on the latest information related to crib safety.  Malisa

After all the crib recalls and urge for early care and education programs to have cribs that comply with ASTM standards by the end of the year (December 2012), I often hear questions about crib or sleep safety. We all want to protect the children we care for from hazards in their environment. One important area we want to create a safe environment for infants is the nap area. It’s important to do everything we can to prevent SIDS. So how do you create a safe sleep environment and what should you look for in a crib, play yard, bassinet, etc? Here are some quick tidbits on what to check for.

 First, always check to be sure your crib has not been recalled. There are several places you can check for recalls:

• Safe Kids: http://www.safekids.org/our-work/recalls/
• Consumer Product Safety Commission: http://www.cpsc.gov/
• Parents: http://www.parents.com/product-recalls/cribs/

 Make sure the crib meets ASTM (American Society for Testing Materials) standards for full-size or non-full size cribs. Non-full-size cribs may include portable cribs, bassinets, play yards, play pens or other sleep areas that would meet the criteria expected for a crib: firm mattress that fits tightly, fitted sheet, no bedding, and the infant sleeps in supine position (lying flat on his/ her back).

 How will you know if it meets ASTM standards?

It should be stated on the product. Another option is to look for a JPMA (Juvenile Products Manufacturers Association) certification or seal. JPMA products have been through all the testing and meet or exceed ASTM standards.

What do these ASTM standards mean?

ASTM creates a bunch of safety standards that products need to abide by. Meeting these standards means the product goes through vigorous and continuous testing before the product is put on the market.

 Never purchase a used crib. You can’t be certain the crib was upheld to the ASTM standards it may have met at one time.

 Make sure all bolts, sides, etc are tightened and there should be no holes in mesh fabric.

 After June 28, 2011 federal safety standards prohibited the sale of drop-side cribs. If you have crib made before these new safety standards, check with the manufacturer to see if they offer any hardware to keep the drop-side from falling. Also, routinely check to make sure all hardware is tight, intact, and not missing.

 Other safe sleep measures to follow:

• Place infants up to twelve months of age in supine position.
• Firm mattress that fits tightly (no more than two fingers width between mattress and crib side) with tight fitting sheet.
• If an infant falls asleep in an area which is not a safety approved crib, (i.e. car seat, bouncy seat, swing) place the infant in a supine position in safe sleep environment (crib).
• One infant per crib
• Loose bedding or materials should not be placed in the crib with the infant. This includes, but is not limited to: bumper pads, blankets, soft animals, pillows, bibs, sleep positioning devices.
• Check to make sure the temperature in the room is comfortable for sleeping. And the infant is not too hot or sweaty.

 Two wonderful web sites that give a wide array of information about crib and sleep safety are:

www.jpma.org

www.healthychildren.org

Please share any further information on finding cribs that meet the new standards or other resources on safe sleep.

Environment, Health & Safety crib, SIDS, sleep