This August will look different than years past as most schools kick off the year with a virtual start. Our QSSB partners are here to help parents and caretakers find balance, navigate information and educational resources and find fun along the way!
First 5 California highlights the importance of the first 5 years of a child’s life in terms of development and preparation for school and future success. They encourage parents to engage in three essential brain building activities, to talk, read, and sing every day to their child. Along with suggestions on how to fit those three activities in a day, they have information to address at-home learning.
Here are three tips to help with the stress of parenting in these times.
- Experience emotions together. There will be feelings for you to work through together.
- Prioritize well-being. Sometimes that means fun over structured lessons.
- Set a daily routine. Follow a schedule to provide structure and security.
Find more information regarding these points click here.
We know that children’s brains develop at an incredible rate, making millions of new neural connections every second! Reading early to your child helps strengthen their focus, concentration skills and so much more. San Bernardino County Superintendent of Schools created Footsteps2Brilliance, an app to encourage 15 minutes of reading every day. There are a variety of ways to utilize the app, both on and offline, including:
- Clever Kids University prepares students for kindergarten with lessons on letters and numbers.
- The virtual summer school app offers 5 weeks of lessons for pre-k and k.
- Have an older child? They have an app for that too! Simply select the School Edition for students up to third grade.
Learn how to register here and get reading in English or Spanish today!
Are you an essential worker? Are you heading back to work and not sure who can watch your kids? Looking for child care can be a daunting task anytime and perhaps even more so now with the uncertainties of the pandemic. Child Care Resource Center can help by offering child care referrals. You can talk to a Referral Counselor by calling 1-866-67-4KIDS or emailing RREveryone@ccrcca.org about your options. Check them out!
The Institute for Child Development and Family Relations at Cal State San Bernardino wants to help parents and children through these challenging times! They are using their years of expertise to offer tools and guidance in the form of webinars and resources to encourage child development and strong families. Check out their offerings on Facebook and sign up for their newsletter to get information delivered straight to your inbox!
Bonus Activities:
Children learn in a variety of ways including physical movement. For an activity break, sing and dance along with Blazer Fresh to learn about patterns.
Visit GoNoodle for more movement, mindfulness, and screen-free suggestions.
Join in the summer fun with Camp PBS Kids! Follow along to create a reading chart of all the books you read together, make a checklist of things you would like to do, find arts and science projects to do at home.
More Information:
Help Me Grow Inland Empire is a new resource connecting parents and caretakers to pediatricians for screenings for children. They have staff available to answer concerns and questions regarding your child’s developmental milestones like smiling, sitting up and crawling. Visit their site for contact information and more.
For San Bernardino County’s response to COVID-19, visit their site at sbcovid19.com. Information includes, countywide food assistance, housing assistance and more. Residents can also call the hotline at (909) 387-3911 Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. or email: coronavirus@DPH.sbcounty.gov. Please note, this is phone number is not for emergencies. For social services please call 211, the county’s essential information center.
And finally, the 2020 Census is ongoing. The Census only comes around every 10 years and it is essential that all Californians complete their form. It determines the amount of federal funding our community will receive for schools, transport, housing, and social services. Every person, every kid counts! For more information visit 2020census.gov.