Hello! Thank you for taking a moment to read through this month's Early Childhood Community Liaison Newsletter, with a big emphasis on COMMUNITY! Each month, you'll find great information from several entities in Cody that work directly with young children. (Please note that this newsletter works best using the Chrome web browser. If you have difficulties downloading any of the documents found below, please reach out to me directly and I'll send them to you. My contact information can be found at the bottom of this newsletter.)

All programs are FREE and open to children of ALL ages!! Attending any of these programs is a great way to support and extend the learning your child is already doing at his/her preschool or at home. Please note that parents must remain in the classroom for the duration of each program and are expected to be active participants with their child(ren). Be sure to download the March schedule below!

All families and early childhood providers are invited to attend the FREE Trauma-Informed Care class in Powell on March 30 from 5:30 pm.-7:30 p.m. Dinner and childcare will be provided. To register, please use the QR code on the flyer.

VOCABULARY DEVELOPMENT FOR TODDLERS

#1 Rule… Focus on teaching words a child can use during everyday activities.

Frequently parents (and therapists!) ask for a list of vocabulary as they begin to focus on teaching a toddler to understand and use new words. That’s no easy task! Kids and families like and do different things. What’s relevant for one toddler is foreign to another. If you live a city, your child is not likely to need to know words like “horse” and “tractor,” but if you live in a rural Kentucky like I do, he probably does!

For this reason, the best way to decide what words you should focus on teaching is by paying attention to what comes up during a child’s everyday life.

What’s important to a child and his or her family? When I work directly with parents, I recommend that they begin by making a list of their child’s favorite people, foods, toys, pets, and things to do.

Be sure to include any favorite characters from shows or games, especially for toddlers who have spent lots of time with “screens” watching TV, DVDs, videos, or apps. When a child has unique interests (even fixations), include those too. These are the words we should make sure that he learns to understand first. Not only does this approach make sense from the “importance” factor; it lines up with how toddlers typically learn language.

For more information, please visit the TeachMeToTalk! website.

What Is Spatial Intelligence?

Spatial intelligence, also known as visual spatial intelligence or spatial reasoning, is the capacity to imagine or visualize in one’s mind the positions of objects, their shapes, their spatial relations to one another and the movement they make to form new spatial relations. It is the ability to perform spatial visualization and spatial reasoning in the head.

Spatial intelligence involves understanding and remembering the relative locations of objects in the mind. Objects, 2d or 3d objects, can be manipulated through mental movement, rotation or transformation.

Scientists have found that early education plays a large role in preparing our children for later success in spatial learning​ because spatial reasoning starts early in the child development process.Neuroscientists find that specific regions in the brain responsible for thinking about location and spatial relation develop in very early childhood. Spatial ability and knowledge are cumulative and durable. Those who master the skills in early childhood, regardless of gender, will have more opportunities to practice and improve it.

As children’s first teachers, parents can start teaching young children, even toddlers, the basics of spatial thinking. It is not too early to start familiarizing your toddler with spatial relations​​. Infants as young as 4 months have been found to demonstrate spatial perception abilities related to mental rotation​.

To learn more, visit the Parenting For Brain website.

Bilateral Coordination:

To efficiently use our hands, one hand holds or stabilizes and the other hand works. Bilateral coordination activities are essential for coordinated and fluid movements that require both sides of the body. Also called bilateral integration, the movements of both hands together in activities requires processing and integration of both hemispheres of the brain to enable both hands working together at the same time, or bilateral movements. Without bilateral coordination, a child might appear to be clumsy or drop items, use primarily one hand in activities, or switch hands during tasks that require a dominant hand and a helper hand.

In fact, there are three components of bilateral coordination:

· Symmetrical movements

· Alternating movements

· Dominant hand/supporting hand movements

1.) Symmetrical movements– Both hands do the same thing at the same time. An example of this would be pulling up pants or socks. Other activities that can work on this skill include

· Holding a squeeze bottle with both hands at the midline to paint.

· Jumping rope

· Jumping Jacks

· Catching a ball with two hands

2.) Alternating Movements– Using the two extremities in alternating motions. You will see alternating bilateral coordination with swimming or climbing a ladder. Activities to work on this skill include:

· Riding a bike

· Marching

3.) Dominant hand/Non-dominant hand– Using one hand to perform a task while the other assists is needed for many fine motor skills. This type of bilateral coordination is needed for writing, and cutting with scissors. Activities to work on this skill include:

· Threading

· Lacing cards

· Coloring

· Writing

· Tying shoes

We can’t wait to celebrate the birthday of another favorite author in March: Dr. Seuss! We’ll have a family party in his honor on Monday evening, March 6th at 6:00 with the Cat in the Hat! Enjoy Seuss stories, games, crafts and snacks!

March is also when Big Horn Radio Network is sponsoring their second annual Leprechaun Trap contest! Bring your crafty invention to the library any time between March 6th and 15th to join the fun and maybe win a prize! Winners will be announced at a party Thursday afternoon, March 16th at 4:00 – everyone is invited!

Please mark your calendars for SUMMER READING!! Our favorite time of year begins May 30th and it’s for ALL AGES! This year’s theme of “All Together Now” is extra-exciting, going along with our summer’s Kindness Projects. It’s truly for EVERYONE.

There are always lots of reasons to visit your public library – we’ll love to see you!

Buffalo Bill Center of the West: Did you know?

Many birds and mammals start migrating in March. While it may still feel like winter, the increasing amount of daylight triggers animals to start preparing for spring!

Mountain bluebirds and Red-wing blackbirds are two birds that come back to Wyoming in early March. Red-winged blackbirds are mostly found in marshy areas. Males have a very distinct conk-la-ree! song, which they sing throughout the breeding season. They eat insects and nest on marsh grasses. Mountain Bluebirds mostly eat insects. They are often found on fence posts near open fields. They build their nest in tree cavities (holes). Males are more brightly colored blue than females.

Kids experience a vast array of feelings, just as adults do. They can feel bored, anxious, sad, disappointed, embarrassed, and scared—to name a few. While most of us experience any number of emotions from day to day, we are not necessarily taught how to deal with them or how to cope. If your child is feeling anxious, here are a few activities that may help:

Activities For Anxious Kids

Create a Worry Warrior - Kids make a creature or contraption that will gobble up their worries. From Crayola.

Imagine Yourself as a Superhero - The superpowers that kids wish they had can tell us a lot. Have them choose their favorite superpowers, then draw themselves and write a newspaper story about their debut.

Make Stress Fidgets -
$1 pool noodle + 1 serrated knife + 2 minutes = 52 stress fidgets for the upcoming school year. That's a time and financial investment even I could afford! Great idea from Danielle at School Counselor Blog.

For more activities, please visit the SchoolCounselingFiles website!

Reporting Abuse, Neglect, or Exploitation

All citizens have a responsibility to protect those who cannot protect themselves.

Wyoming state law (statues 14-3-205 & 35-20-103) states that any person who suspects child/vulnerable adult abuse, neglect or exploitation is required to report.

According to Wyoming law, everyone must report suspected abuse, neglect or exploitation of child or vulnerable adult if they have reasonable cause to believe that it may be occurring. Child or adult abuse, neglect or exploitation has no boundaries according to sexual orientation, ethnic background, age, religion, disability, or gender, the reporting of abuse / neglect / exploitation of children and vulnerable adults is a 24-hour obligation.

Help us spread the word about the importance of reporting abuse or neglect and remind all citizens that reporting is the first step towards protecting a child or vulnerable adult who might be in danger.

To learn more about reporting and help protect Wyoming’s vulnerable population, you can access DFS’ Guide for Reporting of Abuse or Neglect by clicking on this link , click the links below or visit the Wyoming Division of Victim Services web site at here.

Click on the links below for additional information:
Signs and Symptoms of Abuse/Neglect/Exploitation
How to Make a Report
What Happens After the Report

To make a report of abuse or neglect, contact your local DFS office. CLICK HERE for contact information. If an emergency, call 911.

The Park County Sheriff’s Office is pleased to announce a new child safety program titled “Kidprint-ID.” Kidprint-ID, which involves the creation of a child identification card, is a simple yet effective tool to help families maintain a current image of and descriptive information about their children.

One of the most important and effective tools for law enforcement when searching for a missing child is an up-to-date, good quality photo along with the child’s descriptive information.

The Kidprint-ID cards will be provided at no cost to parents in order to enhance their ability to quickly provide law enforcement essential information immediately if the need ever arises. And they’re fun for the kids too!

The information displayed on the card includes the child’s name, date of birth, height, weight, hair, and eye color along with a picture and thumb print. Once created, the card will be printed immediately on site and sent home for parents to keep. The information is not stored or maintained, but rather is deleted upon the card being generated. And parents are encouraged to obtain a new card for their child as often as necessary to ensure the most up-to-date information.

Parental permission is required at the time the card is produced. We recommend that parents print off a permission slip, sign it and bring it with them when the child’s card is produced. To download a permission slip, CLICK HERE.

“Kidprint-ID” was developed and made available by Total ID Solutions, Inc., Wickliffe, Ohio. For more information refer to their website at www.totalidsolutions.com.

As cold weather begins to move in for our loooong winter, it can be difficult to find engaging indoor activities to do at home with young children. Each month, I will feature a different website to help provide ideas and boredom busters!

This month's website features fun ideas using materials you most likely have at home already, such as crayons, marbles, Legos, tape, and Play Doh!

Brooke Sieg, PCSD 6 Early Childhood Community Liaison

Email: brookesieg@park6.org
Website: www.park6.org
Location: 919 Cody Avenue, Cody, WY, USA
Phone: (307) 272-0153
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100057666729007