Message from the Liaison (Brooke Sieg, PCSD 6)
Liaison Program Schedule and Information
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 February schedule below!
Literacy Corner
10 Reasons Why Reading is Important for Kids:
1. It expands their vocabulary.
While reading, they might come across words they have never heard – prompting them to find out what they mean. As a result, they add it to their vocabulary.
2. It makes them better at it.
Practice makes perfect, right? The best way to get better at reading is just to do it!
3. It helps build independence and self-confidence.
As they learn that they no longer have to rely on their parents to read things to them, they develop a sense of independence. Through reading, they can begin to understand the world on their own.
4. It keeps them safe.
Traffic signs have words and so do warning labels. Reading allows kids to understand when something says it could harm them.
5. It helps them make sense of the world around them.
As they learn to read they are able to determine what things around them say – from signs to stickers to labels. Being able to read helps them understand what is what and the purpose it serves.
6. It leads to their future academic success.
A child must be able to read in order to even progress through school. Reading is essential to following the instructions on the test and being able to even understand or answer the questions.
7. It enhances their imagination.
As a child reads, they can begin to imagine where the characters are. They might even create their own little world, as well. Reading enhances their imagination by forcing them to picture what the character actually looks like and who they are.
8. It entertains them.
It gives them something good to do – especially once they can start reading chapter books with no pictures, forcing them to really get into their imagination and therefore, really get into the book as well.
9. It improves their grammar.
Through reading, they can see how the author composed their sentence structure and grammar. This can also help improve their communication skills as they determine how it should be read using clues such as punctuation.
10. It improves their writing skills.
Because reading helps improve their vocabulary, communication, and grammar skills, it ultimately improves their writing skills as well.
Reading is essential to just about everything in life – from cooking to driving to just getting through school. It is important to start at a young age and teach your child the value of reading so they will grow to practice it often and value their ability to do so.
Mindful Math
What is One-to-One Correspondence?
One-to-one correspondence is when a child moves past rote counting and is able to count rationally – by assigning one number to each item, in the correct sequence. It means to count objects reliably, one at a time, and give a total value to answer the question ‘how many?’ It can be called one-to-one counting.
A child who is able to count rationally is not just rattling off a list of numbers in order. Rather, she is able to use one-to-one correspondence when counting. This means she is able to count a set of 5 objects by pointing to each object and giving each object the next number name until each object has been counted once.
A child who has not yet developed one-to-one correspondence may skip over an object, count an object more than once, or not yet see a connection between the number names and the objects.
A child who grasps 1:1 correspondence has mastered the four counting principles:
- Each object can only be assigned one number name.
- The number names must be used in a fixed order (one, two, three, four, etc).
- It does not matter what order the objects are counted in (start with any object and count them in any order and the total will always be the same).
It is therefore important, once your child is able to count to a reasonable number, to shift the focus from making that number bigger and bigger and rather onto making sure your child can reliably count a small number of objects.
A one-to-one correspondence is a much better indication of your child’s understanding of numbers than a long list of memorized numbers.
- The last number name used gives the total number of objects (how many). This is called the cardinal number.
Later on, a child will learn to count backwards, skip count (e.g. count by twos, fives, etc.) and eventually recognize the value of a group of objects by sight (e.g. a set of 5 objects).
Fine Motor Movement (Ashli Westbrook, MS OTR/L, Children's Resource Center)
Foundations of Fine Motor Skills
Shoulder Stability/Core:
A solid, strong core and shoulders enables children to develop good fine motor skills. Proximal stability means having strength and mobility along the trunk of your body. These muscles are the ones closest to the spine. They control our ability to remain upright in both standing and sitting positions.
Activities to promote Shoulder Stability/Core:
# 1. Pulling on a Scooter Board
Pulling yourself while sitting on a scooter board is an awesome core strengthening activity! The core has to respond to the force of being pulled. It also has to shift in order for the other hand to reach out and grab the rope! If your kiddo can not remain sitting when pulling themselves, then first just work on them holding on while you are pulling them! If you don’t have a scooter board, don’t worry. Wearing sweatpants, have them sit on hardwood or tile floor and hold onto a rope. You can either pull them toward you, or have them pull themselves toward you!
# 2. Animal Walks
Kids love to pretend that they are different types of animals! And Lucky for use, animal walks can build core strength! My favorites are:
* Crab Walk – Sit on the floor, lift your butt up and move around by using your hands and feet only. Don’t forget to move forwards, backwards, and sideways!
* Bear Walk – While standing, bend over and reach the floor with your hands. Move around in this position.
* Snake – Lay on the floor and wiggle your body back and forth to move
* Donkey Kick – Stand up and bend over until your hands touch the floor. Try to kick both legs out behind you. If both legs are too hard, then start with one at a time alternating legs.
* Frog hop – Squat down with your arms between your legs and hands touching the floor. Jump as far as you can!
# 3. Stair Push-ups
Stair push-ups are great for kids who can not do a regular push up! Stand at the bottom of a flight of stairs. Lean toward the stairs until your hands reach the step. Lower your body down so that your elbows are bent and next to your body. Your hands should be at chest level.
If stair push-ups are too hard, then do wall push-ups! Face a wall so that you are about 1 step away from it. Place your hands on the wall at shoulder height and distance apart. Move your body toward the wall by bending your elbows next to your body!
# 4. Yoga Positions
Yoga can be a great way for kids to strengthen their cores! And it takes very little room! The ones that I start out with for core strengthening are table, bridge, downward dog and cobra.
# 5. Swinging on A Swing
Swinging on a swing is a great activity for core strengthening! In order to get the swing moving, your kiddo will shift their trunk forward and backward! This movement strengthens the stomach, back, and arm muscles!
# 6. Wheelbarrow Walking
Wheelbarrow walking is a very powerful activity that works on strengthening a lot of different areas! If your kiddo can not move their arms when you are holding their feet, then move up their legs until they can. Some kids need you to hold them at their hips! If your kiddo needs you to hold them closer to their hips, start there. Over time, move your hands closer to
their ankles until they can wheelbarrow walk with you just holding their ankles.
# 7. Pick Up Stuffed Animals with Your Feet
Here is another favorite one of mine! There is just an element of fun added when picking up toys with your feet! There are two ways to do this and I honestly like both! I like to start with stuffed animals or beanbags because they are moldable. There are 2 different ways that I like to do this! The first one: Put a container near a pile of toys to pick up. Sit on the floor. Pick up the toy using only your feet. Lower containers are easier while taller containers are more challenging! The second one: Dump a pile of toys into a pile. Lay down so that the pile of toys is at your feet. Place the basket above your head. Pick up one toy at a time and raise it over your body and place it in the basket!
# 8. Ball Bounce In Wide Leg Sitting
Sit on the floor with legs spread apart. Hold a basketball with two hands and touch the floor lightly outside of your right leg, in between your two legs, and then outside your left leg. And repeat! I often pair this activity with a song that has an easy beat to follow, counting, or ABC’s for younger kids! This movement really works well on trunk rotation and crossing midline!
Book Nook (Holly Baker, Cody Public Library)
We have a few special things coming up in February, too!
Everyone loves the fabulous author of the “Don’t Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus!” series, Mo Willems. His birthday is on Saturday, February 11th, and we’re throwing a big birthday party for him at 10:00 that morning!! This will be for the whole family, with photo ops, games, stories, and snacks. And surely stuffies will want to join the fun, too!
Also in February, we’ll be encouraging kids of all ages to participate in “Random Acts of Kindness Day” on Friday, the 17th, with projects and ideas available all day!
Then the following Friday afternoon, Feb. 24th, we’ll have different kinds of tortilla chips for kids to try to celebrate “Tortilla Chip Day”! We’ll make a graph and see which kind wins!
Lots of fun reasons to stop by the library in February!
BBCW Fun Facts (Emily Buckles, Interpretive Specialist and Natural Science Educator)
Did you know?
From September 1, 2022 through September 1, 2023, ALL kids that live in Park County, along with one adult chaperone, get into the Center of the West for free?! (See flyer below this section for more details.)
Since February is Buffalo Bill’s birthday month, here are 10 fun facts about this famous man:
* Buffalo Bill’s real name is William F. Cody
* His birthday is February 26, 1846
* When he was 12, he left home to work on a wagon train. His job was a “bullwhacker”.
* Though he claimed to have ridden for the Pony Express, he probably did not.
* Cody hunted buffalo to feed workers along the transcontinental railroad— that is how he earned his nickname, Buffalo Bill.
* Cody and his wife had 4 children—Arta, Kit, Orra, and Irma.
* Buffalo Bill’s famous Wild West show ran for 30 years.
* Buffalo Bill traveled by boat to London in 1887 to perform for Queen Victoria. He brought with him 180 horses, 18 buffalo, 10 elk, 5 steers, 4 donkeys, and 2 deer.
* Buffalo Bill’s Wild West never performed in Cody, WY.
* He founded the town of Cody, WY!
Park County Sheriff's Office
Patrol
Park County consists of 621 miles of road; 279 miles are paved and 190 miles are gravel and 144 miles are unimproved. There are also many miles of private roads and drives which are not included in the Park County Road System. These private roads are sometimes only accessable with the use of a four wheel drive vehicle which can make emergency response exceedingly challenging.
Covering over 6,942 square miles of Park County, the Patrol Division is staffed with three districts, Powell, Cody and Meeteetse. The Patrol Division consists of 13 Deputies. Various rotational shifts exist within the division in an effort to provide staffing and coverage for the entire county. By rotating shifts, the Sheriff’s Office is able to provide coverage that best utilizes the fiscal monies of the citizens of Park County.
Currently two Deputies are assigned to the Meeteetse District and also provide Town Law Enforcement Services contracted by the Town of Meeteetse. Meeteetse Deputies also provide US Forest Service Patrols in their districts. The Meeteetse District includes 99 miles or 16% of the total roads we patrol in the county. They are responsible for Meeteetse local/rural, Woodriver Road, Pitchfork Road, Meeteetse Creek and Lower Greybull River Road. We also routinely dispatch them to the Cody and Powell Districts to cover the other districts and to allocate resources within the most responsible means possible.
The Cody District is staffed by six Deputies one of which is Patrol Sgt. Andy Varian, and they also assist in US Forest Service Patrols in the North and South Fork areas. The Cody district includes 254 miles or 41% of the total roads we patrol in the county. They are responsible for patrol in Cody local/rural, Southfork, Northfork, Sunlight/Crandall, Sage Creek and Oregon Basin areas primarily.
The Powell District is staffed by five Deputies, one of which is the Patrol Lt. Mark Hartman. These deputies also assist in US Forest Service patrols in Crandall area. The Powell District includes 267 miles or 43% of the total roads we patrol in the county. They are responsible for Powell local/rural, Willwood, Ralston, Ralston Bench, Clark, Frannie and Elk Basin areas.
Deputies duties are to respond to calls for service, provide visible patrols throughout the rural areas of the county, conduct proactive patrol and enforcement techniques, conduct and administer civil papers work services, provide community safety and education of the public. Deputies enjoy the freedom of patrol and serving others throughout the county and the interaction with the community they protect in a personal way. The Patrol Division utilizes a strategic plan to ensure consistent growth and to allow us to adhere to our values and mission statement. If you would like to know more about what activities the deputies are doing from month to month, please visit the news page where we will post a link for current patrol statistics for the previous months.
For more information, please check out the Park County Sheriff's Office website.
Contact Info
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