TKW Consulting

Long Days, Challenging Clients, Potty-Training Experience Useful
By SANA SIWOLOP
Published: September 24, 2006

Like the character played by Eddie Murphy in “Daddy Day Care,” Todd Cole needed the push of a layoff to join the small number of men who work as child care providers.

Mr. Cole, of Cortlandt Manor, N.Y., lost his job at a small medical equipment company in February 2005. Almost immediately, he and his wife, Jennifer, a special-education teacher, pulled their two young daughters out of a local day care center, and Mr. Cole began caring for them himself. By late August, he was still scrambling to find a job, so he followed the suggestions of friends who had told him he was particularly good at working with children. The result? Daddy’s Daycare, a business that Mr. Cole, 41, runs in the basement of his split-level home.

Mr. Cole became a registered family day care provider in February, and the state of New York now allows him to watch six children over the age of 2, as well as two school-age children. In addition to his own daughters, Sophie, 2, and Kayla, 5, Mr. Cole watches three 2-year-old boys, generally from 7 a.m. till 6 p.m., and in early September he began providing after-school care for a 5-year-old boy and an 8-year-old girl.

He has had to make adjustments. Mr. Cole had to undergo a rigorous background check, take a health and safety class, buy extra fire extinguishers and smoke detectors, and draw up a floor plan of his house to show fire exits. He is also required to conduct daily health checks on the children, and every six months he receives an unannounced visit from a local child care authority.

By local standards, Mr. Cole’s fees are relatively modest: either $50 a day or $225 for the week. But his family’s grocery bills have doubled to more than $300 a week, and now the family is footing another large bill as well: a contractor is installing a second bathroom to accommodate the four children who are about to begin potty training.

Long days are the norm. Before starting his child care duties one morning recently, Mr. Cole first put in an hour mopping the kitchen floor, vacuuming, and sweeping the driveway and front sidewalk. When the 2-year-old twins, Marcus and Marquis, arrived, he fed them, along with his own two children, then spent three hours watching six children either play or work with educational toys like flash cards and puzzles.

Shortly before lunch (grilled cheese sandwiches, cucumber slices and cut-up cantaloupe), Mr. Cole took all six children out to his driveway. There he used chalk to draw a hopscotch pattern for 9-year-old Amy, then pumped up a bicycle tire for Kayla. When Marcus tried to maneuver his tricycle onto a nearby sidewalk, he admonished him gently. “Marcus, please turn around,” he said. “Thank you, buddy.”

Despite the challenges, Mr. Cole is pleased with his work. For one, he no longer has to fill the family minivan with gas once or twice a week just to get to his job. He also loves being able to watch his children grow up. “Now I walk down the stairs and I’m at work,” he said. “I’m as happy doing this as when I started.”

Men make up only about 4 percent of those who provide either care or early childhood education to children 5 and younger, and that number has stayed about the same since the 1980’s, said Bryan G. Nelson, founder of MenTeach, a Minneapolis nonprofit group that supports men who teach. Mr. Nelson said that he had noticed a slight uptick in the number of men entering the field, but that a combination of factors kept the overall number low.

“The first barrier is the stereotype that this is woman’s work, and the second is the fear of being accused of abuse,” he said. “But the third barrier is economics. If we started paying child care salaries of $100,000 a year, both men and women would go into the field.” In May 2005, the Bureau of Labor Statistics estimated that child care workers in the state of New York had an annual average wage of $21,850.

In Bedford, N.Y., Larry Aguzzi is happy with the child care business he runs with his wife, Ester.In 1996, Mr. Aguzzi was working as a remodeling contractor when he took on a project for a woman who was running a day care business out of her home, and whose husband was about to close his own business so he could join her.

During the project, Mr. Aguzzi decided it might be fun to work with children instead of dealing with the many downsides of the remodeling business — like subcontractors not showing up on time — and soon he and his wife began looking into running their own day care business.

When the woman who had inspired him called unexpectedly to say that her husband had
died of a heart attack and that she was shutting her business and needed to place two of the children, the couple was ready.

Between them, they now care for 18 children, and say they have a waiting list for an additional half a dozen.

Like Mr. Cole, Mr. Aguzzi now puts in an entirely different kind of day. Because he likes to cook, he often cooks with the children, sometimes baking bread, or even preparing roast chicken and gravy. But now he or his wife also spend at least an hour a day on the paperwork that state and county authorities require. Because they are part of a federal food program that partly reimburses them for the costs of feeding the children healthy meals, they also keep a daily log on what they ate and when. The couple’s lives are
hectic for another reason: They have four children of their own, aged 7 to 20.

“I get a joy out of this, but I don’t know any men who have even tried to get into this field,” Mr. Aguzzi said recently.

But attitudes may be changing. During a recent Yankees game that Mr. Cole attended with three other men, he said he was peppered with questions but was also shown “lots of support.”

Three of the 60 teachers at TimberRidge Family Center, a day care center and preschool, in Armonk, N.Y., are men, and the director, Elizabeth Anderson, said that parents generally supported the idea of men being involved in day care. “In any group that has a male teacher, I usually have a couple of parents that ask questions, but in time they come to adore the male presence in their child’s room,” she said.

One is 37-year-old Michael Magrone. After graduating from college in 1991, Mr. Magrone spent eight years working with 3- and 4-year-olds at the child care center that preceded TimberRidge before deciding to become a public-school teacher. As he saw it, his salary might double almost immediately, and would probably triple within 10 years.

Mr. Magrone did teach at a public school, but came back to TimberRidge in 2005. “The elementary and middle-school kids weren’t as much fun as the preschoolers, and they were also more easily distracted and less motivated to learn,” he said.

In early September, Mr. Magrone became a head teacher at TimberRidge. Along with an assistant teacher, he is now working with 12 children. “I absolutely love it,” he said. “I’ll probably never own a big house or afford a lot of other things, but I love to go to work every day.”

Is Your Child Watching Too Much TV at Day Care?
SEATTLE, Sept. 28 /PRNewswire

A national survey finds that 89percent of children in home-based child care settings regularly watchtelevision at day care, an average of 1.5 hours a day.

Although the amount of television that young children watch at home hasbeen well documented, no study until now has examined how much televisionpreschool children watch in day care. A study by Dimitri A. Christakis, MD,MPH, Michelle M. Garrison, MPH and Frederick J. Zimmerman, PhD, publishedin the October issue of Communication Reports, examines the amount of television viewing in home-based and in center-based child care programs.

Using data from the nationally representative Profile of Child CareSettings study, the authors found that children in 89 percent of home-based child care settings and in 35 percent of center-based child care settingsregularly watch television. In those settings in which children regularlywatch television, it is on for an average of about 1 hour per day incenter-based care, and for about 1.5 hours per day in home-based settings.

Furthermore, for children in home-based child care settings, approximately 30 percent of the programming is "non-educational." To put that amount of television viewed into perspective, it is worth noting that prior estimates for children this age based on parental reports of home viewing, were about1.5 hours a day (Rideout et al., 2003). Previous estimates maysubstantially underestimate the total television exposure for many children.

There are reasons to be concerned about television viewing in thiscontext, the authors report. There is some evidence that heavy early television viewing may adversely affect children's diet, physical activity, aggression and ability to pay attention. Moreover, early childhood environments represent important opportunities for socialization and for adult-directed learning.

"Given the opportunities for interactions with peers, teachers and other educational activities -- which is what is expected of high-quality child care -- it is disappointing to determine that passive viewing of a screen is displacing some of this rich stimulation," said Dr. Christakis.

While some viewing has proven educational value, it is generally agreedthat even the best programs are not the equal of thoughtful adult interactions.

A full copy of the study can be viewed at
http://www.tandf.co.uk/journals/journal.asp?issn=0893-4215&linktype=1

// posted by Tammy Wachter @ 7:39 PM 0 comments

Running a child care facility can put owners in a difficult financial situation
By Christina Knottcknott@newstribune.com

When Dorcas Gudde founded the Small World Child Development Center in Jefferson City, she knew she wouldn't get rich, and at the last second, she couldn't help but wonder what she'd gotten herself in to.“I was standing there, ready to meet the parents I thought, ‘Dear Lord, what have I done?'” Gudde said.

Providing professional child care is an especially challenging businesses, particularly when it comes to funding.

Gudde is one of several local child care business owners who say they are in a constant
challenge to provide the best service they can while staying affordable for parents.

“There's months that it wasn't easy,” Gudde said. “There's so much that a person doesn't even think of.”There are the obvious costs - food, rent or mortgage, utilities and staff. But overhead costs also include laundry, building maintenance, cleaning supplies, insurance, first aid supplies, office equipment, art and craft supplies, paper and postage.

Startup costs can include playground equipment, toys, stocking the kitchen, cots, tables, chairs and at least one vehicle for field trips.

Also increasing expenses, this year's state law requires booster seats for all children younger than 12 or under 80 pounds.As the price of higher education continues to rise faster than inflation, the profit margin for early childhood educators remains comparatively tiny.

“It is really hard. There are times when I barely pay myself and I'm the owner,” said Cynthia White of Sunrise Sunset Child Care Center.

White said she has even browsed the classified section, thinking about getting a second job to help make ends meet.

The situation doesn't seem to be getting any easier. “Actually,” White said, “it seems to be getting worse.”

Fuel prices have increased by leaps lately, driving up the cost of building utilities and transportation for field trips. The cost of living also continues to grow at a faster rate than wages.

At Apple Tree Academy, owner Karen Werner said 75 percent of her staff have degrees. Her education has taught her the early years are critical to a person's development. Werner said children learn more in their first three years than they do the rest of their lives.

To attract and retain workers, many agencies try to offer fringe benefits including flexible schedules, vacation time and a pleasant atmosphere.

Werner offers half-price child care for children of workers. Few depend on their salary alone to make ends meet.“It's very rewarding work, (but) we all have to be married to a man who makes the money,” Werner laughed.

Most agencies prefer to hire workers with a degree in early childhood education, but they aren't able to offer the wages a recent graduate would expect.

According to the U.S. Department of Labor, 45 percent of workers in this field have a high school diploma or less.

The 2004 Occupational Outlook Handbook, published by the labor department, lists the median income for child care workers as $8.06 an hour, or $16,764 a year working full time. The federal poverty level for a family of three was $16,090 in 2005.In contrast, the handbook records the median wage of bus drivers as $14.30 an hour, non-farm animal caretakers as $8.39 an hour and clothing store retail workers as $8.17 an hour.

Low wages not only fail to attract highly qualified staff, they also lead to high turnover rates, which can cause stress for the children.Amanda Hutchcraft switched day care centers after her 4-year-old daughter went through five teachers in six months.

“My daughter hated going to school that whole six months and it terrified her,” Hutchcraft said. “That happens a lot in day cares because they don't pay very well.”

White, who starts her workers at $5.50 an hour, said she struggles to maintain a low
turnover while staying affordable to her families.

“We have some good workers now, but I don't know how long they'll stay because I can't pay them more,” White said. At $90 a week, she is one of the least expensive child care centers in the city.

While statistics vary, turnover rates in the child care industry are estimated between 20 and 40 percent by various experts.

The U.S. Department of Labor cites dissatisfaction with benefits, pay and stressful working conditions as the reason many leave the child care industry. The percentage of child care workers with a college degree fell by a third since 1983. At the same time, the number of college graduates in the general work force increased by a third.

“If you raise your rates so you can pay your staff more, are the parents going to be able to pay that?” asked Nena Koelling, owner of Learning Connection.

That's the eternal question for those in the child care industry.Some government grants do exist to supplement owners' cost, but the day care directors interviewed all said help is difficult to find and requires them to follow too many regulations.Parents end up paying for nearly all day care expenses. For some families, child care is the largest cost besides rent or mortgages.

Shawn Rush said he and his wife spend nearly $1,000 a month on child care for their children, a 4-month-old boy an a 4-year old girl.“I would love for my wife to be able to stay home, but in this day and age, it's essential for both of us to work,” he said.

Particularly for those in lower-income jobs, child care can almost be a catch-22. The more they work, the more they need to invest in child care.

“We depend almost totally on tuition. It's a vicious cycle,” Koelling said.

Two decades after opening, Gudde said she had enough memories to last her a lifetime. This summer, she finally closed her doors.Though it wasn't her only reason for retiring, Gudde was relieved to end the eternal struggle to keep her business in the black.“I will tell you, that has played some part in it. The money's just not there,” Gudde said. “After 20 years, I'm tired.”

New collaborative to promote research and policy analysis on early childhood

MINNEAPOLIS / ST. PAUL (9/13/2006) -- The Center for Early Education and Development at the University of Minnesota and the Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis are teaming up to enhance multidisciplinary research and high-profile policy discussions on early childhood development.

The Early Childhood Research Collaborative (ECRC) is a unique partnership that brings together prominent researchers and faculty members in a variety of disciplines at the university with economists at the Federal Reserve to develop and synthesize research on cost-effective investments in early childhood.

Co-directed by Arthur Reynolds, professor of child development and Fellow of the Center for Early Education and Development (CEED), and Art Rolnick, senior vice president and director of research at the Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis, the ECRC is funded in part by University of Minnesota President Robert Bruininks' Interdisciplinary Academic Initiative on Children, Youth, and Families. CEED is an outreach and research center in the College of Education and Human Development. The Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis is one of 12 Federal Reserve banks in the United States.

The most visible sign of the new collaboration is its newly-launched Web site at www.earlychildhoodrc.org, where discussion papers on a variety of topics have already been posted.

The collaborative's mission is to foster multidisciplinary research on early development from birth to age 8 on topics such as the impact and cost-effectiveness of preschool and family support programs; family, school and community influences on child development; and psychological and biological foundations of child health and well-being.

To accomplish this, the collaborative will conduct research and policy analyses, disseminate research through discussion papers and other reports, convene forums and conferences, provide Web resources and help coordinate early childhood research activities around campus and in the community. The collaborative's national advisory committee includes Edward Zigler, Yale University; James Heckman, University of Chicago; Jack Shonkoff, Harvard University; and University of Minnesota professors Megan Gunnar, Institute of Child Development, and V. V. Chari, department of economics.

“We want to conduct and promote research that is policy-relevant as well as based on a thorough understanding of child development and how early experiences influence later development,” Reynolds says.

“We want to bring together the best research on early childhood development in the country,” Rolnick says, “to help Minnesota and other states develop the most cost-effective early childhood education programs.”

The papers currently posted on the Web site focus on effective programs and practices from preschool to third grade (PK-3), the productivity argument for investing in young children, developing high quality PK-3 classrooms, the long-term effects of child-parent centered early childhood intervention, and the role of cooperative behavior in preschoolers' social development. To read them, see www.earlychildhoodrc.org/papers/catalog.cfm.

The first public event of the collaborative is a conference on Friday, Oct. 13 at the Humphrey Institute of Public Affairs. The event will provide an overview of the collaborative and will feature an address by Nobel Laureate James Heckman of the University of Chicago.

See the collaborative Web site for conference information.For more information on the collaborative, to sign up for the collaborative's listserv, and to contact its members, go to www.earlychildhoodrc.org.

Unions open arms to child-care providers
Donna Halvorsen, Star Tribune

When union organizer Marybeth Juetten knocked on Julie Schendzielos's door in Clear Lake, Minn., on Tuesday, she found an easy convert.Schendzielos, who cares for 10 children in her Sherburne County home, said she's a professional caregiver, not a baby
sitter. "I'm teaching astronauts, teachers, doctors, nurses, construction workers, all the people it takes to make a community," she said. But, she added, "I don't think we're getting any respect, except from the parents. They know what we're doing on a daily basis."

Schendzielos and other providers are flexing their muscles these days with the help of unusual allies: labor unions, whose organizers are knocking on doors all over Minnes! ota recruiting members. So far two unions -- the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) Council 5 and Service Employees International Union (SEIU) -- say they've each signed up 2,000 or more of the state's 12,500 providers. But the unions haven't been greeted everywhere enthusiastically.

Our members are "not able to get good answers on what is this going to cost, what are the benefits, who would get the benefits," said Beth Mork, director of the Minnesota Licensed Family Child Care Association. "They feel they're independent business people who want to organize professionally on their own.

"Some parents are also concerned. Katherine Koenen of Minneapolis, whose 7-month-old daughter is in day care, said she worries about rates going up and wants to make sure her provider will be able to maintain the friendly atmosphere and the curriculum she created to teach children in her home.

It's unclear what effect unionizing wi! ll have on parents and kids. AFSCME spokeswoman Jennifer Lovaa! sen said extra pay for providers will come not from parents but from negotiations with the state, which provides child care subsidies for low-income families.

"The hardest thing about child care is being able to provide it at a rate parents can afford," said Chad Dunkley, president of the Minnesota Child Care Association, which has not taken a position on the unionization efforts. "Most families can't afford to pay more than they're paying."

Withstanding budget cuts

People like Schendzielos may seem an unusual group to unionize, but unions are organizing child-care providers in Iowa, Washington, Oregon, California and Pennsylvania.

In Illinois, unionized child-care providers have a contract with the state that gave them a significant increase in subsidy rates.Some Minnesota providers say the move to unionize makes sense. They care for eight to 14 kids in their homes; their income comes from parents and from state subsidies for low-income kids. They're small-business owners, who say they're often barely making ends meet and haven't been at the table when rules affecting them were made."All of a sudden these issues are brought up at the Capitol, and providers don't even know they're coming up," said Judy Massey, who has cared for children in her home on St. Paul's East Side for 20 years. "With a union we're going to know that in advance, and we're going to have a voice in that. Someone will listen to us.

"By organizing in Minnesota, the unions hope to increase providers' political muscle to prevent what happened in 2003, when the state's child-care subsidies of $217 million were cut by $86 million.Subsidies to Minnesota child-care providers last year were $168 million.If there's a binding contract with the state, "no matter if there is a surplus or a deficit, if there's a Republican, independent or Democrat in the governor's office, the child-care community will withstand the budget cuts they have seen in the last three years," said Kristin Beckmann, SEIU's acting Minnesota director.

Although providers got a 6 percent increase from the Legislature during the last session, caregivers who take in low-income children are still operating on the edge, said Sen. John Hottinger, DFL-St. Peter.Hottinger said a union would bring "economic fairness" to providers and give them a stronger voice before the Legislature.

But Rep. Fran Bradley, R-Rochester, who has for years headed the House Health and Human Service Finance Committee, had a different view."The state rates essentially, aside from a little bit of control we [legislators] put in, they generally follow the market," said Bradley, a retiring legislator whose committee oversaw subsidies.

"What are you going to do, tell the public who's buying child care what the rates are going to be, as set by a union?"Bradley said he's been contacted by many child-care providers who don't want union representation. "Frankly, they're really upset. They can't understand what in the world is going on. These are independent business people, of course. They're not asking for someone to represent them."

Being careful

Minnesota is unique among states when it comes to unions organizing child-care providers. Instead of going head-to-head, as they have elsewhere in the country, the unions are dividing up the state county-by-county. Exactly which union gets which counties won't be clear until an arbitrator rules.

Margaret Boyer, director of the Alliance of Early Childhood Professionals in Minneapolis, said her organization supports the move to unionize, though she said "there are some things I think we need to be careful about."

She said an important goal is to avoid placing additional financial burdens on parents. "We told the unions we wouldn't support any demands where the workers got ahead on the backs of the children ... or parents," said Boyer, whose organization has about 450 members.

Tim Schwob, who takes his two children to an in-home provider in Minnetrista, where he lives, said he doesn't have any concerns about organizing. They pay their provider, who cares only for their children, by the hour. "It's a blessing, just an absolutely perfect deal
for us." But he said his opinion might change if the rates go up.

Ann McCully, executive director of the Minnesota Child Care Resource and Referral Network, said her organization has not taken a position on the move to unionize. Said McCully: "We've encouraged individual family child-care providers to look at the information and weigh the options."

// posted by Tammy Wachter @ 5:57 PM 0 comments

Child-care center turnover has emotional effect on kids
BY SUE SHELLENBARGER
Wall Street Journal

Carol Pilgrim's 3-year-old son, Jackson, enjoyed a warm, caring relationship with his teacher at a child-care center — until she quit her job.

Upset by the series of substitutes who followed, Jackson started crying when he arrived each day, says Carol Pilgrim, who lived in Champaign, Ill., at the time. Although he had behaved well before, he began having temper tantrums. The problem, she suspected, was the loss of the teacher.

Starting new classes in the fall is change enough for most small children. But an estimated one in three kids in child-care centers and preschools will face yet another, unplanned transition during the school year: A teacher or classroom aide will quit his or her job to move on to a better-paying opportunity.

The problem calls for better planning by child-care facilities and greater awareness and activism among parents, to minimize the risks of upheaval in kids' lives.

While there's no recent national research on teacher turnover at child-care centers and preschools, several experts estimated that 20 percent to 40 percent of teachers quit their jobs each year — two to four times the turnover in public K-12 schools, which are scrambling for teachers as well.

"Teacher turnover is one of the most serious and complicated issues in early-childhood education," says Jeffrey Capizzano, public policy and research director for Teaching Strategies, a Washington, D.C., publishing and training concern. "Low pay, poor benefits and a stressful work environment combine to create a turnover rate far higher" than many other occupations. Average pay is $10 an hour, and only one-third of child-care staffers get health insurance through their jobs, says a study released in 2005 by Keystone Research, Harrisburg, Pa.; the Economic Policy Institute, Washington; and others.

The impact on a child of losing a beloved teacher depends on the depth of the child's attachment, says Stanley Greenspan, a professor of psychiatry and pediatrics at George Washington University Medical School. If the child spends only a few hours a week with the teacher, "it's a loss, but like an aunt moving out of town," he says. But if the teacher has cared for the child for long hours over an extended period, the departure can trigger despondency and impulsive behavior, and may feed a lifelong fear of loved ones' leaving. Parents can avert emotional damage by offering extra comfort, support and reassurance.

There has been little or no improvement in turnover in recent years, says Steve Barnett, director of the National Institute for Early Education Research, a New Brunswick, N.J., nonprofit. Studies show well-trained and educated child-care staffers tend to stick with their jobs longest. Many facilities aren't prepared to handle turnover, says Angela Wiley, an associate professor of family life at the University of Illinois, Urbana, who has studied the problem.

After Julia McGill enrolled her son in a Charlottesville, Va., child-care center several years ago, he had four different teachers in just three weeks. Every time she or her husband asked, "Where's Miss Suzie?" the original teacher, they got a different answer, says Julia McGill: "She had an appointment in town; she was sick; her mother was sick; she had a family emergency." Frustrated, McGill withdrew her son and quit her job to free-lance as a journalist. "It was an awful experience," she says.

A few states are making headway on the problem. In most California counties, the "CARES" program, funded partly by a tobacco tax, pays stipends to early-childhood teachers for getting training and degrees; follow-up studies show reduced turnover among participants. The programs, however, have been able to reach only a relatively few teachers.

The best defense for parents is a good offense. Experts say parents should look for programs that pay teachers well — a difficult strategy, of course, for parents already paying as much as they can afford.

It's important to support training and incentive programs for teachers. Knowledge Learning Corp., Portland, Ore.-based operator of 2,120 child-care centers, closes its centers for a full day twice a year for paid teacher training, says Toni Jaffe, senior vice president, human resources.

Ask if your child-care center has a plan for helping children through a teacher's departure; in an Illinois survey of 108 child-care centers, Wiley found only 59 percent had such a plan. Ideally, the teacher who is leaving should be the one who tells the children, Wiley says. And each classroom should have more than one adult permanently assigned, to provide some consistency.
In some cases, suggesting supports for kids falls to parents.

After Carol Pilgrim, now a nurse practitioner in Boston, learned from the director at Jackson's child-care center that his well-liked teacher wouldn't be returning, she insisted the director bring the teacher back for a day to spend a little time with the kids. The director did so, Pilgrim says, and the children got to say goodbye — seemingly a small thing, but easy enough to arrange, and a great comfort to Jackson.

Day care operators are ‘in crisis’
By Matthew Little

Early child care workers are undervalued and underpaid, say a panel of day care centre owners, staff and parents.They spoke at a news conference held Wednesday afternoon at the Nakwaye Ku Child Care Centre at Yukon College.

“The wage issue is in crisis. We aren’t paid for the valuable work we do,” said Heidi Spinks, a staff members at the Care-A-Lot day care in Riverdale.

Day care workers, many of whom have university accredidation in early childhood education, are getting paid less than major department store staff – as little as $9 or $10 per hour, said members of the panel.

The day cares are unable to keep staff because staff wages can be easily surpassed at department store and service industry jobs that have far less stress, said Craig Dempsey, a concerned parent.

“We’re in a situation where we have early child care educators getting paid less than an unskilled labourer,” he said.

As a result, accredited early child care workers are lost to unskilled jobs. As well, children suffer the consequences of a higher turnover rate of child care workers and a difficulty to keep accredited educators, he said.Day cares are in a difficult position because raising fees to pay higher wages would put day care services out of the reach of many parents. That would force people to quit work to stay home with their children, said Miranda Colbert, director of the Nlaye Ndasadaye day care.

That loss of income would also bring down the families’ standard of living, she added.Child care worker and mother Echo Johnson is a perfect example. If childcare workers were paid appropriate to their education and importance of the role they play in society, they would not be able to afford their own services.

“I can’t afford to pay $1,400, $1,300 (monthly) for child care,” she said.

Helen Voogd, a local parent, told the story of a friend she had who left the child care sector. “She left because she was tired.” Voogd said the woman now works for more money and less stress.

“It was a loss to the child care sector and she loved it.”

In a telephone interview today, Colbert underscored the importance of the work early child care educators do.

“When you run a day care, you not only watch the children for the parents; you help them develop their social skills through organizing play or activities,” Colbert said.

“I have some special needs children; we’re teaching them some basic skills most people take for granted, like holding a pencil. And of course, we’re helping them with their emotional skills.”

Colbert also points out that in her work, she helps frustrated toddlers who can’t communicate their emotions properly to not resort to biting and hitting.

“We teach them how to express those emotions properly…and the skills to cope with them."

Colbert said kids who learn how to deal with these emotions when they’re young are less likely to become violent as adults. “The first five years of your child’s life are the most important.”She referred to studies showing that kids who spend time during those formative years in quality early education centres are less likely to commit crime in adulthood. Studies have also found the kids have better social skills and lower occurrence of drug use.

Colbert and other members of the staff said the loss of accredited early child care educators was putting the entire day care industry at risk. The panelists pointed out that licensed early childhood education centres must have 50 per cent of their staff with level one early childhood education accreditation. Twenty per cent of their staff must have level three accreditation. In Whitehorse, they said, as many as 98 per cent of the daycares are in non-compliance.

“Centres will be forced to close,” said Desharnais.

“The government is making it so we need to have these educated staff. They should ensure that we can by making it a lucrative career choice for the people,” Colbert said today.

“Most people aren’t going into early childhood education anymore.”

Colbert points out that ultimately, it is the families, like the 40 families who bring their kids to her centre daily who will suffer the consequences if the day care industry can’t sustain itself.

The Star attempted to engage Health and Social Services Minister Brad Cathers in a discussion of the day care operators’ problems, but was told the minister would not be
available.

To raise awareness about the near-crisis day care centres are in, the Yukon Child Care Association will be asking parents and concerned citizens to sign addressed postcards that will be mailed to Yukon MLAs and MP Larry Bagnell.

The postcards point out:
• “Childcare subsidies have not increased in 12 years.”
• “The direct operating grant does not meet the real costs of operating a child care facility”
• “Many childhood educators are living below the poverty line."
• “Most of a child’s learning happens by the time they are five years of age.”

The Value of Play for Preschool Children
Debbie Wilburn 9/12/06

To some people, play is something to keep children amused and out of mischief. It is what children do until they are big enough for the serious work of school. But, in fact, play is more than a diversion. It is how children learn.

What do children learn from play? Many things. They learn about objects, events, and concepts (softness and hardness, for example). They gain various skills such as coordinating finger muscles. They learn how to group and classify objects and make sense of things. They learn about cause and effect and how to solve simple problems. They learn how to express feelings and get along with others. They gain confidence in themselves and their abilities. They begin to think about their world in new ways (by pretending to be someone else, for example).

Your job is to guide children's learning through play. You do that by giving children time and space to play, providing play materials that match their ages and development, and talking with them about their play.

Many parents have mixed feelings about play. They think it is all right for children to spend part of their time playing, but they worry that children are supposed to be "working" at learning. That is why many parents look for child care that will teach their 3- and 4-year-olds beginning skills in reading, math, and even computers.

Play is children's work. Play is how children learn, and children at different age levels learn in different ways. Between 2 and 7 years, children learn by playing with things in first-hand experiences (learning that cotton is absorbent by dipping it in water rather than by being told about it, for example).

Children need time and space to play with little direction from anyone. Free play allows children to choose things that are meaningful and interesting to them. It allows them to learn in a casual, incidental way. An example is showing the child a room with blocks. You watch the child, respond to her, and keep her from throwing blocks, but essentially you leave the child free to do what she wants.

While free play is important, at times you will want to extend the children's learning experiences through directed play. You are the one who chooses an activity, and you do it with the children. One morning, for example, you have your preschoolers try finger painting with shaving cream. You spread paper on the floor, spray a mound of shaving cream for each child, and encourage the children to touch it and move it around on the paper. You talk about what you are doing and ask children how it feels.

Tips for Encouraging Play

• Give children plenty of time to play. Avoid offering play as a reward for finishing work or hurrying children to finish.
• Give children plenty of room to play. Arrange definite play spaces inside the home and in the yard.
• Provide a variety of interesting materials-household items, toys, art materials, books, puzzles. These do not have to be elaborate, but they should be appropriate to the children's ages.
• Remember that children's social development is different at different ages. Older children play cooperatively.
• Give children clear limits. This can be done not only by what you say but also by how you arrange the room and which materials you set out.
• Encourage children to put away one set of things before getting out another. At the same time, allow for some flexibility in the uses of certain items. Watch the children for cues, and plan to provide different sets of things from time to time.
• Watch children as they play to learn about their likes, dislikes, and interests. Encourage children to talk about what they are doing and how they feel. Use new words to expand their vocabulary.
• Join in children's play occasionally. Get down on the floor and build a block house, or turn lunch into a pretend restaurant with you and the children playing waiters, cooks, and customers.

Ideas for the Days When You Need "Something New"
Following are some reminders of things to do when you need a change of pace.

1. Boxes-Use large boxes such as appliance boxes or furniture boxes to create play houses. Think creatively. Make one box a castle, another a western fort, and yet another a space ship. If there are no large boxes available near you, try building the same kind of thing with smaller ones. Any store that sells toilet tissue will have fairly large boxes that work nicely.Use smaller boxes to create a town. Draw streets, ponds, trees, and other features onto an old sheet or shower curtain. (Note: if you use washable markers, it will wash out when you are done.) Let the children create houses, stores, hospitals, and more. It will be interesting to learn what buildings they think are important. Make horses, race cars, doll furniture . . . ask the children what they think the boxes should
   be.
2. Rocks-Find smooth rocks or go on a rock hunt with the children. Wash the rocks. Paint the rocks. Sort the rocks by size, color, and texture. Ask the children what they would like to do with the rocks-they'll have lots of ideas.
3. Collages, Mobiles, and Sculptures-Gather magazines, yarn, scraps of wood, leaves (non-poisonous ones), weeds, ribbon scraps, and anything else that happens to be around. Make a collage on a piece of paper, or create a bird's nest or sculpture of some sort from the collection. Older children may wish to attach items to a coat hanger to create a mobile. Hang the items from strings attached to the hanger. They will have an opportunity to create a work of art and learn how to balance the items on the hanger.
4. Baker's Clay-Mold it, shape it, and use it just as you would clay except that you can bake the finished products if you wish. Baker's Clay Recipe: 2 cups flour, 1/4 cup salt, 1/4 cup water. Knead until soft and thoroughly mixed. Bake pieces at 350 degrees until lightly browned. Children should not eat the clay, nor should they eat from the finished pieces. You will want to remove any spills before they dry, as the air-dried clay is very hard.
5. Plastic Bottles-Use for pouring, dramatic play, or science projects like "Tornado in a Bottle" or "Ocean in a Bottle." Tornado in a Bottle requires two one-liter soda bottles. Fill one bottle ¾ full with water. Place the mouth of the empty bottle to the mouth of the one with water, and use duct tape to seal them. The children can swirl the bottles and then set them down with the empty one down and see a mini "tornado" swirl in the water. Ocean in a Bottle can be created in a small baby oil bottle or something similar. Fill the bottle ½ full of baby oil and the other half full of water that has been colored with food coloring. Again, seal the bottle with duct tape. The oil and water will not mix, and the result is a visual delight. The children will be able to position the bottles so it appears that waves are flowing through the bottles.

Source: The Child Care Provider Program: Training for Family Day Homes & Licensed Facilities. Texas Cooperative Extension

Hi Tammy,
Thank you for participating in Jumpstart’s Read for the Record and helping set the world record for the most children reading with an adult on August 24, 2006! Not only did you read with a child in your life, but you also helped raise awareness about early childhood education for all children.

I’m elated by the outpouring of support and the level of participation nationwide - based on documentation which has been sent in to date, 140,387 people participated at over 800 events in 45 states!

To see event photos and updates on the final count of participants, please visit Jumpstart’s Read for the Record website. In addition, tell us about your record-setting experience and your suggestions for Jumpstart's Read for the Record 2007.

Don’t let the excitement stop here - I also invite you, your friends and family to participate in the new Jumpstart to Kindergarten program. By signing up at http://rs6.net/tn.jsp?t=xachsxbab.0.5hkcfybab.wydb5tbab.4364&ts=S0207&p=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.jstart.org%2Fjs2k, families will receive monthly updates tailored to the developmental milestones of their child – what his age appropriate reading level is, how her brain is developing – as well as suggested reading and activities to help their child succeed in school.

Thank you for your participation in Jumpstart’s Read for the Record Campaign 2006 and see you next year!

How Play Contributes to Your Child's School Readiness
Invest in Kids' Back-to-School Tip

- Back-to-school time may be as exciting for your preschooler as it is for children familiar with the experience. Whether your child is just starting or continuing kindergarten, or your family is settling into a new, more structured fall routine, the parenting experts at www.investinkids.ca show you how getting ready for school can be a lot of fun for both you and your child.

Here are a few tips on how play and playing with your child can improve your child's school readiness in so many ways.

• Communication: Play with Spoken and Written Words
  - Show your child how writing can help him to express his ideas. When your child draws pictures, ask him to tell you a story about them and write down his words. This allows him to see the relationship between spoken words and text. Include paper and writing tools among his toys and dramatic play props so he can explore the different ways he sees writing used through his imaginative play (e.g. making lists or creating a birthday card). As he practices printing he will discover that the magical markings he is making have meaning!
• Basic Knowledge: Play to Encourage Literacy and Basic Math Skills
  - Build your child's understanding of math concepts like counting, sorting, patterning, recognizing shapes and measuring through his every day play. Recite rhymes like One, Two, Buckle My Shoe to familiarize your child with number words. When your child plays with toys, count them so he can match the words to actual objects. At tidy up time he can sort the cars, people and blocks into separate baskets. Make necklaces from beads of different shapes, sizes and colors to create patterns. Provide building materials for your child or recyclable items for creating three-dimensional artwork. Make a growth chart so your child can discover how tall he is. Exploring math in ways that are fun will add to his math skills one by one!
• Socializing: Play to Support your Child's Interactions
  - Play and interact with your child every day. Parents are a child's first playmate, so it is important to make time together for games and make-believe. When you play with your child, you will see things from her point of view and have the chance to follow her lead. She will also learn from your example and have your support as she learns about rules, other people's feelings and solving problems. Entering the world of your child's play helps your child to enter the world of school confidently!
• Being Independent: Play to Build Confidence and Self-Control
  - Help your child to develop strategies for controlling his emotions, behaviors and thoughts. Talk about the way people in storybooks and pictures are feeling, and talk about what might cause those feelings. This will teach your child the words for different emotions and help your child to describe his own feelings and those of other people. When playing games together, be a positive influence if your child gets upset. Help him to be calm, to try to remain positive and to know that he might not win or be first all the time. Being able to calm himself on his own will help your child be more excited about being and playing with friends!

There are many things that happen at home every day that help to build a strong foundation for your child's success in school. Remember, the time you spend playing with your child now is an investment in her future!

To read a full tip sheet on this topic, visit www.investinkids.ca and look for "How Can Play Contribute to My Child's School Readiness?" in the Answers for Parents. You will also find there additional tip sheets on school readiness and other topics. The site offers parents a wealth of parenting and child development information to help them support their child's healthy social, emotional and intellectual development.

Invest in Kids is a national charity dedicated to helping parents become the parents they want and need to be. By translating the science of parenting and child development into engaging, easy-to-understand, relevant resources for parents and professionals, Invest in Kids aims to strengthen the parenting knowledge, skills and confidence of all those who touch the lives of our youngest children to ensure the healthy social, emotional and intellectual development of children from birth to age five.