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Family child care providers expect to join union.
After three years of organizing and lobbying, the results of a vote to unionize some 6,000 family child care providers is expected today.

If the election is successful, Maryland will join 10 states, including Illinois, Washington and Oregon, that have unionized since 2005, and family child care providers in the state will become members of the Service Employees International Union Local 500, or SEIU.

SEIU Local 500 represents roughly 10,000 education, government and community services workers in Washington D.C. and Maryland.

Unionizing the state's family child care providers could affect up to 70,000 children in Maryland, said SEIU spokeswoman Sadie Crabtree. The election has been going on for two weeks.

"We expect the announcement is going to be positive," Crabtree said. Child care crisis

Maryland has lost nearly 3,000 licensed family child care providers since 1994, SEIU said. According to the union, Maryland providers earn an average $15,840 a year, after subtracting operating expenses.

In Frederick, said Shannon Aleshire, the director of Frederick County's Child Care
Choices, the organization is losing providers every month, despite the county's population explosion. Nine years ago, when she joined the agency, there were about 730 providers, an number that has since decreased to 500.

Aleshire thinks stiffer state regulations may have contributed to the decline, although the precise reasons why have been difficult to track.

She could not comment on unionization plans.

The dearth of providers in the state has made it hard for working parents to find someone to cheaply take care of their children.

"Child care has become a crisis for children, parent and providers," said Madie Green, a District Heights provider for more than 25 years, in an SEIU statement.

"Parents are struggling to find affordable, quality child care, but a lot of providers just can't afford to keep our doors open."

Unionizing will include allowing negotiation with the state for more training opportunities, access to affordable health care, and better reimbursement from Maryland's childcare assistance program, according to the SEIU.

Opposition
The election has been opposed by the Maryland State Family Child Care Association, a non-profit organization that has represented family providers in Maryland since 1983, according to a position statement.

The association said it recognizes the benefits that union power can bring to family child care providers, but that SEIU had used high pressure recruitment tactics in which union officials had misrepresented themselves.

"However, due to SEIU's history and organizing tactics here in Maryland, we do not feel that they are the right union for Maryland's family child care providers," the statement said.

Two bills supported by SEIU seeking the right to unionize family providers had failed, the association said. The union turned to Gov. Martin O'Malley to sign an executive order authorizing the election, to whom the union had donated a "very large campaign contribution," the association's statement continues. "SEIU is not trusted in the child care community, or by many legislators," the association's statement said. "Providers should be represented by an organization that has the respect of policy makers and the early childhood community, not by SEIU," the association stated.

Executive order
On Aug. 6, O'Malley, authorizing the election through an executive order, acknowledged,
"There is a need to stabilize the family child care workforce."

Those child care providers, located throughout the state, "may not be able to effectively voice their common concerns," about participation in the Maryland Child Care Subsidy Program, regulation of child care services in the state, and challenges to the profession such as access to affordable health care, the executive order goes on to say.

The child care crisis we are experiencing now is nothing compared to what will happen if providers are forced to pay union fees. That is what the union has been lobbying for for the past 3 years or more. If SEIU has it's way, self-employeed childcare providers who accept clients that use state subsidies to pay for childcare will see that state subsidy check reduced by the amount of the union fees, regardless of any desire to join the union or any benefits received from the union. What self-employeed person, with any understanding of business or desire to pay their own bills is going to let that happen. The result is that providers will refuse to care for low income families who receive state funds. The poorest families will not be able to find childcare so that they can go to work and work their way out of poverty. The poor stay poor. The dependance on welfare is increased and everyone else in the state pays for it.

Sorry. Affordable Daycare and Union just don't go togather. How is this supposed to help the couple looking for daycare? Sounds like a ploy to add union workers more then help daycare.

// posted by Tammy Wachter @ 1:00 PM 0 comments

I found this information to be pretty interesting and accurate...

// posted by Tammy Wachter @ 4:02 PM 0 comments

Motherhood is a common path to the home-based child care business, but more childless women looking for self-employment options also are getting into the field.

“There has been some shift in that,” said Marsha Hearn-Lindsey, director of programs for locally based Child Care Answers, which provides free technical training to Indiana care givers. Nearly 3,000 Indiana child-care providers are licensed to provide services in their homes—including 469 in Marion County.

Other homebased centers are small enough that they don’t require state approval.

However difficult they are to quantify, home child-care centers are a popular enough enterprise that an Indianapolis notfor-profit is launching an intensive training program to equip operators with necessary business skills. In fact, home-based child care is the most common idea clients bring to the Central Indiana Women’s Business Center, said Director Sharon O’Donoghue. And it’s a good fit for many of them thanks to low startup costs and a steady supply of potential customers.

“It’s a great field if you have a passion for children,” said Quensetta Adams, who oversees the child-care training program for Neighborhood Self-Employment Initiative. NSI and its Women’s Business Center affiliate are teaming up to offer the new three-month training program for child- and elder-care providers.

There’s often more to running these micro-businesses than it might appear at first blush. And for many owners, the business know-how doesn’t come as naturally as the child-care skills. When Tudor started her business in 2001, for example, she kept receipts and records in a shoebox. After all, she thought she would be doing it only until her daughter was in kindergarten.

“I started with teaching the children of friends from church and enjoyed it,” she said. Before long, she was hooked. “It’s my new passion. It’s a business, but it’s also a ministry.” She signed up for business classes through the NSI and moved record keeping to the computer and grew the business. Now she runs Rays of Sunshine Licensed Childcare, two licensed child-care homes in the Garfield Park neighborhood near Raymond and Shelby streets. There, she and two part-time and two full-time employees care for 30 children. She also is planning to open a licensed center nearby.

Start small
Tudor’s experience is a textbook example of why Adams recommends that home providers start small. Once a child-care center looks after more than five children, it must be licensed by the state. It’s better to work out the kinks before that happens. In the training program, Adams walks many of the women through the basics of developing a business plan, forecasting revenue, managing cash flow and marketing. Marketing can be one of the biggest stumbling points. Adams said she has to push clients to come up with a unique selling point for their services.

“Not everybody wants to drop a child off just because you do baby-sitting,” she said.

O’Donoghue agreed, saying the emphasis has really shifted to focusing on the child’s development.

“Today’s child-care environment is a cross between parenting other people’s kids and home schooling—getting children kindergarten-ready,” she said.

Providers can specialize by offering Spanish instruction or dance classes, for example. They also should develop a curriculum—whether it’s one that focuses on teaching skills or more fun, creative activities. The more distinctive, the better, Adams said.

For example, one client went into the business with her mother and played up the grandmother figure, calling her home “The Nanny’s that’s like Granny’s.”

Once a provider figures out the business’s niche, Adams recommends in-person meetings with potential clients rather than mass marketing. “We don’t promote that owners put fliers on windshields at Kroger,” she said. Instead, they should contact businesses and churches in their area to tell them about the new child-care option nearby.

Challenges
Eventually, successful providers may grow their businesses to the point where they need state licensing—and the challenges that come with that. Tudor said when she started, it was easier to pack the kids up to run a quick errand or take a trip to the park. Now, she has to deal with parental consent forms and liability insurance.

“It can be confining,” she said.

It also can mean few days off.

Debbie Belles started her home-based center in Irvington 13 years ago when she wanted to stay home with her daughters. With a background in early education and experience working in schools and larger centers, Belles started with a few clients through her church. She’s now licensed to watch 10 children. Belles said she’s only closed her home child-care center four times in all those years—twice because she was sick and twice for deaths in the family.

“I have some times when I just want a day off, but I have parents depending on me,” she said. “Think about how much time you want to put into it. It’s a real big commitment.”

Belles, whose husband also is selfemployed, struggles to find affordable health insurance. And she’s glad to have her family’s support living amid a collection of bouncy seats and children’s toys.

“Make sure your family is behind you, because it does take over your house,” she said.

Neither child-care provider would share financial details, but home-based care in central Indiana generally costs $100 to $200 a week for each child. Tudor said she makes less now than she did as a nurse, but she loves watching the children develop and grow.

“Children are beautiful creatures,” she said. “Sometimes your compensation isn’t all in money.”

• Take training and continue your education. No matter how well you do, there is always more to learn and ways to improve.
• Participate in local child care organizations. They provide information and even more importantly, people to network with.
• Participate in child care conferences for the training and the networking as well as seeing new ideas and products to use in your child care.
• Stay informed on legislative issues and news conceerning children and child care.

// posted by Tammy Wachter @ 2:58 PM 0 comments

Read article at http://www.herald-review.com/articles/2007/09/01/life/features/1026160.txt

// posted by Tammy Wachter @ 4:24 PM 0 comments

• Connect with other caring classrooms.
• Track your class’s progress toward the ClassroomsCare goal.
• Take part in contests and activities.
• Find out where books are being donated.
• And much, much more!

// posted by Tammy Wachter @ 2:48 PM 0 comments

While hundreds of families are welcoming home soldiers who recently returned from Iraq, there are others who still wait anxiously for loved ones to come home. There is a group is offering free child care for families with a parent in the military. The Surge Support Child Care Project allows providers to find families in need and offer their services.

There are 12,000 Minnesota children with a parent in the National Guard. The idea for the program came after news of an extension was announced in January for the National Guard, Program Manager Marcia Schlattman said. The project's goal is to allow parents to attend support group meetings, to get some time alone or simply to run errands.

Nearly 500 child care providers are participating.

Free ongoing, full-time child care for deployed military families is already offered through Operation Child Care. But the support program is meant to complement it with off-hour, occasional and Saturday care. The project is an initiative of the Minnesota Child Care Resource and Referral Network, the National Association of Child Care Resource and Referral Agencies, Minnesota National Guard and Army Reserve.

For information, call Child Care Choices at 251-5081 or visit its Web site at www.mnchildcare.org.

In addition, the Surge Program offers training for caregivers who are working with military families and is based on the Military Child Education Coalition Curriculum: Supporting teh Childrne of the Guard and Reserve. Information on the MCEC can be found at www.militarychild.org.

// posted by Tammy Wachter @ 6:32 PM 0 comments

ECONOMIST Arthur Rolnick has a tip for states: Forget spending public money on sports stadiums or incentives to attract companies. "I can get you a better return," he said.

The hot tip from this vice president at the Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis: preschool. Spend wisely, he argues, and the annual return on investment should be 16 percent, in part because preschool can help cut spending on remedial education and jail.

But states don't have to take Rolnick's word. They can judge by watching a preschool experiment being run by Rolnick and the Minnesota Early Learning Foundation.

Using public and private resources, the project's goal is to "empower Mom," in Rolnick's words, by providing mentors and money. Public health nurses will provide support and information to low-income pregnant women, with the goal of creating parent-consumers who will demand rich educational choices for their children. These families will also get scholarship money to spend on such programs. Rolnick argues that these choosy mothers with money will stimulate the marketplace to create more high-quality preschool programs.

Some 1,200 families will be part of the pilot program.

Such experiments are valuable because they provide evidence of how or how not to gird poor children for success. Children in the initiative will take that state's school readiness test. The entire program, which will start next year, will be independently assessed.

The effort could also produce innovations in how states pay for preschool. Once Minnesota sees what preschool can do, Rolnick says, the state should create a $1.5 billion endow ment using state, federal, and private money, so that programs for poor children will have a dedicated stream of funding. Benefits could include declines in infant mortality and low birth weights, as well as increases in children's cognitive and social skills.

States may not rush to set up billion-dollar preschool trust funds. But pieces of this experiment could be borrowed or adapted.

If the mentoring program works, its terms might be expanded to include help with careers, financial literacy, homeownership, or other issues that promote economic stability. And the scholarships proposal should offer insights into whether a free market driven by parental choices is enough to expand high-quality preschool, or if public-policy nudges are also needed. Judgments will be made over decades as states measure long-term outcomes.

But it pays to act now. Grooming infants and young children for success is a better investment than helping adolescents and adults compensate for weaknesses.

// posted by Tammy Wachter @ 4:01 PM 0 comments

I was on a parenting bulletin board recently and read a post by a mother who was worried that her 4 1/2 year old did not know enough.

"What should a 4 year old know?" she asked. Most of the answers left me not only saddened but pretty soundly annoyed. One mom posted a laundry list of all of the things her son knew. Counting to 100, planets, how to write his first and last name, and on and on. Others chimed in with how much more their children already knew, some who were only 3. A few posted URL's to lists of what each age should know. The fewest yet said that each child develops at his own pace and not to worry.

It bothered me greatly to see these mothers responding to a worried mom by adding to her concern, with lists of all the things their children could do that hers couldn't. We are such a competitive culture that even our preschoolers have become trophies and bragging rights.

Childhood shouldn't be a race. So here, I offer my list of what a 4 year old should know.

1. She should know that she is loved wholly and unconditionally, all of the time.

2. He should know that he is safe and he should know how to keep himself safe in public, with others, and in varied situations. He should know that he can trust his instincts about people and that he never has to do something that doesn't feel right, no matter who is asking. He should know his personal rights and that his family will back them up.

3. She should know how to laugh, act silly, be goofy and use her imagination. She should know that it is always okay to paint the sky orange and give cats 6 legs.

4. He should know his own interests and be encouraged to follow them. If he could care less about learning his numbers, his parents should realize he'll learn them accidentally soon enough and let him immerse himself instead in rocket ships, drawing, dinosaurs or playing in the mud.

5. She should know that the world is magical and that so is she. She should know that she's wonderful, brilliant, creative, compassionate and marvelous. She should know that it's just as worthy to spend the day outside making daisy chains, mud pies and fairy houses as it is to practice phonics. Scratch that-- way more worthy.

But more important, here's what parents need to know.

1. That every child learns to walk, talk, read and do algebra at his own pace and that it will have no bearing on how well he walks, talks, reads or does algebra.

2. That the single biggest predictor of high academic achievement and high ACT scores is reading to children. Not flash cards, not workbooks, not fancy preschools, not blinking toys or computers, but mom or dad taking the time every day or night (or both!) to sit and read them wonderful books.

3. That being the smartest or most accomplished kid in class has never had any bearing on being the happiest. We are so caught up in trying to give our children "advantages" that we're giving them lives as multi-tasked and stressful as ours. One of the biggest advantages we can give our children is a simple, carefree childhood.

4. That our children deserve to be surrounded by books, nature, art supplies and the freedom to explore them. Most of us could get rid of 90% of our children's toys and they wouldn't be missed, but some things are important-- building toys like legos and blocks, creative toys like all types of art materials (good stuff), musical instruments (real ones and multicultural ones), dress up clothes and books, books, books. (Incidentally, much of this can be picked up quite cheaply at thrift shops.) They need to have the freedom to explore with these things too-- to play with scoops of dried beans in the high chair (supervised, of course), to knead bread and make messes, to use paint and play dough and glitter at the kitchen table while we make supper even though it gets everywhere, to have a spot in the yard where it's absolutely fine to dig up all the grass and make a mud pit.

5. That our children need more of us. We have become so good at saying that we need to take care of ourselves that some of us have used it as an excuse to have the rest of the world take care of our kids. Yes, we all need undisturbed baths, time with friends, sanity breaks and an occasional life outside of parenthood. But we live in a time when parenting magazines recommend trying to commit to 10 minutes a day with each child and scheduling one Saturday a month as family day. That's not okay! Our children don't need Nintendos, computers, after school activities, ballet lessons, play groups and soccer practice nearly as much as they need US.

They need fathers who sit and listen to their days, mothers who join in and make crafts with them, parents who take the time to read them stories and act like idiots with them. They need us to take walks with them and not mind the .1 MPH pace of a toddler on a spring night. They deserve to help us make supper even though it takes twice as long and makes it twice as much work. They deserve to know that they're a priority for us and that we truly love to be with them.

And now back to those 4 year old skills lists.....I know it's human nature to want to know how our children compare to others and to want to make sure we're doing all we can for them. Here is a list of what children are typically taught or should know by the end of each year of school, starting with preschool:http://www.worldbook.com/wb/Students?curriculum

Since we homeschool, I occasionally print out the lists and check to see if there's anything glaringly absent in what my kids know. So far there hasn't been, but I get ideas sometimes for subjects to think up games about or books to check out from the library. Whether you homeschool or not, the lists can be useful to see what kids typically learn each year and can be reassuring that they really are doing fine.If there are areas where it seems your child is lacking, realize that it's not an indication of failure for either you or your child. You just haven't happened to cover that. Kids will learn whatever they're exposed to, and the idea that they all need to know these 15 things at this precise age is rather silly.

Still, if you want him to have those subjects covered then just work it into life and play with the subject and he'll naturally pick it up. Count to 60 when you're mixing a cake and he'll pick up his numbers. Get fun books from the library about space or the alphabet. Experiment with everything from backyard snow to celery stalks in food coloring. It'll all happen naturally, with much more fun and much less pressure.

My favorite advice about preschoolers is on this site though: http://www.redshift.com/~bonajo/early.htm

What does a 4 year old need? Much less than we realize, and much more.

// posted by Tammy Wachter @ 3:24 PM 0 comments

Jumpstart’s Read for the Record is fast approaching! We are so excited that all of you are helping us break the record for the most children reading the same book, The Story of Ferdinand, with an adult on the same day, September 20, in support of early education!

Special Edition Campaign Books on Sale Starting Today!Custom editions of The Story of Ferdinand are on sale at Toys “R” Us, American Eagle Outfitters and Hanna Andersson retail stores; books may also be purchased through www.readfortherecord.org/books
or http://www.hannaandersson.com/.

Pearson is underwriting all publishing costs, making it possible for Jumpstart to receive 100% of the money raised through the sale of these special edition books. Books sold out quickly last year, so buy them for your friends, family, and community today!

Hundreds of Events are Being Planned
On Thursday, September 20, hundreds of reading events will be held across the country, including Rockefeller Plaza, every Toys “R” Store, many Hyatt Hotels & Resorts, libraries, schools, and homes. To find an event in your community, check out the Event Finder. New events are added every day…so check back frequently to find a convenient and fun event in your area!

Online Store Available
Jumpstart’s Read for the Record campaign store is now up and running on the campaign website. You can order T-shirts, hats, magnets, stickers and more to use during your event or as souvenirs to remember how much fun you had reading The Story of Ferdinand on September 20!

Bright Horizons Virtual Book Fair
The Bright Horizons Virtual Book Fair celebrates early literacy and excellence in children's literature and is supporting Jumpstart’s Read for the Record during the month of September. Explore the works of acclaimed children’s authors and illustrators and examine what makes a great book. Be sure to visit the Virtual Book Fair to browse and purchase children’s books, download podcast interviews with children’s authors, make your own bookmark, participate in live auctions, and learn more about nurturing the love of books in your child.

Visit http://www.readfortherecord.org/ for additional ways to get involved and stay tuned for more updates!

// posted by Tammy Wachter @ 4:12 PM 0 comments

Music to the Ears

• Use Lots of Description.
  Describe what your child has done, rather than evaluate it. Instead of saying, “You are very generous.” Say, “I see you shared your cookie with Lilly. That was very thoughtful. Look at how happy she looks.”


• Keep Compliments Specific.
  This helps a child learn to feel good about his efforts, rather than the finished product. So instead of saying “Good job!” say, “You really worked hard to build that tower.”


• Point Out the Positive.
  Try to comment on what your child has done right before you note the negative. “Wow! You got dressed all by yourself! Let’s just turn your sweater around so the tag is in the back.”


• Celebrate Trying.
  Let your child know that you’ve noticed how hard he’s been working to learn a new skill. “You turned and turned that piece until you got it to fit in the puzzle.”


• Recognize “Quiet” Accomplishments.
  When your child rises to a challenge, let him know you noticed. “I know you were nervous about going to the dentist, but you stayed calm and didn’t complain. You must be proud of yourself."

• Family Fun offers several healthy ways to praise.
• Learn some ways to praise your toddler at Scholastic.
• Raising Children Network presents some tips for praise and encouragement.
• The Power of PraiseFrom New Mexico State University Download Now
• Praise That Builds A Child’s Self EsteemFrom University of Wisconsin Extension Download Now

We are always quick to correct bad or dangerous behavior... let's be just as quick to recognize the good! Hope that you all had a wonderful Labor Day holiday and if your child care is like mine, now that the last of the older kids are in school, maybe your child care will be a little calmer as well.

// posted by Tammy Wachter @ 12:31 PM 0 comments