This month's newsletter is full of fantastic information, including info on our Literacy Campaign... be sure to scroll all the way through so you don't miss anything!
Don't forget to sign up for our free monthly e-newsletter, HERE.
Upcoming Events for Families
Keep scrolling down to find more information about our campaign, along with a Reading Log that you can print and use! We invite all local families with children aged 0-5, and child care providers, to participate! Our Literacy Campaign will be continuing through June 2022!
Join us soon for free play, activities, fun, and snacks for ages 0-5... open to all Amador County parents, grandparents, care givers, Family, Friend & Neighbor child care providers, etc!
1) JACKSON In-Person Playgroups now held EVERY TUESDAY!
AND
2) 3 new locations for the Winter months, with Curbside Kits and once-per-month In-Person playgroups!
Click link above, or see flyer below for updated schedule and more information. A new, updated schedule/flyer is released every month.
Saturday, March 26
10:00 am - 11:00 am
975 Broadway, Jackson
Calling all dads, uncles, grandpas, etc! Pick up your child's FREE curbside activity kit filled with supplies needed to create your own Storytelling-themed fun! Also includes a children's book to enjoy! Dads, grandpas, etc. do not need to be present to pick up. Click link above, or see flyer below.
Saturday, April 9
11:00 am - 2:00 pm
Argonaut High School, Jackson
We're back in person! Be sure to join us for the 24th Annual event... everything is FREE! Click link above, or see flyer below for more details.
The Upcountry School Readiness Program has openings! Tuesdays are held in Pine Grove at the Upcountry Community Center, and Wednesdays are held in Camanche at the Camanche Lake Community Center. This free program is for children aged 3 through 5, to help them prepare for Kindergarten. Click link above, or see flyer below.
If you are expecting or celebrating the arrival of a new baby, be sure to request a Baby Welcome Wagon visit! Free to ALL families in Amador County! For questions and to get signed up, call First 5 Amador at 257-1092. Click links above for updated flyer and referral form.
If you are looking for help paying for child care, The Resource Connection has recently been given the ability to enroll more families. To check your eligibility and get yourself on the waiting list, please visit here. Or call The Resource Connection at 209-754-1075.
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Announcements for
Child Care Providers
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All licensed family child care providers and private preschool center staff in Amador County are eligible to participate in this county-wide quality improvement initiative! We have kicked off a new fiscal year of participation! If you are interested in getting signed up, please contact us HERE to request information and participation forms. It's simple to sign up, you can earn a wide variety of exciting stipends, and benefit in so many other ways!
Family, Friend & Neighbor (FFN) child care providers (non-licensed) are also eligible to participate in Amador Quality for Kids, if they would like to! There are some pretty exciting incentives that you can earn if you are interested... please see here for FFN-specific Incentive Guidelines. Please give First 5 Amador a call if you would like to learn more, at 257-1092 or email here.
If interested, there is a free online Health & Safety Course specifically designed for Family, Friend & Neighbor child care providers, here. As mentioned in our Incentive Guidelines (link above), you can earn a new, high-quality First Aid Kit for completing this (or a similar) pre-approved course!
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Tuesday, March 8
6:00 - 8:00 pm
Via Zoom
Presented by Tracy Carlton with Resilient Amador. A $150 stipend will be provided to ALL family child care providers who attend (not just Quality for Kids participants)!
Instead of asking "What's wrong with you?" What if we asked "What happened to you?" This presentation for child care providers will help you understand different kinds of trauma and how those affect our, and children's, physical and mental health. Learn about the effects of toxic stress and adverse childhood experiences (ACES) on brain and nervous system development. Gain better understanding of the long-lasting implications of historical and generational trauma on individual and family well-being. Please RSVP to The Resource Connection, at 209-754-1075. Click link above, or see flyer below, for more details.
Thursday, March 10
6:00 - 8:00 pm
975 Broadway, Jackson
(pre-boxed dinner provided)
Small group discussion for family child care providers. Join us to discuss and learn more about the many different child care philosophies such as Montessori, Waldorf, Reggio Emilia, Play-Based, and Outdoor Curriculums. Receive a set of Reggio Emilia-inspired blocks and a StoryMaking book, for attending! Pre-boxed dinner provided. Attendance will be limited to 8, so please RSVP soon to First 5 Amador, at 209-257-1092. Click link above, or see flyer below, for more details.
Wednesday, March 30
5:00 - 6:00 pm
975 Broadway, Jackson
Are you a relative, friend or neighbor (non-licensed) caring for someone else's young children? Pick up your FREE 'BUSY BAG' filled with themed activities, and a children's book, to create your own Diversity-themed activities with the children in your care! These Busy Bags are offered on the last Wednesday evening of every month, and are designed for Amador County children aged 0-5! If you are unable to attend, any extra Busy Bags can be picked up at our office with prior arrangement. Click link above, or see flyer below, for more details.
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St. Patrick's Day Frozen Pops
INGREDIENTS
1 cup fresh spinach
1 cup frozen pineapple
1 cup frozen green grapes
1 banana
1 cup white grape juice
DIRECTIONS
Combine all ingredients in a blender, and blend until smooth. Pour into frozen pop molds, and freeze for one hour. Insert wooden sticks into the mold to freeze for four hours, or overnight. Source: juicyjuice.com
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March is National Nutrition Month!
Healthy eating is important at every age. Offer toddlers a variety of fruits, vegetables, grains, protein foods, and dairy or fortified soy alternatives. When deciding on foods and beverages, choose options that are full of nutrients and lower in sodium and avoid added sugars. Start with these tips:
Provide foods full of nutrients
Offer your toddler a variety of fruits, vegetables, grains, protein foods, and dairy or fortified soy alternatives. Avoid foods and beverages with added sugars and choose those with lower sodium.
Look for cues
When your child is hungry, he or she usually lets you know. But fullness cues are not as obvious. A child may be full if he or she pushes food away, closes mouth, turns head away from food, or makes sounds to let you know. Recognizing and responding to these cues helps children learn how to self-regulate their intake.
Prevent choking
Have your toddler sit at a table for meals and snacks and not wander around with food in their mouth. Foods such as hot dogs, candy, nuts and seeds, raw carrots, grapes, popcorn, and chunks of peanut butter can be choking risks.
Drinks matter, too!
Did you know the only beverages your toddler needs are water, milk, and, if available, breastmilk? Avoid drinks with added sugars like soda, flavored milks, juice drinks, and sports drinks.
Try new foods
Try serving a new food alongside a familiar food in the same meal. It may take up to 8-10 tries for a child to accept a new food.
Serve safe food
Help your child learn to wash their hands before eating. Only serve foods that have been cooked properly and avoid serving your toddler unpasteurized (raw) juice or milk.
The benefits of healthy eating add up over time, bite by bite!
For more info, visit here. |
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Talk, Read, Sing!
'Raising Readers Across Amador'
Literacy Campaign
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First 5 Amador launched our county-wide Literacy Campaign, in September! Our "Raising Readers Across Amador" Literacy Campaign is in full-swing, and will continue through June! The theme for our Campaign is based on "The Very Hungry Caterpillar" book.
Thank you to everyone who has been participating so far! Please continue to help us to raise early literacy awareness and improve reading scores across Amador County, by participating! All local families with children aged 0-5 are encouraged to read to their children for at least 20 minutes per day.
· For each book that you read, ask your child to color in a book on the Reading Log (print from this link, or pick up hard copies at the First 5 Amador office).
· At the end of each month, turn in your Reading Log(s) to First 5 Amador to enter the monthly drawing for a raffle prize. See Reading Log for all the ways you can turn this in to us!
· Watch for progress on the large thermometer outside our building which will keep track of the number of books being read.
· Little Free Library Stewards and the community can help by keeping your LFL's stocked with children’s books. (See the Little Free Library map below)
· Keep your eye on our Facebook page over the next 4 months, where we will be regularly posting helpful tips and reminders about reading and early literacy. "Like" us on Facebook, here. Stay tuned to this section of our newsletter for updates!
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Be sure to "like" us on Facebook, to stay up-to-date on everything First 5-related. Our page is updated almost every day!
Click HERE to go straight there -
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First 5 Amador supports and designs programs for children 0-5 years old and their Families.
For more information call us at (209) 257-1092, visit our website, and follow us on
Facebook and Twitter!
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