Community Connections: September 2003 Newsletter

The Community Connections Communicator -- September 2003

In this Issue:

The theme of this month's issue is Quality Child Care for Children with Disabilities.

	Tip Sheet: Choosing Child Care
	This tip sheet provides a general overview of ways to find the right child care for your child. It outlines seven ways to assist you in choosing a quality child care.
	Article: An Important Bond: Your Child and Caregiver
	This article has information on how positive relationships between child care providers and the children in their care enhances their learning and adds to their exploration while in daycare.
	Spotlights of the Month:
	Slumberland Overnight Child Care Center Provides overnight child care for children with and without disabilities. Located in Lanham, Maryland.
	Project All Children Together (Project ACT) Have you found a child care that is willing to work with your child, but needs a bit of extra training and support to accommodate your child fully? If so, Project Act can assist with those training needs and provides resources to make the experience more satisfying for all involved.
	Family Networks This website provides an array of information for families of children with disabilities. Check out the site to get further information on locating child care.
	Tufts University Child & Family Web Guide Provides links to some free homework help websites.
	Recommended Websites:
	Disability is Natural http://www.disabilityisnatural.com
	Kids Health for Kids Section http://www.kidshealth.org/kid

Choosing Child Care

Finding child care for children with disabilities may be a challenging venture. Many child care providers, although willing to work with families of children with disabilities, may find it difficult to meet all of the needs of the family. It is essential for families to interview prospective child care providers to determine if they will be able to provide a loving, nurturing, and educational environment for their little youngster. The tip sheet “Choosing Child Care” provides seven easy steps to assist families in making good decisions about child care. The tips include contacting Locate: Child Care for free referrals to licensed child care providers. The tips also include what questions to ask when interviewing a child care provider as well as what to look for when you visit the programs. These tips are vital in helping families choose qualified, safe, and appropriate environments for their children. Good luck in your search.

Read the full tip sheet.

Check out the following links for more tip sheets on choosing quality child care for both you and your child.

5 Steps to Choosing Quality Child Care
http://www.childcareaware.org/en/5steps.html

Why Choosing Quality Child Care Matters
http://childcareaware.org/en/dailyparent/vol8/

An Important Bond: Your Child and Caregiver

When looking for child care it is essential that we find child care providers who are able to bond with our children. A good child care provider will be trained in child development, licensed, and have some experience with children. This article “An Important Bond: Your Child and Caregiver” explains how it is necessary for children and caregivers to have a close relationship to ensure a safe, loving, and nurturing environment for the child. The article points out that a child care provider with knowledge about child development is more able to assist the child in exploring their environment, which in turn enhances the child’s learning, self-esteem, social skills, and language skills. Read the complete article to find out how parents and child care providers can help to enhance this bond.

Here is another helpful article:

Daycare for a Child with a Disability: Who is Fighting for You?
http://www.eparent.com/healthcare/daycare.htm

Spotlights of the Month!

Slumberland Overnight Child Care Center
Lanham, Maryland
Director: Pat Hayes-Hunt
(301) 577-6116

Do you need an overnight child care center? Would you like to know that your child is safe and being cared for in a nurturing environment? If so, Slumberland Overnight Child Care Center is the place for you. Slumberland is an innovative approach to child care. The Director of Slumberland, Mrs. Pat Hayes-Hunt, holds a master’s degree in special education. She has numerous years of experience teaching and caring for children of all ages. Her skills are essential in providing a safe-haven for families of children with and without disabilities who need a child care facility with overnight hours.

Slumberland is a safe place. They have working security alarm systems installed throughout. All personnel are FBI approved. They are child proofed from door to door. Slumberland is a clean place. It is a newly constructed building. The facility provides all beds, linens, toys and equipment. Slumberland offers reasonable pricing. Slumberland provides care for daily and weekly rates. The center is open 6 nights per week and accepts children ages newborn to 12 years.

If you are in need of safe overnight child care, please contact the Director of Slumberland Overnight Child Care Center, Mrs. Hayes-Hunt, at (301) 577-6116

Project All Children Together (Project ACT)
300 E Joppa Road, Suite 1103
Towson, Maryland 21286
(301) 431-7740 or (410) 828-7700
http://www.abilities-network.org

Project ACT provides child care providers and parents with the necessary training and support to allow their child care facility to serve children with disabilities appropriately. Project ACT provides services to help children with disabilities participate in inclusive child care settings. They provide services, which may include on-site observations, informal assessments, adaptive materials, and training specific to the individual child (located on-site). If you need help to include your child in a child care facility, contact Project Act right away at (301) 431-7740 or click on the above link for further information.

Locate Child Care: The Child Care Resource and Referral Service for Prince George’s County
(301) 772-8400

If you are in need of a child care provider (either in-home or child care center), Locate Child Care for Prince George’s County will be able to provide you with licensed child care providers in your area. Just give them a call and explain your needs and they will match your family up with a child care provider in your neighborhood. Locate Child Care can be contacted during their normal business hours which are Monday through Friday, 9:30 am to 3:30 pm, at (301) 772-8400.

Family Networks-Child Care Resources
http://family-networks.org/childcare.cfm

Family Networks, a project of the Maryland Developmental Disabilities Council, provides a wealth of information and links to resources that will assist you in finding quality child care for children with disabilities. You can find links to the Maryland Committee for Children, which provides statewide information on locating child care. In addition, you will find information on The Maryland Child Care Resources Network as well as the Mother-Helper online resource site. Click on the above link to get more information.

We currently offer training and technical consultation to businesses, churches, and other community organizations to help make them more welcoming to families and children with special needs. If you know of a business or other organization that would like to take advantage of these services, please e-mail us at: communityconnections@umd.edu
OR
If you know of a business that is already welcoming to children with special needs and their families and you would like to share this information with other families and professionals, please send us your name as well as the name and contact information for the business with a brief description of why you believe they are welcoming to families. If appropriate, we will post the business on our website and we may even feature it as a 'Spotlight if the Month'. E-mail your submissions to: communityconnections@umd.edu

*Questions or Suggestions about our newsletter? Have an idea you would like to submit? Please feel free to contact us at communityconnections@umd.edu

Disclaimer
Unless otherwise noted, all referenced articles are available at no charge to you. Community Connections provides this for informational purposes only and cannot attest to the accuracy of information provided by linked sites. The opinions and views expressed at these web sites do not necessarily reflect the opinions and views of Community Connections. Any personal information requested by any of the web sites will be governed by the privacy policy at the site, and any questions you have related to the sites' use of information should be directed there. The information contained in this newsletter is not intended to make any offer or commitment to purchase, subscribe to, provide or sell any service or product or to provide any recommendations on which readers should rely.

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Helping to Facilitate the Participation of Children with Disabilities in Community Settings

The Community Connections Communicator -- September 2003

In this Issue:

Choosing Child Care

An Important Bond: Your Child and Caregiver

Spotlights of the Month!