Sweet Relief
The latest Federal relief package includes $39 billion for child care. That is really good news! But child care advocates have been calling for investments since the Nixon administration. When will regular substantive investments finally be made?
Resources
Handle with Care
In 2018 Governor Hogan announced the Handle with Care program. This state-wide initiative has the goal of mitigating the effects of trauma on children and increasing knowledge of the issue. This is a wonderful support for K-12 students and would be made even more effective with the inclusion of child care providers in the plan to support children from birth to age five.
Resources
Heavy Metal Baby Food
Heavy metal is awesome. But not when it’s in your baby’s food. According to a Reuters news report, U.S. congressional investigators found “dangerous levels of toxic heavy metals” in certain baby foods. With some planning ahead you can make sure your baby’s diet avoids metal but still rocks!
Resources
Heavy Metals in Baby Food: What You Need to Know (Consumer Reports)
High Levels of Toxic Heavy Metals Found in Some Baby Food: U.S. Report (Reuters)
Bilingual Babies
Being bilingual connects one to their culture and family of origin. It opens up a world of travel and exploration. It also opens up a wealth of employment opportunities that single language speakers don’t have access to. Whenever possible, teaching our children more than one language makes their world richer and unites the larger world just a little bit more than it was before.
Resources
Bilingual baby brains: Never too early to expose kids to 2 languages (WJAX)
Raising Bilingual Children (Linguistic Society of America)
History Happens Now
It’s been one year since the first COVID-19 case was diagnosed in Maryland. Despite the risks, child care providers have remained open and caring for children as long as their government, their health, and their bank accounts would allow it. Some child care providers in Maryland have died from COVID in service to our children. Others got sick or risked illness to make sure parents could go to work. Most risked their livelihoods at great personal expense because they believed the maxim “we are all in this together.” Now they need help.
Resources
Caring in Time of Pandemic: Will Maryland's Child Care Survive? (MFN)
Child Care Provider Support Act
What if the child care that your family relies on was suddenly gone? It could happen if help doesn't arrive soon. The Child Care Provider Support Act could help save child care in Maryland from the financial destruction caused by COVID-19.
Resources
Maryland Needs Time to Care
We all need time to care—for new babies, for aging parents, for loved ones with health needs, or for healing ourselves. But are legislators listening?
Resources
Almost There
2020 is finally almost over. We can make 2021 the year put in place better supports for parents, children, and child care providers so the next time disaster strikes they will have the help needed to thrive.
Healthy Providers, Healthy Kids
Has your child care provider told you her plans for staying safe from COVID-19 over the holidays? Have you told her yours? Sharing your plans are essential to keeping your kids healthy.
Resources
Tips and Questions to Keep Child Care Providers and Families Healthy (Child Care Aware of America)
Early Childhood Educators Need the COVID Vaccination
On New Year’s Eve Crystal Hardy-Flowers died of complications from COVID-19. Crystal operated the Sandtown-Winchester based Little Flowers Early Childhood and Development Center for over a decade. We owe it to Crystal’s life lived in service to others that we don’t lose any more child care providers to this virus.