Children in Clare and Gladwin counties celebrate National Food Day

During the last week of October, children in the Clare-Gladwin RESD S.P.A.R.K.S. program at local elementary schools, area Great Start Readiness Program and Head Start preschool classrooms, as well as some local childcare centers celebrated National Food Day; an annual initiative that aims to promote safe, healthful diets, and supports sustainable organic farming.

Made possible by Clare-Gladwin RESD, the Clare-Gladwin Great Start Collaborative, and the Clare-Gladwin Health Improvement Planning Committee (a subgroup of Together We Can), this year’s Food Day focused on food education. Activities and lessons encouraged children to know where their food comes from, how to cook meals, and how doing so will give them a big advantage when it comes to being healthy. 

Children at a number of childcare centers in Clare and Gladwin counties enjoyed apples from the Fruitful Orchard in Gladwin, while the preschool programs throughout the two-county region included a National Food Day lesson into their snack times.

The Farwell Elementary students in the S.P.A.R.K.S. afterschool program made healthy, fun snacks with a Halloween theme, including mummy pizzas, ghost bananas, skeleton mushrooms, and candy corn fruit parfaits. “The students all participated in creating their own snacks and enjoyed trying some new food they had never before had,” said S.P.A.R.K.S. Director Keri Retzloff. “When trying mandarin oranges for the first time, I heard one student surprisingly say, ‘These oranges are great!’”

All participants also took home a National Food Day activity book. 

Full and partial scholarship preschool opportunities still available; High quality programs offered up to four days per week

The Quality Preschool Partnership (QPP) of Clare and Gladwin counties continues to enroll local children, ages 3-5, in free and reduced cost high quality preschool programs for the 2013-2014 school year.

As a joint recruitment effort by Mid Michigan Community Action Agency, NEMCSA Head Start, Harrison Elementary, and Gladwin Elementary, the Quality Preschool Partnership ensures an efficient preschool application process for all eligible families in Clare and Gladwin counties.  Those who apply will be referred to either Head Start or Great Start Readiness Program (GSRP).

Enrolled children have the opportunity to attend full-day or part-day programs four days per week.  

While full scholarships for Head Start and GSRP are available to those who meet federal and state guidelines, including income, partial scholarships for the high quality preschool programs are also offered to those who exceed the income limits.

“A sliding fee scale exists for children whose parents surpass the income requirements, but face other challenges that could keep their child from attending a preschool program,” said Kendra Curtiss-Tomaski, director of early childhood and family services at Clare-Gladwin RESD (the QPP’s implementing agency). “Health, family, and financial stressors are just a few of the many situations taken into consideration when determining if one is eligible for a partial scholarship. We encourage all families interested in a high quality preschool experience to call us at 386-8075 so we can help identify your best next steps.”

Research has shown that during the first five years of life, important skill sets such as emotional intelligence, motor development, visual recognition, early sound recognition, and music are optimally developed, providing the foundation for learning throughout life. “These findings illustrate that a high quality early childhood education is essential to a child’s future success,” said Curtiss-Tomaski.

For more information or to request an enrollment packet, call 989-386-8075.  

GSRP Outcome Report; Majority of students ready for kindergarten

Nearly 88 percent of the 455 children from Clare and Gladwin counties who attended Great Start Readiness Preschool (GSRP) or Head Start programs last school year, tested ready for kindergarten in all areas excluding mathematics, according to the recently released 2012-2013 GSRP Outcome Report. 

The report’s data is based on Teaching Strategies GOLD, an assessment system that measures the knowledge, skills, and behaviors that are most predictive of school success. Used by all GSRP and Head Start programs, Teaching Strategies GOLD aids teachers in being intentional in their instruction by accurately pinpointing where children are in their development and learning. Children are assessed individually through classroom observation and work samples. 

This comprehensive, on-going assessment tool is used three times each year to evaluate children’s progress in several areas of development, including social-emotional, physical, language, and cognitive. Teaching Strategies GOLD is research-based, and encompasses the developmental milestones from birth through kindergarten. 

“We are pleased to see the majority of students attending these preschool programs are meeting or exceeding the developmental expectations considered necessary to begin kindergarten,” said Kendra Curtiss-Tomaski, Early Childhood and Family Services Director at Clare-Gladwin RESD. “We will use the results of these assessments to shape the topics of our training and mentoring sessions for our preschool staff, as well as assist in identifying the subjects that need additional attention, such as math.” 

Administered by the Michigan Department of Education (MDE), the Great Start Readiness Program (GSRP) is Michigan’s state-funded preschool program for four-year-old children with factors which may place them at risk of educational failure. Head Start is a federally-funded program that promotes the school readiness of children ages 3-5 years old. 

Research on preschool programs indicates that children provided with a high-quality preschool experience show significant positive developmental differences when compared to children from the same backgrounds who did not attend a high-quality preschool program. Clare-Gladwin RESD connects eligible children in Clare and Gladwin counties with these free and low-cost preschool programs with the goal of all children being ready to succeed in school and in life.     

The Quality Preschool Partnership is still enrolling children in high quality preschool programs for the 2013-2014 school year. Please call 989-386-8075 for enrollment information. Eligible children must be 4-years-old by Nov. 1.