Parent’s Newsletter · Leyda Jimenez Sofia Ortiz Osbaldo Tijerina, Jr. Gerardo Quiroz Jenifer Castilleja Ruby Gaitan San Juanita Carvajal Leslie Guillot Emilce Sanchez Christina

Parent’s Newsletter

Pearsall Center

The children from the Pearsall Center have been busy this school year. They were able to participate in Fire Prevention week where they enjoyed different presentations through-out that week. The Pearsall Center enjoyed having family activity night where they had a trunk or treat. The Parents trainings topics for the month were on Pedestrian Safety, Continuing Education, Emergency Crisis, Lending Library. Parents are encouraged to visit the Lending Library on a daily basis.

Seco Mines

Buildings was the theme the children enjoyed learning about. The children were able to build little collages of buildings. They also walked around the center and were shown all the different buildings. The children celebrated red ribbon week & were able to enjoy presentations from the border patrol. The topics for parent trainings for the month included job training, education, emer-gency & shelter, and light bill.

LBJ

The children enjoyed several presentations during red ribbon week from the Border Patrol. The fall festival was a success with 67 parents who participated. Parent training topics were on Adult Education, Pedestrian Safety, Emergency Crisis, Lending Library, and TEC Employment.

Kids Are First, Inc. Head Start / Early Head Start

News from the centers

Center In-Kind Total: October 2017

Admin $5,457.80

Las Colonias $44,774.30

LBJ $38,076.48

Pearsall $ 31,357.72

Seco Mines $21,977.09

Rosita Valley $28,717.18

Carrizo Springs $20,720.18

Cotulla $ 13,477.28

Total In-Kind $1,570,455.30

November 30, 2017

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Las Colonias

The children have been busy learning and exploring different buildings. The children were excited to see presentations from the fire depart-ment and the S.W.A.T team during red ribbon week. The parents also received training on Adult Education, Employment, & Emergency Crisis.

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Center News

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The children have been learning about the different buildings in their community. They held a fall festival which the families enjoyed game booths, food, and the children’s parade. The Sheriff’s Dept. gave a presentation during red ribbon week. The students celebrated red ribbon week with different themes during that week. Rosita Valley had National Parents as Teachers Day & they invited parents to assist and play during outdoor play. On National Guacamole Day, the students were able to do an activity with their parents, which they were excited about. The parent trainings were over Emergency/Crisis, Education-GED, ESL, and Continuing Education, & Employment Training/Services.

Rosita Valley

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Cold Weather Safety 2017

Children are more vulnerable than adults to the effects of cold weather. Share these tips with Head Start parents and staff to keep children safe, healthy, and warm this winter.

Sleeping Safely in Any Season

Keep babies' cribs free of stuffed animals and extra blankets. A firm mattress covered with a tight-fitting crib sheet is all that an infant needs to sleep safely.

If you are worried about keeping babies warm, dress them in a wearable blanket, also known as a sleep sack.

Bundle Up!

Children are at greater risk for frostbite than adults. The best way to prevent frostbite is to make sure children dress warmly and don't spend too much time outside in extreme weather.

Dress children in layers of warm clothing. If the top layer gets wet, they will still have a dry layer underneath.

Tuck scarves inside coats and jackets to prevent them from becoming strangulation hazards.

Car seats and winter coats don't mix. Bulky coats can com-press in a crash and create a loose car seat harness. Instead, lay the jacket or a blanket over children once you've safely strapped them into their car seat.

Keeping Healthy Outdoors

There's no set amount of time for children to play outside safely when the weather is cold. Use your best judgment. When the cold becomes unpleasant, it's time to go inside.

If you are unsure if weather conditions are safe for outdoor play, check the Child Care Weather Watch Chart.

Have children come indoors periodically to prevent hypothermia or frostbite. A temperature of ze-ro degrees Fahrenheit and a wind speed of 15 mph creates a wind chill temperature of -19 de-grees Fahrenheit. Under these conditions, frostbite can occur in just 30 minutes.

Frost nip is an early warning sign of frostbite. The skin may feel numb or tingly or appear red (on lighter skin).

To prevent frostbite, check that mittens and socks are dry and warm. Frostbite occurs mostly on fingers, toes, ears, noses, and cheeks. The affected area becomes very cold, firm, and, depend-ing on the color of the skin, turns white, yellowish-gray, or gray.

Even though it's cold outside, it's important to use sunscreen and stay hydrated. Children are more likely than adults to become dehydrated.

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Staying Safe Indoors and in Vehicles

Keep anything that can burn at least three feet away from heating equipment, including furnaces, fireplaces, wood stoves, and portable space heaters.

Set up a three-foot “kid-free zone” around open fires and space heaters.

Remember to turn portable heaters off when leaving the room.

Test smoke alarms at least once a month.

Vent all fuel-burning equipment to the outside to avoid carbon monoxide (CO) poisoning.

Install and maintain CO alarms. Keep alarms at least 15 feet away from fuel-burning appliances.

If you need to warm up your vehicle, remove it from the garage as soon as you start it to avoid the risk of CO poisoning. Don't leave a vehicle running inside a garage.

If vehicles are parked outside, check to make sure the tailpipe is not blocked with snow, which can also cause problems with CO.

Infection Control

Cold weather does not cause colds or flu. However, viruses that cause a cold and the flu are more common in the winter when children spend more time indoors.

Keeping everyone's hands clean is one of the most important ways to avoid getting sick and spreading germs to others. Wash hands with soap and clean running water, and rub them to-gether for at least 20 seconds.

Teach children to cough or sneeze into their upper sleeve or elbow, not their hands. Adults should model this behavior.

Review program policies on hand washing; cleaning, sanitizing, and disinfecting; and excluding children and caregivers who are sick.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the American Academy of Pediatrics recommend that all children 6 months and older receive the seasonal flu vaccine every year. All early care and education program staff should also get vaccinated for the flu.

Questions?

Contact the National Center on Early Childhood Health and Wellness at [email protected] or call (toll-free) 1-888-227-5125.

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Volunteer Recognition Pearsall Center

Gloria Trevino

Rosita Valley

Ana Rodriguez

Seco Mines

Judith Zapata

Las Colonias

Lidia Galindo

Arely Martinez

Arlett Ovalle

Policy Council Members Lidia Fonseca -President Lucinda Mata -Vice-President

Claudia Espinoza-Secretary

Cynthia Benavidez Melissa Demaree Bridget Schondua Alexandra Gonzalez Marissa Orosco Leyda Jimenez Sofia Ortiz Osbaldo Tijerina, Jr. Gerardo Quiroz Jenifer Castilleja Ruby Gaitan San Juanita Carvajal Leslie Guillot Emilce Sanchez Christina Rodriguez Daisy Longoria

Nailea Gonzalez

Alberto Esquivel-Community Rep. Noemi Flores-Community Rep

Sonia Guerrero-Liaison

MISSION The Mission of Kids Are First, Inc., is to provide

high quality services to multicultural families through collaboration with community

resources. Our families are supported to reach self-sufficiency.

La misión de Kids Are First es proveer servicios

de alta calidad a familias multiculturales a través de la colaboración con recursos de la

comunidad. Nuestras familias son apoyadas para alcanzar su autosuficiencia.

VISION

The Vision of Kids Are First, Inc. Head Start is that we are an exemplary program of

empowering Innovators determined and committed to educate our communities.

KAF, Inc. Board Members

Asalia Casares, Chair Maverick County

Sonia Guerrero, Vice Dimmit

Mercedes Puente, Secretary Dimmit County

Alfredo Z. Padilla, Sgt. At Arms Dimmit County

Eduardo Villarreal, Member at Large

Maverick County