PARENT NEWS from Quality Care Vol 4, Iss 1 Fall 2012 IN THIS ISSUE  2 Message from the Director 3 Do It Yourself for Halloween 3 Bestseller Books 4 Nurturing Parenting LIKE US ON FACEBOOK Quality Care Resource & Referral Services, Inc. The Importance of Involved Responsible fathers By Adrian McGriff, Quality Care 24/7 Dad Trainer What is the definition of a responsible father? A father is defined as someone  that is there for his children. A father watches and actively participates in their lives. A father helps them grow up, raises them, nurtures them, attends dance recitals, baseball games, helps them do their homework and is actively involved in his child/children’s day-to-day activities. As a father living in today’s society, we face many challenges that prevent or limit us from fulfilling our responsibilities and duties as dads. Most fathers want to be the best father they can be. But all too often, men grow up without a healthy role model of a father. Consequently, many fathers have the desire, but not the knowledge or skills, to be a great dad. Ultimately, men aren’t able to model a behavior they haven’t seen before. As an organization, Quality Care is aware of every family members’ need and especially that of a father, so we’ve decided to implement an initiative for fathers called “D.A.D.” (Dedicated and Determined), everyday heroes. PARENTS, continued on page 2 MESSAGE FROM THE DIRECTOR PARENT NEWS FROM QUALITY CARE JuWana McNear Building A Healthy Self-Esteem in Your Child I am a subscriber to a wellknown woman’s magazine and one of the featured articles was a spotlight on young people working to make their dreams/ goals a reality. The young people had different interests but each one of them made it work. If I were to take a survey of these young people based on their self-esteem level, many would probably score well above 10; ten being the best. Helping to build a healthy selfesteem in children is something parents should make a priority. When a child believes in him/ herself they can tackle the many obstacles the world sends their way. Well-deserved praise and encouragement can go a long way in a child’s development of a healthy self-esteem. Ask them what their dreams/goals are. Depending on the age of the child you may have to write it down for them and revisit from time to time. When they get older have your child write it down so it becomes real to them. Have them set a time to revisit the dream/goal to track their progress of achieving it. Even achieving the smallest goal can boost a healthy selfesteem. When you child enters high school, have them review their dreams/goals to make sure they are on track or make adjustments to new dreams/ goals. Are their grades sufficient or have they earned enough credits to enter the college they have chosen to apply for? Are they staying in shape for the sport they want to play or for the first day of basic training in the Armed Forces? Whatever the dream/goal your encouragement is vital in it becoming a reality. When children have a healthy self-esteem it is unlikely they will join a gang and engage in drugs and alcohol. They are less likely to fall into peer pressure situations with a healthy self-esteem. I specified the self-esteem as healthy in the above paragraphs because unhealthy self-esteem can be a problem. Unhealthily PARENTS, continued from page 1 The D.A.D initiative will use the 24/7 Dads curriculum from the National Fatherhood Initiative Network. It’s an evidence based curriculum that has transformed the lives of many fathers that have effectively used the tools and skills offered in the 12 week session booklet. The author of the 24/7 Dads program based the information in the curriculum on principles that are designed to increase the proportion of children growing up with involved, responsible, committed fathers. The programs achieve this goal by equipping facilitators with the tools they need to help fathers increase their involvement, responsibility, and commitment to their children and the mothers of their children. The programs help create “24/7 Dads” who enhance the well-being of their children by being an integral part of their lives physically, emotionally, spiritually, and in2 Susan T. James self-esteem can cause a child to be so confident that they inflict torment upon other children. Bullying is a frequent topic that has been in the news for quite some time now. I think everyone has been teased as a child at one time or another however when that teasing becomes physical or emotionally abusive, it is a problem. And there is not excuse you can give a parent when their child has committed suicide as a result of senseless bullying. Quality Care recognizes this as serious problem and has begun to look into resources that we can offer parents in regards to bullying. So as we enter this new school year; my homework assignment for you is to: Build up your child’s image of him or herself and help them become productive citizens who will pass the torch of Healthy Self-Esteem to the next generations.  tellectually 24 hours a day, seven days a week. I myself, have used many of the skills learned from the 24/7 Dads curriculum, both as a father and a facilitator; and it’s helped me become a more involved responsible father with my children. The skills I’ve learned from this curriculum have also helped me understand the importance of self -awareness, healthy communication, and leadership skills in my home and out in the community. Some of the knowledge I gained from the program helped me be more understanding towards my wife when it comes to meeting her needs. As a parent, we are the most powerful Cape May, Cumberland, Gloucester & Salem Counties President/C.E.O. JuWana McNear CCR&R Director CAPE MAY COUNTY OFFICE 1065 Route 47 South., Suite A Rio Grande, NJ 08242 Phone: 609.898.5500 Fax: 609.898.5501 CUMBERLAND COUNTY OFFICE 415 West Landis Ave., Suite 202 Vineland, NJ 08360 Phone: 856.462.6800 Fax: 856.462.6801 GLOUCESTER COUNTY OFFICE 6 North Broad Street, Suite 300 Woodbury, NJ 08096 Phone: 856.628.8600 Fax: 856.628.8601 SALEM COUNTY OFFICE 5 Route 45, Suite 200 Mannington, NJ 08079 Phone: 856.469.6100 Fax: 856.469.6101 Peggi Trusty Managing Editor determining influence our children will interact with throughout their life span on earth. We are the first and most important teachers our children will ever interact with and that’s why it is very important that we model healthy behaviors while they’re in our presence. The D.A.D program will be offered through Quality Care in the fall of 2012. Date to be determined. It involves twelve weeks one day per week for two hours. We invite all male born fathers, father figures; fathersto-be, and male role models, out to join us in cultivating a new generation of involved, responsible, committed fathers as future leaders at home and in our communities.  Do-it Yourself Costumes for Halloween By Christa Weis, Child Care Resource and Referral Administrator, Cape May If there is one positive that a down economy can produce, it is the creativity in us all. We have all had to make adjustments and explore budget saving ways to meet our needs. When it comes to the holiday season, the fear of mounting bills can prove scarier than any of the ghouls you may encounter on Halloween night! Not everyone is blessed with the creativity gene but if you are willing to follow along you will be able to fool them all! There are many “do it yourself” costume instruction websites that will make your child the cutest or scariest thing you ever saw not to mention have little impact on your wallet. Homemade costumes generally require supplies that could possibly be lying around your house. If you have a glue gun felt, boxes, feathers, cardboard, paint, bit of time and little helpers then the possibilities are endless. Not only does this make sense, it is a great way to discuss Halloween safety with your child. Costumes can start with a base of old clothes, old or new sweats are a great start for a clown by gluing pom-poms on the shirt and ruffles on the cuff (a contrasting fabric), face paint and a cheap wig with grandpa’s old hat will complete the job! Other costumes that can use a sweat suit as the foundation are cute little animals such as ladybug, spider, skunk (black), bunny, snowman (white) kitten , puppy(tan), butterfly (purple), and turtle (green). A sweat suit in any of the above colors will serve you well in starting a homemade costume for your little goblins. You will only have to add a shell, wings, whiskers, white mane, polka dots, antennae and ears to complete these projects. Homemade costumes representing food and candy are popular as well as low cost. You can use cardboard in a circular way to create a can (foil on top and bottom) that can be decorated to your ideas. A can of soda, soup or anything you like can be made to fit your theme. These projects are better pulled off if you can grab the artist in the family to do some of your sketches. Cardboard is great if you have a group of kids and can send them trick or treating as a deck of cards. You can use cardboard also for rockets, trucks, dice, Christmas presents and Legos. Other ideas include candy wrappers, grapes and banana’s using balloons and foam By accessing some of the websites below you will have the ability to benefit from the creativity and past experiences of the thousands of others who have figured out how to perfect the homemade costume and give your children a memory they will always cherish while spending quality time with you during the construction process.  Resources: http://parents.be http://www.robinsfyi.com/holidays/halloween/ kidcrafts.htmrkeley.edu/advice/holidays/ halloween_costumes.html http://www.thedailygreen.com/living-green/homemadehalloween-costumes-471811 http://www.savvysugar.com/Cheap-Homemade-HalloweenCostumes-20064402 BOOKSTORE FINDS What’s On the Bestsellers List for the Fall?? Pete the Cat: Rocking in My School Shoes By Eric Litwin (Author) and James Dean (Illustrator) Pete the Cat is back—and this time he’s rocking in his school shoes. Pete discovers the library, the lunchroom, and lots of other cool places at school. And no matter where he goes, Pete never stops moving and grooving and singing his song . . . because it’s all good. (Ages 3 to 7) his own, but he can't think of a story. Encouraged by the little yellow bird to look closely at the world around him for inspiration, Rocket sets out on a journey. Along the way he discovers small details that he has Rocket Writes a Story never noticed before, a timid baby owl By Tad Hills (Author, Illustrator) who becomes his friend, and an idea for a Rocket loves books and he wants to make story. This book is sure to appeal to kids, parents, teachers, and librarians. Goodnight, Goodnight Construction Site By Sherri Duskey Rinker (Author) and Tom Lichtenheld (Illustrator) As the sun sets behind the big construction site, all the hardworking trucks get ready to say goodnight. One by one, they finish their work and lie down to rest—so they'll be ready for another day of rough and tough construction play! With irresistible artwork and sweet, rhyming text, this book will have truck lovers of all ages begging for more. (Ages 4 - 8)  Fall 2012 3 Workshops for Parents NUTURING PARENTING PROGRAMS AT QUALITY CARE Parents are the greatest resource that child care providers have. Whether it is to help with party items and transportation for trips or just continuing the same new skills at home that have been taught throughout the day. Quality Care recognizes that parents may need some extra help from time to time. With this idea in mind, we sought a program to help meet the parents’ needs. In the Spring QCRR sent 11 employees from various positions to a three day extensive and fast track version of The Nurturing Parenting Program developed by Dr. Stephen Bavolek. This family centered initiative is designed to build and enhance nurturing parenting skills that increase parents’ awareness of specific areas in child rearing. Quality Care trained our trainers because we believe a child’s success begins in the home. Showing parents how to nurture themselves as individuals will in turn, shape nurturing family principles and strengthen parenting skills. Our agency hopes to bring out the very best in our families by offering family structured programs to build relationships and rapport with one another. These offered trainings will bring good times and great memories. One advantage of managing the child care delivery system in our community, QCRR can provide alternative programs available for parents outside child care settings. By sending passionate employees to this training we were excited with the opportunity to learn and share valuable parenting tools. Parents will incorporate them into their own value system. The Nurturing Parenting Program goals are: Increase parents sense of self-worth, personal empowerment, empathy, bonding, and attachment. Increase alternative strategies to prevent harsh and abuse disciplinary practices. Increase parents’ knowledge of age appropriate developmental expectations. Reduce abuse and neglect rates throughout our community. In addition to the goals The Nurturing Parenting Program offers 16 different courses. Quality Care currently offers the ABC’s of Parenting. The program for parents and children is a seven week evening session from 6-8pm designed to improve parenting and child rearing practices. Classes can be adapted to meet the needs of non-custodial parents too, and all classes are free. In the near future QCRR’s vision is to offer variations of the program dealing with issues such as, substance abuse, parents of adolescents, teen parents, and collaborate with DYFS and the court system. In these additional programs, under the Nurturing Parenting Program umbrella, the participants will: Build strong, positive relationships within the family Increase their understanding and respect for the needs of family members; Provide info on what to expect in regard to children at different ages and stages developmentally; and Increase the self-confidence of family by focusing on strengths. Quality Care offers two additional parenting programs. These are the already established Strengthening Families and D.A.D. - Dedicated And Determined. The D.A.D. Initiative is a program available to male role models (fathers or father figures) to help strengthen men in fathering, parenting and relational skills. Strengthening Families helps families build family resilience, social connections, parenting skills and emotional support to prevent child abuse and neglect. As you can see all three programs take a different approach to help build better family relationships. At Quality Care we strive to build lasting bonds and show our families we do seek to meet many needs, support selfsufficiency, and positive parenting. All locations will conduct classes in their perspective counties. Please contact your local office for more details if interested.  NURTURING PARENTING BY COUNTY For more information, please contact Kathy Grant at 856. 4626801, ext. 2525. Cape May Aug. 1 - Sept. 12, 2012 Cumberland Currently, held off-site through partnership organizations. Gloucester: Sep 11 - Oct 30, 2012 Salem Sept. 26 - Nov. 11, 2012