The PTA Parent Biweekly Newsletter Volume 1 Number 5 Tuesday, October 11, 2005 Finding Help Paying for Child Care Child care can be a big expense, but financial assistance may be available. Each type of child-care financial assistance has different qualifications, like income level, employment status, or residency, so make sure you get all the facts. Some of the options for help paying for child care are State child-care subsidies. This type of assistance is available in every state, usually for lower-income families who are working or in school. If you are eligible, you pay part of the cost, and the rest is paid directly to your child-care provider. Local programs. Your local government or community or faith-based organizations may provide child-care scholarships. Employer support. Your employer may provide child-care scholarships, discounts to certain programs, or on-site child care at reduced rates. Prekindergarten (pre-k) programs. Many states offer free or low cost pre-k programs for 3- and 4-year-olds. Pre-k programs are offered in public schools and other child-care settings. Dependent care assistance programs (DCAPs). Your employer may offer a DCAP, which allows you to have money (up to $5,000 a year) taken out of your paycheck tax-free and put into a special account to be used for child-care tuition reimbursement. Excerpted and adapted from Child Care Aware, Finding Help Paying for Child Care. For more information on financing child care, as well as other child care resources, visit ChildCareAware.org or call (800) 424-2246. Resources are also available in Spanish. Excerpted and adapted from Child Care Aware, Finding Help Paying for Child Care. For more information on financing child care, as well as other child care resources, visit ChildCareAware.org or call (800) 424-2246. Resources are also available in Spanish. What Parents Can Do to Stop School Violence To be good places to learn, schools must be safe places. However, what seems like an ever-increasing number of news stories about violence at schools can leave parents feeling overwhelmed or discouraged when it comes to safety and security issues at their children’s schools. The good news is that by getting involved in their children’s lives and schools, parents can make a difference. Here are several things you can do to help stop school violence: Communicate clearly on the violence issue. Explain that you won’t tolerate violent behavior. Discuss what violence is and is not. Answer questions thoughtfully. Listen to children’s ideas and concerns. They may bring up small problems that can easily be solved now, problems that could become worse if allowed to fester. Help your child learn how to examine and find solutions to problems. Kids who know how to approach a problem and resolve it effectively are less likely to be angry, frustrated, or violent. Discourage name-calling and teasing. These behaviors often escalate into fistfights (or worse). Whether the teaser is violent or not, the victim may see violence as the only way to stop it. Insist on knowing your children’s friends, whereabouts, and activities. Make your home an inviting and pleasant place for your children and their friends; it’s easier to know what they’re up to when they’re around. Know how to spot signs of troubling behavior in kids—yours and others. Join up with other parents, through school and neighborhood associations, religious organizations, civic groups, and youth activity groups. Talk with each other about violence problems, concerns about youth in the community, sources of help to strengthen and sharpen parenting skills, and similar issues. These tips were excerpted from the National Crime Prevention Council’s “A Dozen Things Parents Can Do to Stop School Violence,” a Stopping School Violence tip sheet from the Be Safe and Sound campaign. School safety resources and information about the campaign can be found on the National Crime Prevention Council’s Be Safe and Sound website. National PTA is one of the founding partners of Be Safe and Sound. Celebrate Young Adolescents Did you know that October is the Month of the Young Adolescent? To celebrate young adolescents : Make a collage of words and pictures from magazines and newspapers that shows how you feel about your adolescent. Set aside time to talk with your adolescent about what kind of career he or she would like to pursue and how he or she can achieve that goal. Prepare a dinner just for you and your adolescent that features his or her favorite foods. Over dinner, praise your adolescent’s successes and talk about any challenges he or she is facing. Visit, tutor, or volunteer at your local middle school. Young adolescents can make their voices heard by joining a PTSA (Parent Teacher Student Association), or initiating one if none exists. As part of a PTSA, students have the opportunity to voice their concerns about their school and education, as well as offer their perspectives on possible solutions. Find out more about the Month of the Young Adolescent, initiated by the National Middle School Association to focus on the unique needs of youth ages 10 to 15. Managing Your Family’s TV Time The average child spends 20 or more hours watching TV each week—that’s more time than is spent in any other activity besides sleeping. Because TV can play such a large part in your family’s lifestyle, here are a few tips on managing TV viewing: Limit the amount of time your family spends watching TV. Make it a rule that children must finish their homework and chores before watching TV. One way to ensure that children aren’t rushing through their homework so they can watch their favorite show is to allow them to watch TV only on the weekends. Set a good example and limit your own TV time as well; instead of watching reruns of Law & Order, pick up a book or start a new project. Also, keep the TV off during family meals so it doesn’t interrupt, or prevent, conversations. Pay attention to what programs your children watch. Encourage them to watch educational programs, and consider using a V-chip, which blocks programs from the TV based on the rating you select. Watch TV with your children and discuss the shows. Talk about the consequences of violence, stereotyping, and prejudice in TV programs, and the differences between reality and make-believe. Check out Navigating the Children’s Media Landscape: A Parent’s and Caregiver’s Guide, released by National PTA and Cable in the Classroom, for tools to help you take control of your family’s media activities. Hurricanes Katrina and Rita Adopt-a-PTA Success Story Excerpt from the Poughkeepsie (NY) Journal, September 26, 2005 Dover aid will go to schools hit by Katrina PTA to send books, supplies by Michael Woyton Ten boxes of school supplies and many other boxes will soon be on their way to Gulf Coast schools affected by Hurricane Katrina. Kristine Daversa and Julie Muncey, co-presidents of the Dover PTA [in Dover Plains, New York], collected supplies brought in by students that will be mailed today to two school districts hit hard by the hurricane. The weeklong drive was part of the National Parent Teacher Association’s Adopt-a-PTA program. Among the items donated are 4,000 pencils, 3,000 crayons, 17,000 sheets of loose-leaf paper and 193 notebooks. Read the full story. National PTA has developed the Hurricanes Katrina and Rita Adopt-a-PTA program, a special fundraising effort called Kids of Katrina, and a Disaster Relief Information Center to link you to information about relief and recovery efforts. PTA Briefs National PTA Proud Sponsor Alliant Credit Union is sponsoring a “Sharpen Your Pencil”Book Report Program. Children (ages 5 to 18) of PTA members who belong to Alliant are encouraged to submit a written or typed report (500 words maximum) on a book they have read. Students can win one of 70 $50 Barnes & Noble gift cards to purchase books, school supplies, music, and other items. Entry forms and contest rules are available online. All entries must be postmarked by December 31, 2005. PTA After-School Week is October 16-22. Contact your local PTA to find out what it’s doing to promote after-school programs in your community and how you can get involved. Not a PTA member? Join today! In the News “What’s that? Headphones linked to hearing loss?” (Associated Press) “Study: Sick kids may signal start of flu season” (Associated Press) In This Issue Adopt-a-PTA Success Story Finding Help Paying for Child Care What Parents Can Do to Stop School Violence Celebrate Young Adolescents Managing Your Family’s TV Time Hurricanes Katrina and Rita Adopt-a-PTA Success Stories PTA Briefs In the News Additional Resources Great Expectations: What’s the Best Way for Parents to Help Children Be Their Best? How Safe Is Your Child en Route to and from School? You May Be Surprised October 9-15 is Fire Prevention Week Sign up for This Week in Washington Enter the SOUPer Parent Essay Contest © 2005 National Parent Teacher Association, unless otherwise noted.