Parent Resource Center - Watering the seeds of our community
Community Education
Child Health Day
Monday, October 6, 2008
This
80th National Child Health Day is the right time for parents,
caregivers, teachers, school nurses and all adults who care
about kids to grapple with a serious health issue: childhood
overweight and obesity.
Recent studies suggest that 1 in 6 U.S. children between 2 and 19 is overweight, a risk factor for serious health conditions including asthma, diabetes and heart disease.
Visit the Child Health Day Web site today and find out how you can help keep this child health problem from growing.
Healthy Youth for a Healthy Future
U.S. Surgeon General's Childhood Overweight and Obesity Prevention Initiative
Help kids stay active! Encourage healthy eating habits! Promote healthy choices!
In our Schools
Five Port Washington Public School teachers were asked "What can parents do to help their children get ready for Kindergarten?"
Here are their top recommendations:
- Read to your child every day. Provide as many library and book experiences as you can.
- Handwriting.. Teach your child to write his/her name with the first letter capitalized and the rest lower case. Stress good posture and proper pencil grip. An improper grip is a hard habit to break.
- Emergency Information. Make sure your child knows his/her telephone number and address.
- Self-Care. Nose blowing, zippering, dressing, packing and unpacking a backpack are among those tasks that your child should be able to do.
- Discipline. Be consistent with discipline. Follow through with what you say and do. Children should not view limits as negative. Boundaries are firmly set in the Kindergarten classroom and are necessary for people to work and play together.
- Talk and Listen. Ask children questions about books read and things seen. Encourage verbal explanations. Help them develop strong listening skills.
FYI - Children age five on or before December 1st of a given year are eligible for Kindergarten that September. Registration for Kindergarten begins the January prior to the September your child is eligible to attend. Port Washington has five elementary schools. Kindergarten class size ranges from 17 to 21 children. There is one teacher and one assistant in each classroom.
Officer Tony Says…
Air Bag & Seat Belt Safety Tips
Air bags and safety belts save lives. Parents and caregivers need to understand how to maximize the lifesaving capabilities of these safety devices and minimize the risks.
Kids Ride in Back — Infants should NEVER ride in the front seat of a vehicle with a passenger air bag. Children, typically ages 12 and under, also should ride buckled up in the back seat.
Child Safety Seats — Young children and infants always should ride in age- and size-appropriate child safety seats. The safety seat should be held properly in place by the vehicle's safety belts and the child should be correctly buckled in the child safety seat. A child who has outgrown a convertible child safety seat will need to ride in a booster seat for the vehicle's safety belts to fit properly.
Wear Both Lap and Shoulder Belts — The shoulder strap should cross the collarbone, and the lap belt should fit low and tight. The shoulder strap should never be slipped behind the back or under the arm - this is a dangerous habit, especially in cars with air bags.
Move the Front Seats Back — Driver and front passenger seats should be moved as far back as possible, particularly for shorter statured people.
For more information, contact the Air Bag & Seat Belt Safety Campaign, National Safety Council, 1025 Conn. Ave., NW, Suite 1200, Washington, DC 20036; T. (202)625-2570 F. (202)822-1399 E- mail: airbag@nsG.org
For more information and to receive a free bicycle safety coloring book and inspection check-list, call Officer Tony at the Port Washington Police Department, 883-0500, ext. 152.