A free supper, activities for preschool children, and a program for adults will kick off the Week of the Young Child on Monday April 3.
Taking place at Heart of the Lakes Elementary School in Perham, the event will begin with a free supper for area three, four, and five year olds and their families. Parents, grandparents, child care providers, and anyone interested or involved in early childhood education is welcome to attend.
Following the 5:30 meal children will be invited to enjoy activities planned just for them. Music, story time, and crafts will be available to the kids while adults attend a panel discussion and question/answer session presented by early childhood professionals.
Helping youngsters to be
successful in school
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The point of the evening is to help parents and caregivers help our youngest citizens be successful when they are ready for school, says Patricia Nunn, coordinator of the Perham Early Childhood Initiative, co-sponsor of the event.
Whether you plan to send your child to preschool, a public or faith based school, or you plan to home school, the evening will give parents ideas on how they can enhance what they are already doing with their children, Nunn added.
Heart of the Lakes Elementary principal Kim Grengs agrees.
We are co-sponsoring this event to help parents be aware of ways they can help prepare their children for what will be expected of them when they enter school, says Grengs.
This is not an attempt to rush or push children, she adds. This is a collaborative effort between many agencies and schools that believe parents will appreciate some direction in the area of early education.
Panel discussion features area
specialists in early childhood
Tamara Uselman, Superintendent of District 549 will open the panel with why school readiness is important to the Perham/Dent area.
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Appearing on the panel will be Diane Bauck from St. Pauls Lutheran Precious Lambs Preschool. Her topic will be stages of Readiness. Joann Winjum from Otter Tail County Public Health will address the importance of pre-school screenings. Sheila Winkels and Marlette Anderson-Otto from Kids Adventure will focus on Play Moments are Learning Moments and Schedules and Routines, respectively.
Pam Schmitz, Kindergarten teacher from St. Henrys Catholic school will speak on creativity and Pat Miller from Head Start will talk about the connection between families and early learning. Also joining the panel is Julie Vomacka from Early Childhood Special Education.
Free t-shirt for kids
In addition to the supper each preschooler in attendance will receive a free T-shirt, a kid size book bag, and will get to pick a book to put in the bag. Parents will receive resources to help with their efforts in early education as well as information from the agencies represented.
The program is made possible with funding from West Central Initiative, Heart of the Lakes Elementary, and Perhams Promise. For more information call 346-1474.
Each presenter will speak for five minutes on their topic. The panel presentation will be followed by a question and answer period so the audience can get clarification and additional information from the presenters.
