|
As Coloradans continue to navigate their way through the COVID-19 pandemic, we know the experience challenges everyone and is impacting communities, families, children, and licensed and informal early care and education providers. This issue includes resources to support families and early care and education providers to engage families and children in health building activities and information on how to access food.
|
|
Healthy Eating, Active Living
Resources
|
|
|
Stress and Coping
When navigating COVID-19, it is natural to experience different and strong emotions as a traumatic event. Coping with these feelings and getting help when you need it will help you, your family, and your community recover. Take care of yourself and each other, and know when and how to seek help.
Visit the Center for Disease Control and Prevention's website to explore resources and learn how to cope and take care of yourself and each other during this time.
|
|
Hunger Free Colorado is working to connect Coloradans to food resources. Visit this website to learn more about where and how to access food during the COVID-19 outbreak, including opportunities in some school districts for all children under the age of 18 to get meals.
You can also call the Food Resource Hotline at 855-855-4626, Monday-Friday 8:00 - 4:30 p.m.
|
|
 Eat Better Together
From getting your whole family together, snack and meal ideas, and storage solutions, they’ve got you covered. Explore these and more tips, to learn how you can do healthy your way at EatBetterTogetherCO.com.
|
|
|
Colorado WIC is serving clients. Due to COVID-19, clinics are closed to the public. However, many services are being provided by phone. To find your local clinic's phone number, visit www.ColoradoWIC.gov/find-wic-clinic.
|
|
Buying Local During the COVID-19 Outbreak
Colorado farmers, ranchers, farmworkers, truckers, retailers, chefs, and food manufacturers continue to put food on our tables while doing their part to stop the spread of COVID-19.
Colorado Commissioner of Agriculture Kate Greenberg reminds every Colorado resident how local food is adding extra value to our lives and, of course, to the grocery shelves: “Thanks to our farmers and ranchers across the state, our local food system is abundant, and our supply chains are healthy. This is a moment for us to continue coming together to support Colorado agriculture and buy local food.”
Click here for ideas on how every Coloradan can nourish our farmers, ranchers, and food and beverage businesses while buying and eating local food.
|
|
Emergency Menu Kit
This two-week menu kit from the University of Minnesota Extension takes the guesswork out of buying and making low cost, healthy meals for a two-week period. It can be adjusted for more people and recipes are easy to prepare. The kit includes sample menus, shopping lists, and recipes.
|
|
Having kids at home around the clock poses challenges, but it's also a big opportunity to help families develop and maintain healthy routines and habits.
Action for Healthy Kids created and collected resources to help parents and educators ensure kids are staying busy, active, and nourished at home. Resources are added continually, check their website and Game On Library Activity Library often.
|
|
Mind and Body Wellness
A collection of resources from SHAPE America's health.moves.minds program, including Mind and Body calendars and Bingo, is available to help you continue to provide high-quality, standards-based lessons despite the circumstances. Adapt, repurpose, or use the resources provided as you see fit to best meet the unique needs of your students.
Be sure to bookmark this page and come back as they will be adding content regularly.
The Ready-to-go Take-home Packet is designed for teachers to download to have a collection of ready to use activities they do not have to spend time searching for. The secondary activities in this packet do not require the internet and include physical and health education designed to be done over the course of a week. There is an English and Spanish version for each item.
|
|
Supporting Students at Home: Pre-K
This guide from Denver Public Schools is designed to provide ideas for engaging children in learning activities while schools are closed for COVID-19. The activities listed are intended to help keep children intellectually active while they are at home. The guide includes a sample schedule, activity choices, and resources.
Families should review the list and select options that are relevant and accessible. The activities can be done more than once.
|
|
Do your part to keep yourself and others safe when you are outdoors in a public space by following these tips from Outdoor Alliance.
|
|
Early Care and Education
Resources
|
|
|
Child Care Aware of America (CCAoA) is committed to providing news and the latest information to help prepare families, child care providers, and policymakers throughout the COVID-19 outbreak. The resources gathered by CCAoA to equip communities ensures the safety of all individuals.
Browse the CCAoA website for resources specific to:
- Child Care Resource and Referral Networks.
- Providers.
- Parents.
- Policymakers.
|
|
Emergency Grants to Feed Kids
No Kid Hungry is offering funding and assistance for schools, ECEs, and community organizations. $1 million in emergency grants are available on a rolling basis to help reach children and families who lose access to meals through the following:
- home-delivered meals.
- grab-and-go meals programs.
- school and community pantries.
- backpack programs.
Visit www.nokidhungry.org/coronavirus-grant-request to learn more and submit an interest form.
|
|
Supporting Home-based Child Care
A new fact sheet from the National Women's Law Center lists recommendations on supporting home-based child care providers during the coronavirus outbreak. This fact sheet offers policymakers strategies for:
- Improving financial security for home-based providers unable to serve children during the crisis.
- Improving financial support for home-based providers that continue to serve children during the crisis.
- Protecting the health and well-being of home-based providers and children in their care.
- Ensuring home-based providers can receive and share information during the crisis.
Please share with policymakers in your community.
|
|
Physical Activity Resources
Do you need ideas to keep kids active while at home?Interactive physical activity courses are available with indoor and outdoor physical activities.
 Find the Let's Get Moving! Physical Activity in Early Care and Learning course on CO.Train.
For ideas on interactions and movement for infants and toddlers watch the Enhancing the Active Learning of Infants and Toddlers. Both the webinar and PowerPoint training slides are available on the One Stop ECOP Shop.
|
|
|
|
|
|
