News and Insights

The Importance of Sleep March 17, 2023 is not just a day to wear green!  It’s also a nationally recognized day to acknowledge the many health benefits of sleep. How Does Sleep Impact Children? Sleep is a critical component of health for children.  The amount of sleep a child

Preparing for Severe Weather in Kansas As severe weather season approaches us in Kansas, there are some simple steps you can take to prepare yourself, your family, and the children you care for, to keep them safe. Children are physically and emotionally dependent on their caregivers and

Black History Month Black History Month is far too often treated as a drive by cultural experience, especially in our nation’s classrooms. We “try on” the culture for the month (in some cases a couple of days out of the month) and then go back to business as usual. Black history

Originally published in the Winter 2023 issue of Kansas Child Magazine.  What is Quality Child Care? Child care professionals often define quality child care as offering a safe, educational, nurturing atmosphere in a language-rich environment that helps children develop socially,

Originally published in the Winter 2023 issue of Kansas Child Magazine.  Program Administration Makes Child Care Provider’ Jobs Easier Everyone needs support from other people, including child care providers. You likely get support from your community, your family and friends,

The Benefits of Toothbrushing February is National Children’s Dental Health Month! This is the perfect time to fine tune your efforts towards ensuring that the children in your care maintain proper oral hygiene. Did you know that cavities are one of the most common chronic diseases of

Originally published in the Winter 2023 issue of Kansas Child Magazine.  Child Care Aware of Kansas Has You Covered! Considering child care as a career opportunity can be overwhelming, but never fear! Child Care Aware of Kansas has you covered! Our child care health consultants are ready

Originally published in the Winter 2023 issue of Kansas Child Magazine.  As providers, we are often encouraged to advocate and become involved in issues that affect the children and families we serve. For a busy family child care provider, what does that look like exactly? When I started

Source: Tips for Taxes: A Tip Sheet for CCR&R’s on 2022 Child Care Taxes, Child Care Aware of America. Below, find a listing of key tax breaks and credits, along with a brief description, that families and/or child care providers may be able to take advantage of. Tax Benefits

By Mary Daniels, Child Care Health Consultant, Child Care Aware of Kansas. A New year often brings resolutions for weight loss and healthier lifestyles. For many, this is a recurring goal that we work toward yearly, and it is an important goal! National Healthy Weight Week was designated

By Erica Goldsby and Jessica Strawn, Child Care Health Consultant Nurses, Child Care Aware of Kansas. January is National Birth Defects Awareness Month. Child care providers have a unique opportunity to play a critical role in preventing and early identification of birth defects. As a

Over the past few years, the impact of COVID and record inflation rates — combined with systemic inequities and fragmented systems — have exacerbated stress and instability for children, parents, and caregivers.

By Erica Goldsby and Jessica Strawn, Child Care Health Consultant Nurses, Child Care Aware of Kansas. Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) and Children’s Hospital Association (CHA) asked the Biden administration to declare an emergency to support a national response to the alarming surge of

Impactful support requires intentional and authentic family engagement practices. By Dr. Carla Whiteside-Hicks, Director of Temporary Assistance for Needy Families and Early Childhood Programs, Kansas Department for Children and Families. Originally published in the Fall 2022 issue of

By Nichelle Adams, Early Education and Child Care Services Manager, Kansas Department for Children and Families. Originally published in the Fall 2022 issue of Kansas Child Magazine. To be initially eligible for Child Care Assistance, a family of four can make nearly 70,000 a year. Many

Por Stephanie Boone, supervisora estatal de información y referencias, Kansas Children’s Service League (KCSL). Publicado originalmente en la edición de otoño de Kansas Child Magazine. Un nino cambian tu vida. Yo pienso que todos podemos estar de acuerdo, cuando un nino entra en

By Pam Noble, Subdirectora de los programas de Prevención del Abuso Infantil en Kansas, La Liga de Servicio Infantil de Kansas. Publicado originalmente en la edición de otoño de 2023 de Kansas Child Magazine. Kansas Children’s Service League (KCSL) Kansas Children’s Service

By Erica Goldsby and Jessica Strawn, Child Care Health Consultant Nurses, Child Care Aware of Kansas. RSV Prevention in Your Program and How CCHC Can Help While seasonal illnesses are not new, this year there seems to be an unusually high spread of RSV and other diseases. You may have

Source: ARP Child Care Stabilization Funding State Fact Sheets | The Administration for Children and Families (hhs.gov) The Administration for Children and Families released new data showing that child care stabilization funds provided in the American Rescue Plan (ARP) have served

By Reann Parker, Director, Oak Grove School and Katrina DeClue, Links to Quality Community Consultant, Child Care Aware of Kansas. Originally published in the Fall 2022 issue of Kansas Child Magazine. I recently sat down with Reann Parker, director of Oak Grove School in Manhattan,

By Erica Goldsby and Jessica Strawn, Child Care Health Consultant Nurses, Child Care Aware of Kansas. November is National Epilepsy Awareness Month. According to the Epilepsy Foundation, epilepsy is the fourth most common neurological disorder in the world. People with epilepsy have

By Erica Goldsby and Jessica Strawn, Child Care Health Consultant Nurses, Child Care Aware of Kansas. November 19th is the Great American Smokeout. Thousands across the country will begin their journey to quit smoking on this day. Tobacco use can come in many forms, including cigarettes,

By: Erica McGinley & Jessica Strawn, Child Care Aware of Kansas, Child Care Nurse Consultants. Nap or rest time should be peaceful for children and their caregivers.  However, it’s not a completely carefree part of the daily schedule.  Sleeping can be a high-risk activity,

Child Care Health Consultant Network The Child Care Health Consultant Network is grounded in the belief that consistent statewide child care health consultation services positively impact the quality of care children receive in early care and education/child care settings.  When early

By Susan Pearson, Early Care and Education Specialist, Child Care Aware of Kansas. Stretch Your Child Care Budget Temporarily As a business owner, you rely on money to keep your expenses covered and your doors open. Ideally, you would always make a profit too. Like other businesses, your

By Jill Ladd, Assistant Director, Child Nutrition & Wellness, Kansas State Department of Education. Originally published in the Summer 2022 Issue of Kansas Child Magazine. The Data Did you know that children in child care receive an average 40% of their daily calories while in the

By: Erica McGinley & Jessica Strawn, CCHC Nurse Consultants  For children enrolled in fulltime care, the majority of their day is spent with you, their childcare provider. This also means they eat most of their meals and snacks with you. Mealtime creates plenty of wonderful

David Jordan, President, United Methodist Health Ministry Fund (Health Fund). Originally published in the Summer 2022 Issue of Kansas Child Magazine. Using Proven Early Childhood Interventions to Combat ACES It’s true what they say: children don’t come with an instruction manual.

By Erica McGinley and Jessica Strawn, Child Care Nurse Consultants, Child Care Aware of Kansas. World Health Organization declared Monkeypox to be a Public Health Emergency On July 23rd, the World Health Organization declared Monkeypox to be a Public Health Emergency. Shortly following

Erica McGinley, Child Care Nurse Consultant, Child Care Aware of Kansas. Originally published in the Summer 2022 Issue of Kansas Child Magazine. What’s the last thing you did simply because you enjoyed it? If it’s hard to answer this question, you’re not alone. Child care providers

Easy Ways to Improve Safety in Child Care Settings By Kathy Attar, Program Manager, Eco-Healthy Child Care®, Children’s Environmental Health Network. Originally published in the Summer 2022 Issue of Kansas Child Magazine. Unfortunately, our everyday environments, including child care