Cultivate Mankato: August 2022 News

VOL. 27 AUGUST 2022

This Month's News

Parent Resources

Parent Association, Moon Dogs Game, Scholastic Book Orders

10 Parenting Practices That Pay Big Dividends When Kids Are Older

NURTURE. GROW. EMPOWER.

August News Index

SUMMER FUN! CULTIVATE NEWS | 2

2022 Center Closures

03

Parent Association Meeting, Cultivate Kitchen

04

Alleyway and Parking Reminder

05

Upcoming Events, Upcoming Study

06

Preschool Baby Buddies, 'I Matter' Shirts

07

Art Show Opening Reception Recap

08-09

Thank You Substitute Teachers, Scholastic Book Orders

10

OT and the Sensory Development from the Parent Perspective - Podcast Part 3

11

Moon Dogs Game

12-13

Infant Development Center

14-15

Persist Therapy OT Parent Education

16-17

Workiversaries

18-20

Community Room Event Space

21

Parent Resource Article

22-25

Menus

26-27 www.cultivatemankato.com

JULY 4 ...

AUGUST 26

g!

Upcomin

SEPTEMBER 5

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g!

Upcomin

Covid-19 Policies updated February 2022

Review and download MN Department of Health COVID-19 Decision Tree for People in Child Care Programs

Click Here

Join our Parent Association!

We are looking for a core group of parents who are committed to the growth of Cultivate Mankato. As part of this group we will ask you to actively participate in: spreading awareness about our program, sharing content on social media platforms, provide feedback on certain decisions, and actively participate in volunteer opportunities as they come up.

We will be holding our first Parent Association VIRTUAL meeting on Tuesday, August 9th from 6-7pm. Our meeting objective is to determine what area of volunteering you would be interested in and how much time you are able to give.

If you are interested in attending this meeting, please email Jordyn Erickson at jordyn.erickson@cultivatemankato.com and she will send you an calendar invite with the zoom link to the meeting.

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Baked Ziti and Take & Bake Pizzas NOW AVAILABLE! We have Take and Bake Pizzas and Baked Ziti for families to purchase. Feeds between 4-6 people. Pizza options: cheese, pepperoni, veggie. Order by Wednesday, pick up on Fridays. Pick up at Cultivate Mankato - Main Street.

ORDER HERE www.cultivatemankato.com

Alleyway and Parking Reminder

To help us with the flow of traffic and to try and avoid accidents, please enter the alleyway on E Walnut Street and exit on E Main Street. We appreciate your cooperation!

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www.cultivatemankato.com

Upcoming Study Within our education curriculum, we use studies to guide our lesson planning. Studies are a broad concept that we focus on for 4-6 weeks.

Currently our study has been all about Art. This month we will begin our Diversity Study.

If you feel your family has something special to share in regards to our upcoming study, we would love family participation. Reach out!

Opening & Closing Supervisors Did you know we have an opening and closing supervisor?! Kaity Dabney is our opening supervisor and Payton Merritt is our closing supervisor. They make sure our beginning of the day and the end of the day runs smoothly!

Kaity Payton

Have you looked over our Family Info Packet?

We have created a family packet that includes links/resources/forms/etc all in one spot! Whether you are a new family or a current family, this packet is where you can go to find the answers to your questions.

CLICK HERE TO VIEW OUR FAMILY INFORMATION PACKET

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www.cultivatemankato.com

REMINDER Upcoming Center Closures We are CLOSED of August 26 for DHS Required Teacher Workshop Day We are CLOSED September 5 for Labor Day

Preschool Baby Buddies A few weeks ago Britni, Infant 3 teacher, visited Preschool 2 to share a story and teach our preschoolers how to hold a pretend baby. Each child had a chance to hold a pretend baby in their laps and received a certificate showing that they could be a baby buddy.

Fast forward to today – Britni brought our infant friends up to the room for us to meet and hold! All of our preschoolers were wonderful baby buddies!

Now Available Infant, Toddler & Child T-Shirts

T MATTER

T MATTER

T MATTER

T MATTER

ORDER HERE note: pick up available at our admin offices CULTIVATE NEWS | 7

www.cultivatemankato.com

Art Show: Giving Tree Working with children is one of the greatest gifts in the entire world. Children are learning about the world through their interactions with their environment and relationships to others. They approach life with curiosity, present mindedness, reflection and are incredibly relationship driven individuals.

Unfortunately, society can sometimes be so blind to the teachings of children and to the ways of being childlike. This lack of regard for children is one of the biggest mistakes we can make as a human society. We need to provide opportunities for children to feel honored, respected, and valued in relationships and in community and help guide them to understand their influence in the larger community.

The foundation of our care for children at Cultivate begins with relationships and community. We often ask ourselves questions in this pursuit of cultivating an environment where all children (from birth forward) understand that their life has meaning and purpose. What does it mean to be in relationship with one another? What does it mean to build relationships that are mutually respectful and kind? What does it mean to equally contribute to relationships? What can we learn from each other to help raise up our self and collected consciousness? How can children contribute to society in ways that are meaningful? How can we share space with children in ways that provide agency and influence for children? How can we teach about community and the interconnectedness of community? How can we teach children about self while also teaching about the importance of the collective.

The artistic concept of The Giving Tree takes the narrative of Shel Silverstein’s book, The Giving Tree, and provides opportunities for children to give to the tree; to shower the tree with items, objects, and memories that are incredibly meaningful to them. Through this practice of giving, children are able to share a piece of their environment and their meaningful treasures with the greater community. The community is then able to honor the meaning of children and begin to ask questions about how children make sense of the world and the environment. The gifts that the children bring to the tree are unique to them and wholly individual. They are unguided and simply based on the child’s willingness and ability to give meaning to an object and then to give the object away. The tree represents a reminder of the interconnectedness of nature and self. In our fast paced environment, it is easy to ignore our relationship with nature and how we are connected to it. And, it’s important to remember that we are in relationship with everything around us.

Finally, the entire show in partnership with the Carnegie Arts Center is an artistic expression of collaboration, community, and connection. We are working together to create meaningful spaces of community and connection in ways that are honoring ALL members of our community. We are helping to build spaces that provide agency, influence and opportunity for children to engage in their community in meaningful ways. We are cultivating relationships, love, and community in authentic ways, which is the greatest gift of all.

Once there was a tree and she loved…

If you were not able to make it to the opening reception – don't fret, you still have a handful of opportunities to check it out!

The 'Giving Tree' will be on display during open hours through August 6th.

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The Giving Tree, now on display

July 22 – August 6 Thursday: 1–7pm Friday: 1–4pm Saturday: 11am–5pm

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Art Show Opening Reception: July 22nd The Art Show Opening Reception was a huge success!

Thank you to all of our families for joining us!

Huge shout out to the Buchert Family for sponsoring our food and drinks at the Cultivate Mankato Art Show opening reception! Because of their $300 donation, we were able to provide wine, lemonade and hor d’eurves catered by Cultivate Kitchen.

Liv Benson, our Central Kitchen & Food Coordinator, and her assistant, Paige Walters, not only makes all of the meals for our children, but for Cultivate Kitchen as well. Thank you Liv and Paige! www.cultivatemankato.com/cultivate-kitchen

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www.cultivatemankato.com

Thank You to Our Substitute Teachers We had a number of past employees return for a short window of time this month. Thank you so much Maya Bartell, Sadie Baxter, Paige Gunsolus, Megan Reed and Kieran Roller.

Have You Seen Pictures of Your Child Wearing Headphones?

At Cultivate, our programming is strong in the belief that sensory development is very important! We provide tools for the students to help support them with their sensory needs. Some of those tools you might see are; chew necklace for oral sensory needs, weighted blankets/pillows, headphones, body socks, etc.

We provide these to any children in the room as a resource for them to use. So if your child talks about one of these items or you see them using them, feel free to ask the teacher for more information about it and see if it's something that might be helpful to use at home!

Scholastic Book Orders Through the Scholastic Book Club, you have the choice to place an order each month.

Your orders will allow us to earn free books for our Cultivate library and will be used throughout all of our classrooms. Books will be delivered to Cultivate and sent home with your child. Orders will be due on the 2nd Friday of each month.

Use the link below to order.

Order will be due on Friday, August 12th.

Any questions about ordering can be emailed to Ms. Tera at tera.vankeulen@cultivatemankato.com

Link to order: https://orders.scholastic.com/R76H7 Class Code: R76H7 CULTIVATE NEWS | 10

www.cultivatemankato.com

Part 3 Now Available!

Listen to PART 3 of our podcast 'Occupational Therapy in the Early Childhood Years – OT and the Sensory Development from the Parent Perspective,' with guests Candice Deal-Bartell and Jordyn Erickson, and podcast host Laura Walser!

Our podcast, 'Occupational Therapy in the Early Childhood Years' has 3 parts. Haven't heard Part 1 or Part 2? Listen to Cultivate MN's part 1 & 2 podcast with guest Sam Olsen and cohost Laura Walser, Cultivate Mankato's Early Education Coordinator.

LISTEN HERE For more information about Persist Therapy visit: www.persisttherapymn.com

We Are Hiring Employment Package includes: health, dental & vision insurance, retirement plan, professional development stipend, child care benefits, and other employment perks. ​Please share this information to help us find caring, outstanding and qualified individual to join our team!

Open Positions: Teachers, Assistants, Supports in Infants & Toddlers

www.cultivatemankato.com/employment CULTIVATE NEWS | 11

www.cultivatemankato.com

Cultivate Mankato at the Moon Dogs Game!

We had SO MUCH FUN at the game on Friday!

Thank you to all those that joined us!

Your ticket(s) helped raise $$$ for Partners for Affordable Housing!

To learn more about P4H visit partnersforhousing.org

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www.cultivatemankato.com

CULTIVATE MANKATO INFANT DEVELOPMENT CENTER

SAME PROGRAM SAME VALUES SECOND LOCATION

WE ARE NOW OPEN! NOW ENROLLING & HIRING | REQUEST A TOUR TODAY

www.cultivatemankato.com We have officially opened our doors to families on July 5th!

Our Infant Development Center, opening July 6th 2022:

♡ Conveniently located near Mayo Hospital & Mankato Clinic ♡ Space is designed specifically for infants 3-16 months ♡ Brand new facility with the same stellar infant program ♡ Exceeds policies & procedures expectations ♡ Detailed parent communication throughout the day ♡ Infant development checklists, lesson planning & activities ♡ Staff on-site training & professional development CULTIVATE NEWS | 14

ENROLLMENT CONTACT FORM JOIN OUR TEAM APPLY HERE MORE INFO SCHEDULE A TOUR www.cultivatemankato.com

MEET OUR SITE SUPERVISORS!

Cassandra Theriault

Lexi Leichtnam-Fitting

Hey, I’m Cassandra! I am one of the Site Supervisors at the Cultivate Mankato Infant Development Center. I have been working in childcare since 2018 but always had a passion caring for children through babysitting or nannying here and there growing up as well. I received my degree in Child Development and Family Studies from Minnesota State Mankato in 2020. While I was in school, I started at Cultivate Mankato in January of 2020. During my time here, I have worked in the infant program and gotten to make great connections with the children, staff, and parents. I am looking forward to supporting all of the staff at the Infant Development Center by providing guidance, information and assistance with anything they may need. I also will strive to ensure the parents and children feel safe, comfortable, and as informed as possible.

My name is Lexi Leichtnam-Fitting. I am one of the Infant Development Center Site Supervisors. I have a bachelor's degree from Minnesota State University: Mankato in Family Consumer Science: Child development and Family studies. I am very family oriented. I have always helped out with babysitting my nieces and cousins. My family always tells me that I am the baby whisperer of our family. I’ve been working in childcare since 2019 and I have been with Cultivate Mankato since august of 2020. I am looking forward to expanding our center to provide even more high quality and loving care for infants. I love building relationships with the children, their families and staff. I want families and staff to feel welcomed and safe when they come into the Infant Development Center.

Please feel free to contact me through email: cassandra.theriault@cultivatemankato.com

You are able to contact me at Lexi.Leichtnam-Fitting@cultivatemankato.com

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www.cultivatemankato.com

CELEBRATING three YEAR WORK ANNIVERSARY Abbey Weilage, Toddler Teacher Kaity Dabney, Toddler Teacher Maddie Kuchenmeister, Infant Assistant CULTIVATE NEWS | 18

CELEBRATING two YEAR WORK ANNIVERSARY

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Jada Johnson, Toddler Lead Teacher Lexi Leichtnam-Fitting, IDC Site Supervisor Megan O' Connor, Infant Assistant Krystal Paulson, Toddler Teacher

CELEBRATING ONE YEAR WORK ANNIVERSARY Mykel Froisland, Toddler Teacher

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s& U r e off Ref 0 2 ve $ on i e c Re uiti t r you

Community Room

BEAUTIFUL EVENT SPACE FOR YOUR UPCOMING PARTY OUR COMMUNITY ROOM PROVIDES: • A large kitchen island with bar stools • Tables, table clothes & matching chairs • Three large windows for lots of natural lighting • Beautiful artwork

• A kitchenette with a refrigerator, freezer, sink & microwave • Access to a preschool room or an extra meeting room • Access to bathrooms

ENROLLED CULTIVATE FAMILIES RECEIVE A FREE COMMUNITY ROOM RESERVATION

To reserve visit: www.cultivatemankato.com/community-room

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Parent Resource 10 Parenting Practices That Pay Big Dividends When Kids Are Older Written by Kerry Flatley, Certified Parent Educator

Link to Article As a new mother, I had no idea what kind of parenting would pay off in the long run.

Like most parents, I read and received a lot of advice. But, I wondered, which parenting practices would have an impact and which would I find unnecessary?

Now that I’m twelve years into being a parent, I can say with certainty that a few suggestions I followed when my kids were young have paid off – despite sometimes being challenging at the time.

There’s no question that some parenting practices are simply easier to begin when kids are little. Young kids are eager to learn and aren’t too set in their ways. As these kids grow up, they’ll be less likely to question what’s been standard practice in their family for many years.

Child-Rearing Practices You’ll be Glad You Started When Your Kids Were Young I didn’t do everything perfectly when my kids were little. In some areas, I wish I had done much better. But listed below are ten parenting practices I learned about and embraced when my kids were young that have made a big difference over the years to both them and our relationship: Learn how to talk (and listen) to your kids Learning to communicate with my young kids in a

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way that minimized shouting matches and allout wars made a huge difference in our relationship. Talking to and listening to my children in a productive way wasn’t something that came naturally to me at first. But once I read the book How to Talk so Kids Will Listen, Listen so That Kids Will Talk and put the authors’ ideas into practice, my ability to communicate with my girls gradually improved.

After reading the book, I realized that listening to and asking my kids questions about their emotions can calm just about any storm. And due to these listening techniques, my girls seem to know that I’m on their side even if we don’t readily agree on the issue at hand.

That’s not to say that my kids listen perfectly to everything I tell them and sometimes we disagree. But we now have a better sense of how to communicate with each other – including when we’re feeling frustrated or emotional.

Stick to a routine Research shows that getting kids into a daily routine can work wonders for their temperament, anxiety, and can even help them get to sleep at night.

That last issue – getting to kids to sleep – is the reason we began a routine when my firstborn was an infant.

As a new mother, the last thing I wanted to do was to be tied down to a schedule. But in order to get my daughter to sleep, the advice I received was to begin a routine with her. This would help give her cues throughout the day, I was told, including when it was time to go to bed.

It was a struggle those first few weeks. It took discipline to have my daughter go down for a nap at exactly 10 am every morning and take her bath every evening right at 6:30 pm.

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After a few weeks, however, we got into a rhythm and bedtime was no longer an issue. But what I also discovered was that our days were simply easier.

My daughter knew what to expect, so transitions from one activity to the next were not as much of a problem as they had been.

take longer to fall asleep than kids who go to sleep earlier. Kids with later bedtimes also tend to wake up more frequently in the middle of the night and don’t sleep late enough to make up for their deficit. (See recommended sleep times here)

The result was a more peaceful and less stressful life. Which also led to me feeling more relaxed about parenthood in general.

And let’s not forget the benefits parents receive from kids’ early bedtime – more time to unwind and relax in the evening without kids.

This isn’t something to overlook or dismiss.

Taking care of young children is emotionally taxing and having time to unwind can help us be better parents when our kids are awake.

Our routine has become a lot more flexible over the years. But I’ve found that following a schedule throughout the day is still beneficial, even with older kids. And since they’ve been accustomed to schedules since they were young, it’s rarely a problem to stick to one.

Bedtimes, homework, doing chores, getting ready for school, and taking part in our monthly cleaning day are examples of activities my older kids expect as part of our routine.

Keep to an early bedtime In the same vein of keeping to a schedule, I’m grateful we set an early bedtime for our kids when they were young and have continued it through their adolescence.

An early bedtime just made sense to our family life, but additionally, over the years, I’ve discovered a multitude of studies that document how important sleep is for children and teens.

These studies show that early bedtimes benefit kids’ physical, emotional, and cognitive development.

Kids with early bedtimes are also shown to be less irritable, more able to focus in school, and less likely to be obese later in life.

You may be wondering why an early bedtime makes the difference? For one thing, more restorative sleep happens earlier in the evening, meaning kids (and adults) feel more well-rested when they go to bed early.

But studies also show that kids with later bedtimes

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Begin kids chores when they’re young Although I began chores with my kids when they were relatively young (ages 5 and 7), I now wish I’d begun even earlier.

That’s because the best time to start chores is at the toddler or preschool stage. Kids in these age groups have a natural instinct to want to help, making it the best time in a child’s life to set the precedent of helping out around the family home.

Getting kids started on chores at this age can be as simple as encouraging them to help fold laundry or wipe a table. They probably won’t perform tasks well, but the point is to begin to nurture that helping instinct. (For more tips about getting started on toddler chores click here.)

Read books together Over the years of being a parent, I discovered that the simple act of reading books to my young kids benefited them both in the moment and as they grew older.

Most parents know that ample evidence shows reading to young children (even infants) helps them learn to speak and read independently.

But there are other benefits of reading to young kids that you may not be aware of.

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These include providing time to bond with your child and teaching kids lessons and values that aren’t easily taught by simply having a discussion.

Whenever parents read to their children – even older children who already know how to read – it makes them feel loved and special. These warm feelings bond us to our children and they’re memories kids carry with them as they grow and mature.

And also by reading select books to our children, parents have an opportunity to pass on values and teach important lessons. Kids are more likely to grasp these values when they are shared through stories, especially if those stories contain other children that they can relate to.

To find the perfect book, see my lists of children’s books, organized by theme, here.

Allow your child to be independent As my kids have grown, I’ve become increasingly aware of how allowing them a certain level of independence adds to their confidence and selfesteem.

But allowing my kids to be independent didn’t come easily at first. It’s often so much easier to do things for our kids and be in control.

For example, when they were young, I’d pick up a mess my girls had made knowing I could do it better and faster. And once school began, there were many mornings when I could be found packing my daughters’ backpacks even though they could do it themselves.

Encouraging kids independence can come in many forms such as letting your toddler choose their own outfit (no matter how uncoordinated) or attempt to tie their own shoes (even if it takes an eternity to complete).

It can also mean letting kids express their own opinions and take risks (within reason).

Letting go and encouraging kids to be independent isn’t easy. But in the end, not only will your child benefit from feeling more empowered and

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responsible, but once kids reach another stage of independence, it means less work for you too.

Let kids know it’s OK to fail Because we live in a society where failure is generally seen as unacceptable, normalizing failure is something I’ve found to be an ongoing challenge with my kids at every age.

Showing kids that failure is something everyone experiences helps kids develop a growth mindset — or rather, the ability to perceive failure as something that one can learn from instead of a personal inadequacy that can’t be overcome. Research shows that a growth mindset typically leads to more success in relationships, sports, academics and later in one’s chosen profession.

While young kids rarely experience the type of failure older kids do, they’re still susceptible to seeing small mistakes or struggles as a sign that they’ve failed.

Little ways parents of young kids can normalize failure is by brushing off these small mistakes – such as spilled milk or a cap left off a marker – for what they are: not failures of the child but accidents that aren’t a big deal.

And when a child struggles to button up a shirt or put together a puzzle and expresses frustration, talk to him about how feeling frustrated is normal. You could also make a suggestion to put aside the task for a little while and try again later. The point is to encourage kids to keep trying despite feeling like a failure in the moment.

Getting into the habit of normalizing failure when my kids were young helped when sports and academics came into the mix and they began to experience “real” failures.

Few kids or even adults ever achieve a perfect growth mindset, but getting kids in the habit of

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not viewing failure as a catastrophe can help.

skirt – not exactly the outfit I’d pick out.

Let feelings be It’s easy to fall into a trap of thinking we need to “fix” our kids’ emotions – whether that be sadness, disappointment, or a full-on tantrum. I know I fell into this trap early on. It was stressful to believe I was responsible for managing another person’s feelings.

Often I’d make her change. But why? Now looking back years later, I realize it’s because I was afraid that other parents and adults would think I didn’t have my act together, and that allowing my daughter to go out in public in such a jarring mix of patterns was an indicator.

But eventually, I learned that simply letting my kids’ feelings be was not only better for them but also for me.

By trying to fix my kids’ emotions I was inadvertently sending the message that some feelings are “bad” and need to change.

That doesn’t mean I now ignore their feelings.

Everyone feels frustrated and sad at some point and needs sympathy, consoling and encouragement. Instead, I try to help my kids better understand what they are feeling so they can learn to deal with their emotions on their own.

This process of letting feelings be is ongoing but I’m glad I stumbled upon this child-rearing practice early on.

Let go of perceived judgment of others One of the worst ways to parent our children is to be guided by the perceived judgment of others. Assuming you’re a conscientious parent already, letting that judgment creep into your thinking rarely benefits your kids.

The truth is, you know your children better than anyone. And the more you can quiet those voices – the ones that tell you you’re not good enough or others know better – the more you’ll be lead to make decisions based on what’s best for your kids, not for show.

I remember when my oldest daughter was three, she was determined to pick out her own clothes. The only problem? She’d choose to put on a clashing plaid shirt with a floral printed CULTIVATE NEWS | 25

And yet, this was her way to begin to express her individuality. To let her own light shine.

Eventually, I just went with the flow and let her wear whatever she wanted (within reason). Somewhere along the way I realized that continuing to force her to change, I’d be undermining her independence and growing sense of self.

Clothing is just a small example of how the perceived judgment of others can cause our parenting to go astray. As kids get older, we could be misdirected to push our kids into athletics they don’t want to do or push them academically in ways that feel uncomfortable to them.

These fears only intensify as children move into adolescence and beyond. So it’s best to learn to let go of these perceived judgments as early as possible.

Make eating healthy food normal I love vegetables. And when my first daughter began eating solid foods I was determined that she would, too.

To accomplish this, I opted to make my own baby food. Before she turned one, my daughter ate real pureed beets, green beans, carrots, broccoli, red peppers, and squash. The only time she ate jarred foods was when we were traveling.

By eating unadulterated vegetables, as opposed to those sweetened with fruit as most store-bought ones are, both of my girls didn’t think twice about eating them as they grew older.

Today both eat a wide range of vegetables and foods in general which I suspect was the result of eating real foods from the start. www.cultivatemankato.com

Aug Menus Click the menu to download a pdf

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We would like to give families the opportunity to order the bread that River Rock makes for our children. There are two different options to choose from: Sourdough and Midwest Multigrain.

Pick up at Cultivate in 1-2 business days.

To place an order: Visit our Cultivate Mankato shop!

Questions? Email us at info@cultivatemankato.com

www.cultivatemankato.com

Click the menu to download a pdf

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We would like to give families the opportunity to order snack packs for your child(ren) or upcoming event. Choose between a meat or vegetarian option or send us a message to create a custom order.

Pick up at Cultivate in 1-2 business days.

To place an order: Visit our Cultivate Mankato shop!

Questions? Email us at info@cultivatemankato.com

www.cultivatemankato.com