Cultivate Mankato: December 2021 News

VOL. 19 DEC 2021

This Month's News

Parent Resources

Children's Museum Field Trip, CultivateMN AmazonSmile, Dan Duffy & the Orchestra

Helping Your Child Through Disappointment, Not Academic Ones

NURTURE. GROW. EMPOWER.

December News Index Story Time with Mr John in in Preschool 3

03-04

You're Invited: Dan Duffy Orchestra, Business Membership

Cotton Ball Sensory Bin

Future Closures, Holiday Auction

05

Preschool Field Trip to the Museum

06

Upcoming Study, COVID-19 Policies,

07

We are Hiring, Weather Reminder

in Infants

Yoga in Toddler 1

Holiday Shopping

08

Gratitude Message from Anissa

09

Upskill Parent Resources

10

Thank You to our Community Partners

11

Workiversaries

12

Meals

13-14

Community Room

Parent Resource

15 16-17

Pajama Day in Infants

CULTIVATE NEWS | 2

www.cultivatemankato.com

Please join us on Saturday, December 11 for SOCIAL HOUR at Cultivate Mankato The Dan Duffy Orchestra will be playing from 5 - 6:30pm. Beverages and light appetizers will be served. Come and share some holiday cheer with the team at Cultivate Mankato. This is an adult-only event.

Please RSVP by Wednesday, December 8: https://forms.gle/9XwDEwj1rzNVQsKz9

Let me know if you have any questions. anissa@cultivatemankato.com

CULTIVATE NEWS | 3

PARENTS

WE

NEED

YOUR

HELP

SPREADING

THE

WORD

ABOUT

THIS

MEMBERSHIP

BE THE CHANGE

of U.S. companies DO NOT offer

comprehensive child care benefits

6%

%49

94%

%6

#supportyouremployees

94%

HOWEVER....

RECORD NUMBER OF EMPLOYERS ARE NOW O F F E R I N G C H IL D C A R E B E N E F I T S INTERVIEWER: “What would you say to other CEO’s who are perhaps hesitant or on the fence about offering a service like this?”

INTERVIEWEE: "Well, you know, for those CEO’s we are going to be able to hire their talent.

You want to build an incredible and successful company, in this kind of economy knowledge future, you have to take care of your people. This is going to be the norm.”

SOURCE: www.nbcnews.com/now/video/record-number-of-employers-now-offering-child-care-benefits-126581829820? fbclid=IwAR30gWNHeu5CgRxpu30h1ooUvUebNA1_FR9FKf28X0eg4Nodos1wwDxWbPg

CULTIVATE MANKATO CHILD CARE BUSINESS MEMBERSHIP

REMINDER!

Future Closures January 1st | New Year's Day

October 22nd | Teacher Appreciation

April 2nd | Teacher Appreciation November 25th | Thanksgiving May 31st |

Memorial Day

November 26th | Thanksgiving

July 2nd | Independence Day

December 24th | Christmas Eve

September 6th | Labor Day

December 31st | New Year's Day 2022

Stay Tuned: Cultivate Mankato Holiday Auction

This month as part of our Giving Back to our Community initiative, we are organizing an online Holiday Auction to raise funds for United Way! CULTIVATE NEWS | 5

www.cultivatemankato.com

Preschool Field Trip to the Museum!

Our preschoolers took a bus to the Children's Museum of Southern Minnesota a few weeks ago and they all had a blast! View all the photos from our field trip to the museum

CULTIVATE NEWS | 6

here

www.cultivatemankato.com

Upcoming Study

Covid-19 Policies

Within our education curriculum, we use

updated 10/18/2021

studies to guide our lesson planning.

Studies are a broad concept that we focus on for 4-6 weeks. Currently our study has been about Fall. This month we will begin our

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

Click Here

Winter Study. If you feel your family

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

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: Preschool Co-Lead Assistants and Supports in all programs

www.cultivatemankato.com/employment

Weather Reminder As the snow has already fallen this month, we want to remind you of our weather policy.

Cultivate Mankato does not follow the district 77 weather closings. However, we may have to close if it is deemed unsafe for families and employees getting to and from Cultivate. We have only had to close early once last year so hopefully early closures will be minimal.

Some pictures from our Animal Study the last few weeks.

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Also, please remember to bring snow boots, snow pants, hats, mittens and a coat every day. We do have some extras but our extras are limited. www.cultivatemankato.com

MAKE YOUR HOLIDAY SHOPPING COUNT

THE HOLIDAYS

are Right Around the Corner!

CultivateMN Store Purchase coffee through our non-profit, Cultivate MN, and every purchase supports early education professionals!

We also sell t-shirts and awareness signs.

Check out what we offer and support early education professionals!

www.cultivatemn.org/shop

CultivateMN is now on AmazonSmile.

This is an easy way to support early educators!

AmazonSmile, a separate portal from Amazon's main site, offers the same items, prices, and benefits as Amazon.com, but with one distinct difference... When users shop on AmazonSmile, the retailer's Foundation contributes 0.5% of the price of eligible purchases to the charity of your choice.

There is no cost to charities or customers, and 100% of the donation generated from eligible purchases goes to the consumer's charity of choice.

For frequent Amazon users, this additional perk is a great way to give back to charities effortlessly.

CULTIVATE NEWS | 8

www.cultivatemankato.com

Gratitude Message From Ms. Anissa THIS MONTH'S ORGANIZATION

It is a true gift when your personal values

We raised awareness and funds for

are in alignment with the work you get

multiple community organizations and

to do.

one very special little boy this year. We

So often I get pulled into the thoughts of needing to do more. There are so many things that I would like to do. So many people that I would like to collaborate with. So many worthwhile projects that I would like to be a part of. So many things that I would like to make happen.

put our feet on the ground and volunteered at the Juneteenth Celebration and with Habitat for Humanity. We sold tickets for the Partners for Affordable Housing MoonDogs fundraiser and then we showed up in mass for the game. We had our first ever Cultivate Mankato

But, there are only so many hours in a

Carnival and raised money for a local

day, so many days in a year. And it all

boy going through cancer treatments. I

takes time.

became the bubble lady at multiple

I just looked back at my calendar for this year and I am in tears.

We have done some really special things in 2021.

We brought special guests to Cultivate Mankato to enhance our classroom studies. We took field trips and learned more about our neighborhood. We made community connections that will continue to grow.

neighborhood block parties.

Oh, and don’t forget we are opening a Infant Development Center in early 2022!

There will always be more that needs to be done. I am grateful to work in an organization that understands the importance of being involved in our community, knowing that the little things we do may lead to bigger things getting accomplished. Never

We continued to grow our team and

underestimate the importance of the

found ways to come together to

little things.

celebrate who we are and the work we do. We had a prom in the spring and the Crundie Awards in the fall and a holiday party in December. We are

Here’s to 2022! May we continue to be active members of our community and develop new relationships.

always looking for ways to lift each

Anissa Sandland

other up and support one another

Community & Culture Coordinator

through the challenges.

CULTIVATE NEWS | 9

www.cultivatemankato.com

Laura Walser, our Early Education Coordinator will be creating short parent resource videos called Upskill for $10/month.

Upcoming topics will be: Handling big emotions Emotion coaching Keeping yourself calm Bedtime routines Building independence

Some more topics that will be discussed in the future include: Biting Morning routine Teaching a skill vs consequences Multiple environments equals multiple expectations Childcare drop off and pick up routine

Click Here to Subscribe

Setting your child up for successful sleep at childcare Potty training The importance of sleep

TWO NEW VIDEOS NOW

AVAILABLE!

Knowing yourself as a parent Guiding your child’s behavior; positive discipline Language development If you have questions, please email Laura

laura.walser@cultivatemankato.com CULTIVATE NEWS | 10

www.cultivatemankato.com

Thank You

TO OUR COMMUNITY PARTNERS

MEDITATION WITH ANDREW ARCHER Andrew Archer has been teaching meditation through stories and practice once a week to our oldest preschoolers here at Cultivate Mankato.

MENTAL HEALTH CONSULTING WITH CRYSTAL DUBBELDE Crystal Dubbelde brings a unique lens to Cultivate Mankato by offering support to the staff as a mental health consultant. Early childhood well-being and development are a passion of hers. At Cultivate, we believe that supporting teachers who work with young children is critical to their professional and personal development and helps to promote longevity in the field of early education.

TAEKWONDO WITH MASTER WINKLER Master Winkler with Lee's Taekwondo Academy here in Mankato visits once a week. He spends time with each of our preschool classes, teaching them about respect and taekwondo basics.

OCCUPATIONAL THERAPY SERVICES Sam Olsen, Occupational Therapist with Persist Therapy, brings her services to Cultivate Mankato and provides support to our families.

She also collaborates with our teachers and parents, giving them the resources and education they need to help a child succeed.

RIVER ROCK KITCHEN & BAKERY CO. Back in spring of 2020 we partnered with River Rock Kitchen & Bakery Co. This partnership was created to ensure that we are providing children with quality grains rather than prepackaged and sugary grains. River Rock provides us with muffins, rolls, and their delicious midwest multigrain and sourdough breads.

STORY TIME & MUSIC WITH MR. JOHN Mr. John, a former Cultivate parent who continues to volunteer his time with our friends, comes once a week to read stories and sing songs with his guitar.

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www.cultivatemankato.com

CELEBRATING ONE YEAR WORK ANNIVERSARY Britt Cline, Preschool 2 Lead Teacher Kenzie Burns, Assistant Teacher

CULTIVATE NEWS | 12

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

• A kitchenette with a refrigerator, freezer, sink & microwave

• Tables, table clothes & matching chairs

• Access to a preschool room or an extra meeting room

• Three large windows for lots of natural lighting

• Access to bathrooms

• Beautiful artwork

ENROLLED CULTIVATE FAMILIES RECEIVE A FREE COMMUNITY ROOM RESERVATION

To reserve visit:

CULTIVATE NEWS | 9

www.cultivatemankato.com/community-room

www.cultivatemankato.com

Dec Menus

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.

Click the menu to download a pdf

To place an order: Visit our Cultivate Mankato shop!

Questions? Email us at info@cultivatemankato.com

CULTIVATE NEWS | 14

www.cultivatemankato.com

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.

Click the menu to download a pdf

CULTIVATE NEWS | 15

To place an order: Visit our Cultivate Mankato shop!

Questions? Email us at info@cultivatemankato.com

www.cultivatemankato.com

Parent Resource

How to Help Your Child When They Are Disappointed

Helping Your Child Through Disappointment

Connect with Empathy & Notice your Message For children, even something that seems little — like someone else eating the last cookie — can open a floodgate of unexpected feelings.

By Nicole Schwarz Link to Article

Disappointment!

Suddenly, they are met with the challenge of managing a bunch of feelings at the same time — frustration, anger, confusion, sadness — while making sense of their unmet

Disappointment can be like a tidal wave of emotions for your kids.

Image this scenario: The van is packed, and you’re about ready to head out the door. Suddenly, you hear thunder in the distance. No! It can’t be! You checked the weather, and it wasn’t supposed to rain for a few more hours. But minutes later, the rain is pouring down outside.

Three children stare at you. “When are we going to the beach, mom?”

expectations. This is a lot to expect of a child.

When we say, “It’s no big deal,” we send the message: “Your feelings don’t matter.”

When we throw our hands up and give in, we send the message: “Your disappointment is too much for me to handle.”

When we distract our child from the disappointing event, we send the message: “Disappointment is uncomfortable and should be avoided at all costs.”

Alternatively, when you connect with empathy, you send the message: “It’s hard to feel disappointed. I am here with you as you feel

Bracing yourself, you cautiously say, “Well…it’s

this uncomfortable feeling, and we’ll get

raining…we can’t go to the beach today.”

through it together.”

In an instant, one child is crying and flopping

Say This, Not That

around on the ground; another child is

Instead of forcing your child to stuff their

throwing things, kicking you and yelling; and a

feelings or numb their emotions by giving in, try

third is pouting, staring out the window.

these alternative phrases:

Three disappointed kids.

Now what?

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Instead of: “Get over it.”

Try: “I can tell you’re disappointed. I was hoping to go to the beach today too.”

www.cultivatemankato.com

Instead of: “Fine, if you’re going to throw a fit,

Take some time to think about why it is hard for

you can have the toy.”

you to let your child feel disappointed. Here are

Try: “I know you really wanted that toy. It’s so

some examples:

hard when we cannot get what we want.”

I feel like my kids take advantage of me.

Instead of: “Oh, your balloon popped. Here,

I don’t feel appreciated.

have an ice cream.”

I feel powerless.

Try: “How sad! You didn’t get to play with that

I don’t know any other way to respond.

balloon very long, did you?”

My own parents never let me show

Instead of: “Don’t ask me again!”

Try: “I know you’re disappointed. You really

disappointment.

I feel uncomfortable when my kids are upset.

wish I would change my mind.”

I don’t know how to comfort my kids.

Instead of: “If you hit me one more time,

My spouse/co-parent gives them everything

you’re going in a time-out!”

Try: “You can be angry about my decision, but I will not let you hurt others.”

Instead of: “It’s time to go. Don’t make me count to three!”

Try: “You wish we could stay here longer. It’s

they want; now they expect it from me.

I’m frustrated that I let this get so out of control.

I don’t know how to handle my own disappointment.

Once you’ve identified one or two triggers, you can start to work through them — on your own,

hard to leave fun places.”

with a trusted friend, or a mental health

Instead of: “You’re ruining the day for our

professional. Getting these triggers out of the

whole family!”

way will help you respond empathetically to

Try: “You still seem really disappointed that

your child when they are feeling disappointed.

the party was canceled. Do you need a hug?”

About the Author

Check Your Triggers Responding with empathy may seem like a great idea in theory, but you might find it really difficult to put into practice.

Nicole Schwarz Nicole is a mom to 3 young girls, a Parent Coach, and Licensed Therapist in St. Louis, Missouri. She is

Usually, this means you are being “triggered.”

Instead of being able to see your child’s struggle, you respond to something internal — a thought about yourself, your child or the situation.

the author of *Positive Parenting for Imperfect Families*. Nicole helps parents connect with their children, feel confident in their parenting, and find positive alternatives to punishment. Learn about online Parent Coaching and read parenting tips on her blog, ImperfectFamilies. Sign up for Nicole's newsletter here.

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www.cultivatemankato.com