Cultivate Mankato: October 2020 News

VOL. 06 OCT 2020

This Month's News

Parent Resources

CultivateMN

COVID-19 Updates, Halloween, Hiring: Operations Coordinator

Why Parents Need to Understand Brain Development.

Stories Shared by Child Care Providers

NURTURE. GROW. EMPOWER

October News A walk to a swing with Infant 5

Painting with trucks in Toddler 3

Message from Candice Over the past few months, I’ve spent a lot of time in reflection thinking about how to work toward doing better for the children of Mankato. As we crossed our one year anniversary on Sep. 9th, we have so much to be grateful for and we can see the progress we’ve made toward our vision, but we also Preschool 3 learning about different abilities

have so much more work to do. 2020 has brought many challenges that have shaken our organization in tremendous ways. We have all felt this in some capacity. What continues to be at the forefront of our mission are the children and being able to create a consistent, safe, nurturing, and fun environment for them. While we are facing unknown challenges through these times, you have our commitment to always strive for better. We look forward to moving into the Fall season with all of you and wish you health and happiness.

All the best,

Reading, nurturing and connecting in Preschool 1

CULTIVATE NEWS | 2

CANDICE DEAL-BARTELL Executive Director www.cultivatemankato.com

COVID-19 Update As you know, we've seen a huge influx in positive COVID cases in September throughout

Halloween Celebrated Safely

the state (see below the chart). In fact, COVID

Halloween celebrations are still on! It may

numbers are the highest they've been since the

not look the same this year but we plan to still

pandemic started in March. This means that we

have fun, while being strategic in order to do it

will inevitably see more cases in the community

safely.

and around the Cultivate Community. We spent

Friday, October 30th as you pick up your child

this week reviewing all of our policies and ensuring they are above excellence in providing

at the end of the day, walk through our

a safe, welcoming and nurturing environment

different activity stations together. Stations will

for children and families. You should have

be set up in the outside play yard (weather

received an email with the revised policies but

permitting).

More details coming soon!

in case you missed it, you can find our revised COVID-19 policies below.

We will continue to do our part in ensuring that we: 1. Create the safest and healthiest

Upcoming Study

environment for children that also provides a developmentally appropriate early education

Within our education curriculum, we use

experience for them 2. Be transparent in our

studies to guide our lesson planning. Studies

communications to you 3. Be proactive and

are a broad concept that we focus on for 4-6

responsive to you 4. Take the health of our community seriously 5. Take the challenges head on and work through them with reason and persistence.

weeks. Currently our study has been all about the farm and in the next couple of weeks we

community with a focus on voting and choice study. will begin our

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

Covid-19 Policies Review and download our COVID-19 Policy and Procedures

Click Here

CULTIVATE NEWS | 3

www.cultivatemankato.com

Our Story: Chapter One

Coming Soon: Cultivate Coffee

On 9-9-19 we opened our doors for the very first time. In celebration, we have created a 30 minute production telling our story.

New Rates: January 2021 We will be doing a center-wide rate change effective 01/01/2021 (please note new families entering our program are already on the new pricing schedule). We believe that we are offering a high quality program with qualified teaching staff, excellent food, educational resources, and other resources that best serve the needs of all children. A more comprehensive email will be sent by Candice in the coming weeks to describe the details of the center-wide change, but we wanted to ensure you had time to plan and budget for the pricing change.

Hiring: Operations Coodinator We are actively recruiting a new

Operations Coordinator.

Click here to view a job description.

CULTIVATE NEWS | 4

www.cultivatemankato.com

CELEBRATING ONE YEAR WORK ANNIVERSARY Gabby and Olivia

CULTIVATE NEWS | 5

Oct Menu

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 is at Cultivate. Payment is added to your tuition.

Click the menu to download a pdf

CULTIVATE NEWS | 6

To place an order: Email us at info@cultivatemankato.com or send us a message in ProCare!

www.cultivatemankato.com

Parent Resource

happens after birth, with the majority of growth occurring before the age of 5 years, with the first 1000 days regarded

Why parents need to understand Brain development

as the most significant time of growth.

Human brains develop from the bottom up, starting with the primitive part of the brain that really just keeps you

A great primer on children’s brain

alive, through to the Cortical part of

development and what parents can

the brain which is our logical problem-

expect their child to be able to do.

solving brain. But it takes years for this

Thanks to Krysten Taprell, Psychologist, @the_therapist_parent

development to happen which it why we can’t expect kids to think logically if they literally don’t have that part of

So often we as parents are frustrated

their brain functioning yet. It’s a bit like

by our child’s behaviour. The tantrums,

expecting a child to ride a bike before

wanting the same coloured cup, and

they have learnt to walk, they simply

generally being overly emotional can

haven’t reached that stage of

just be so infuriating. The problem is

development yet.

that all of these behaviours are exactly what our children should be doing for

I know graphics like the one below can

their development. When we

be a little overwhelming, but it is a

understand the basics of child brain

good visual to understand the

development and have some insight

progression of brain development.

into why our children are behaving this way, it can make a huge difference in how we see our children. We no longer see our children as being “naughty” or trying to deliberately drive us crazy, but that they are doing the best with what they have. Also if we help them calm and work through what has upset them, then we are actually supporting positive brain development.

When humans are born their brains are underdeveloped. The reason for this is that if we waited to be born when our brains were developed (like other mammals), then we would be giving

Click image to enlarge

birth to a baby with the head the size of a toddler, and nobody wants to do that! So a lot of the development

CULTIVATE NEWS | 7

www.cultivatemankato.com

Brain stem 0-6months:

The first part of

happens after birth, with the majority of

the brain is developed from birth till about

growth occurring before the age of 5

6 months of age. This is the part of the

years, with the first 1000 days regarded

brain that controls heart-rate, breathing

as the most significant time of growth.

and out fight, flight and freeze response.

This part of the brain requires no “thinking” at all it is simply reactive. When we understand this it is easy to see why if children are exposed to trauma, even at a very young age, their fight, flight and

Human brains develop from the bottom up, starting with the primitive part of the brain that really just keeps you alive, through to the Cortical part of the brain which is our logical problemsolving brain. But it takes years for this

freeze response might be overly

development to happen which it why

developed.

Mid Brain 6 months – 2 years: The

we can’t expect kids to think logically if mid

brain is responsible for movement and coordination. It makes sense then that this is the stage when children are learning to roll, crawl and walk. This is when your baby is discovering what their body can do.

Limbic 2- 7 years: This

they literally don’t have that part of their brain functioning yet. It’s a bit like expecting a child to ride a bike before they have learnt to walk, they simply haven’t reached that stage of development yet.

is the part of the

brain that we seem to have the most

What does this mean? What all this

difficulty with. This is why we have terms

information means is that we need to

like “terrible twos” and “three-nagers”. This is the development of the emotional brain.

This is where kids are beginning to experience big emotions but they don’t have the language and thinking part of the brain to express this emotion and deal with it. Even when they have more language,

recognise where our child is in their development and trying to reason with them when they are in their Limbic brain is not going to help. We need to be patient and compassionate with them.

It doesn’t matter how smart you think

children will mostly be in this limbic part of

your 3 year is, they are not capable of

the brain.

rationally talking about why the blue

Cortical 7- adult:

cup is just the same as the pink cup.

The thinking part of the

brain really doesn’t start to be the focus of development until 7 years of age although there is some development from about 4 years. So if we stop and think about this for a minute, we can see that our expectations on our 5 and 6 year old may

They can’t think about the fact that the cups are the same, they have the same purpose and they can drink out of both.

All they know is that they wanted the pink cup and you gave them the blue one and it feels like their world just fell

really be unfair. The prefrontal cortex is

apart. Being in this emotional brain also

the part of our brain that helps us regulate

means that they are more reactive to

emotions, control social behaviour,

new events and why they are comforted

problem-solve, and reason. It is helpful to

by continuity such as the same coloured

know that this part of the brain is still

cup. When things change, it can feel

developing well into our 20’s, so there is

like something is wrong and they can’t

no way that a child can reason the same

predict what will happen.

as an adult.

CULTIVATE NEWS | 8

www.cultivatemankato.com

Before the thinking brain develops, a

logic, it simply won’t work. You have to

child can’t say “I’m feeling a bit worried

meet them in their emotions. Let them

about…” or “I’m really disappointed

see that you understand their feelings

about….. Their behaviour is their

and help them calm. When they are

communication that something is

calm and only then, will they be able to

wrong. It is our job to help them calm so

talk through the problem in a logical

that we can be their thinking brain and

way.

we can give them the language for their feelings. They literally can’t do this

As parents we don’t need to know the

alone, they need us to use our thinking

ins and outs of neuro-psychology but

brain to guide them. Lot of hugs,

having a basic knowledge of brain

reassuring and when they are calm

development can free our kids from our

name their feeling for them, “you were

expectations. It also helps us to see our

really disappointed that you didn’t get

children’s behaviour as normal and let

the pink cup”. When they feel

us see that they need us to help them

understood you can start with some

develop these skills not punish them for

logical thinking, “the pink cup was dirty,

responding in a normal stage of

that’s why I gave you the blue cup”.

development. We can’t expect children

Now I know that this may sound

to think with an adult brain, they simply

unrealistic, who has time for this? But

don’t have these skills. Their emotions

fighting with our kids and trying to

are far too intense for them to manage

reason when they can’t reason can take

and they physically can’t regulate them

a long time and usually doesn’t work.

alone. They need us to help them calm

That’s why we have to make sure we

and guide them through to be able to

stay in control and don’t get into our

develop these skills effectively.

limbic brain too.

Remember, it isn’t just toddlers that are in their limbic brain. Whenever we are

Why parents need to understand Brain development | Child Therapy

by Krysten Taprell

stressed or anxious, our thinking brain is switched off and we are responding out of instinct and emotions. I’m sure we have all had moments when we have lost it. In that moment if someone came up to you and said “now that’s not logical, stop crying and get on with it” would that help? I’m guessing it would only add fuel to the fire. Kids are the same, the only difference is that their tolerance for stress and anxiety is lower than ours so they are MORE likely to be in their emotional limbic brain. You can’t meet the emotional brain with

CULTIVATE NEWS | 9

www.cultivatemankato.com

What is Cultivate MN? CultivateMN is a non-profit advocacy group dedicated to promoting awareness within early childhood programs, family services organizations, and child welfare programs. We believe sharing stories promotes awareness and cultivates connection.

CULTIVATE NEWS | 10

www.cultivatemankato.com

“I always wanted a houseful of kids. In my mind, kids equal love. But as each year passed, that dream slipped away and I had to accept that the Universe had different plans for me.I have spent my career working with children and families. I spend my days moving in and out of different classrooms loving and being loved by other people’s children. I get to rock babies and change diapers and sing songs and read stories. I get to wipe tears and give hugs. And laugh. So. Much.

Laughter. I leave my adult agenda at the door and I let the children lead the way. Children are smart and funny. They have a lot to say when you are willing to listen.I can still tell you the names of the children in my first group of kindergarteners. Many of them are married with children of their own now. I think back over the years and wonder if I have had an impact on the children and families I served. My hope is that someone, somewhere, thinks of me once and awhile and smiles as they remember Ms. Anissa.It’s not just the children I get to love and care for each day, it’s the care providers too. A big part of my job is to provide care and support to our classroom team so they can be the best version of themselves for their class. I listen. I cheer. I console and hold space. I cry. I open my heart to hearing what they need to say. Sometimes they just need someone to talk to. I get to be that person for them. I witness the successes and the challenges of everyday life. Another precious opportunity to share my love with others.I don’t know what kind of mother I would have been, but what I do know is that I have loved hundreds of children. THAT is a beautiful legacy.”

Anissa Sandland CULTIVATE NEWS | 11

www.cultivatemankato.com