Head Start Family News
Head Start Has Worked for Six Decades
Head Start Works!
Programs across the country will celebrate 60 years of results on May 18, the date President Lyndon B. Johnson signed the Head Start Act into law.
For all 60 of those years, Lorain County Community Action Agency has been the only Head Start provider in Lorain County.
Last month, Head Start families received fabric squares and markers to create a quilt square. The classroom quilts were assembled on Work Together Wednesday, which was April 9 during the Week of the Young Child.
The celebratory pieces are just a fraction of the stories our Head Start family could tell. Across the county, more than 40 million children and families have
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been impacted by better health, better preparation for kindergarten, and a greater likelihood of graduating high school and going on to post-secondary education.
Help spread the word about the monumental impact Head Start has had in our country. It’s critical that everyone know how well Head Start Works!
A Note from LCCAA’s CEO
Dear Parents,
We hope your family and Head Start child had a wonderful school year! It is hard to believe that the program year is ending.
You may have heard about changes – and potential changes - to many federally funded programs. The new administration has been restructuring and consolidating many federal programs and now there are rumors that Head Start’s existence is threatened. (Scan the code at right to learn more.)
We know that you know that Head Start Works! We are doing everything we can to convey that great success to the lawmakers who will ultimately decide on funding and structure for the program. Although federal Head Start staff and offices are being consolidated,
as of right now, we have been told to maintain our programming and continue working with our children and families. Similar actions have been taken with federal staff in the Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program (HEAP, Winter and Summer Crisis). We have received a similar message: continue to serve the community.
Head Start is celebrating 60 years on May 18, 2025. We would love for you to share your family’s story with us as we navigate these changes together. Inside this newsletter, you will find a link to our Customer Service Satisfaction Survey. We look forward to your feedback!
I am confident that your child has learned so much throughout this year. For all children transitioning to kindergarten, our absolute best wishes to your family; and for our repeating children, we cannot wait to see you again!
Shauna Matelski, Ed.D.
Kits Provided for Summer
LCCAA Head Start will once again provide a summer learning kit to each family.
To keep the learning going, teachers will create an activity guide with suggestions on how to use the items in the kit. Parents can also access videos and more activities on Ready Rosie. Items in the kit include:
X “What Will We Build Today” book
X Head Start pail and shovel
X Bubbles
X Chalk
X Name plate and dry erase marker
X Model Magic clay
X Tweezers
X Matching memory game
X Toothbrush kit
X Water gun
X “Kids Bowl Free” bowling card
Tell Lawmakers YOU Need Head Start
Time to Enroll for Fall Classes
It’s time to register for Head Start for the 20252026 school year!
If your Head Start student will be returning this fall, contact your family service assistant or home visitor to update your paperwork and reserve your child’s space. If a younger sibling will be joining us, your family service assistant or home visitor can help with that too.
Head Start families must live at or below 130% of the Federal Poverty Line (FPL). Families receiving SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program), TANF (Temporary Assistance to Needy Families) or SSI (Supplemental Security Income) are automatically eligible. Homeless children and children in foster or kinship (grandparents) care are also automatically eligible.
Head Start also serves children with disabilities.
Registration can be started online at www.lccaaforms.net. Packets are also available at all of our centers.
Share your Head Start story with friends and neighbors. Make sure they know Head Start Works!
School Year Ends with Bridging Events
LCCAA Head Start’s traditional bridging ceremonies are planned for the week of May 19. The school year ends on May 21 with a Family Fun Day planned on May 22. Each center will host its own ceremony with a theme chosen by the families. Every child is celebrated during the ceremony. Please contact your child’s teacher or your family service associate for exact details not listed below.
Central Plaza
Bridging will be held on May 19 in the morning with Family Fun Day on May 22 at the site from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m.
Firelands
Bridging will be held May 21 at 10 a.m. A Family Fun Day is planned at Schoepfle Garden in Wakeman on May 22 from 9 to 11 a.m.
Griswold
Three separate ceremonies will be held. On May 19, rooms 106, 108
and 109 will bridge. On May 20, rooms 101, 102 and 103 will bridge. On May 21, rooms 104, 105 and 107 will bridge.
Family Fun Day will be held at High Meadows Park on May 22 from 9 to 11 a.m.
Home Based
Home Based students will bridge on May 16 during their final socialization of the year. Families are invited to Central Plaza on May 20 for a circus-themed parade.
Hopkins-Locke
Classes will bridge on May 19 beginning at 9 a.m. Details on specific times for each class will be shared. Family Fun Day will be held May 22 at the site.
LaGrange
Bridging will be held on May 21 at 3:45 p.m. The ceremony will be followed by a parade. Family Fun Day will be held at Community Park on May 22 at 3 p.m.
South Elyria
Each room will have its own ceremony on May 20. Room A will bridge at 9:30 a.m. and Room B will bridge at 10:30 a.m.
Family Fun Day will be held May 22 at the site.
Wellington
Bridging and Family Fun Day will both be held on May 22 from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. at Wellington Community Park.
New Tool for Autistic Children Piloted
Two LCCAA Head Start classrooms are implementing a new program designed to help autistic children reach their full potential.
The PLAY Project (Play and Language for Autistic Youngsters) is an evidence-based approach to improving social interactions for autistic children. Professionals trained in PLAY add new tools to their classrooms improving early intervention and providing practical support to children and families.
LCCAA’s Education and Disabilities Specialist Jennifer Bartlebaugh said the agency has seen a marked increase in autistic diagnoses and behaviors.
“We wanted to provide support
to our classroom teachers,” Bartlebaugh said. “Since COVID, we’ve seen more autism diagnoses and more non-verbal children.”
One possible reason for this increase is the lack of social time caused by the pandemic. Bartlebaugh said that isolation has affected both parents and children.
The PLAY Project training is offered by the Lorain County Board of Developmental Disabilities.
“She helps give us different tools that correspond with their goals,” said Ashley Evans, one of the teachers implementing PLAY.
Evans (pictured at left), who teaches at Central Plaza, said it has been especially helpful with children who are not speaking.
“We’re taking little steps to try to reach them,” she said, “and breaking goals down into small tasks.”
Families Went Wild at Culture Events
Head Start students, parents, a princess and even Stomper got WILD about culture at two events last month at LCCAA’s largest centers.
A variety of cultures were represented including Puerto Rico, Poland, Albania, Jerusalem, Africa, Nepal, Dominican Republic and Italy. Children were able to participate in culturally specific crafts and activities as well as try some unique foods such as Puerto Rican candy, Italian dessert pizza, unleavened bread, plantain chips and mango sorbet.
The events were organized by the Head Start management team including the Health and Nutrition Team which provided a taco bar for visitors.
Door prizes and community resources were included. Miss Izzy from Music Izz Groovy brought more than a dozen different instruments and children also received hand drums to take home.
National Week Celebrates Young Children
Celebrations of the Week of the Young Child included lots of creative expression in our Head Start classrooms.
In addition to the celebratory quilts assembled on Work Together Wednesday (see page 1), students made their own instruments for Music Monday, learned about “My Plate” for Tasty Tuesday and completed a variety of projects for Artsy Thursday.
For Family Friday, parents were welcomed to the centers for an art showcase. All the students loved showing off their masterpieces.
Many Options for Gross Motor Activities
LCCAA Head Start classrooms are full of opportunities for children to move and practice gross (or large) motor skills. These skills help preschoolers gain greater control over their bodies which contributes to their increasing confidence and their ability to engage in social play.
Head Start teachers and staff:
X Provide physical and emotional support for building gross motor skills.
X Offer toys and equipment that fit a range of physical abilities so all children can progress and succeed.
X Suggest a strategy or approach that will allow a child to experience success in a gross motor task or challenge.
X Suggest multiple gross motor options children can choose from during an activity.
Teachers provide opportunities and space for rhythmic movements and opportunities to combine gross motor skills and balance skills. These activities can also help build teamwork skills when children work with partners or in small groups. They can be practiced in the classroom, on the playground or at home either indoors or out. Sometimes a familiar activity in a different setting seems like a completely new experience.
Other examples:
X Balancing challenges such as walking on tip toes or following a line on the floor.
X Games like Simon Says or Freeze.
X Movements using one side of the body alternating with the other side such as marching.
X Movements using both sides of the body at the same time such as jumping.
X Combining movement and balance with obstacle courses.
X For more ideas, check Ready Rosie!
Head Start students love gross motor activities that provide automatic and sensory feedback. For example, provide targets with sound that let children know they hit it (e.g., targets for bean bag toss or kicked balls). Provide objects that make a sound when knocked down or hit (e.g., hitting a beach ball with a short Styrofoam “noodle”).
Our centers have a variety of equipment available to accommodate individual differences in children’s body size, skill level, and development of physical and sensory skills. This includes different types of balls and riding toys in different sizes.
Children also love to create their own physical activity game and
rules, and revise and modify it over time.
Keep moving this summer – inside and out – with these ideas. If you have any concerns about your child’s physical development, please contact your teacher right away. Head Start staff has a variety of resources available if help is needed and can also reassure you about typical milestones.
Parents can also try the Ohio Department of Children and Youth’s new app Sparkler. The app allows parents to track their children’s skills against typical milestones. The most crucial time for a child’s learning and development is between birth and age five when 90 percent of their brain develops.
Visit School Status Connect for the link to Sparkler.
SNAP-Ed Program Offers Healthy Options
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LCCAA Head Start students are enjoying visits from a nutrition educator from the Ohio State University Extension.
The SNAP-Ed program helps teach children and families about healthy food choices that can be made on a limited budget.
Whitney Stollings is bringing the five-week program to all LCCAA students. In addition to fun movement activities, she is sharing information about food groups and helping children identify foods that are healthy or not and then “feeding” them to the monster.
Students are also learning about their skeletal systems, bone health and much more while trying tasty, nutritious foods. They’re also taking a minute to discuss the food groups as they enjoy their hot lunch from our new Central Kitchen (see below).
Learn more about SNAP-Ed here: https://fcs.osu.edu/programs/nutrition/ snap-ed
you seen our new recipe blog? Scan the code to revisit your favorites!
Scan this code to see the latest menu for most of our Head Start Centers.
Spacious New Kitchen Fully Operational
LCCAA Head Start’s Health and Nutrition staff is turning out delicious, hot, fresh, homemade meals from its spacious new Central Kitchen.
After moving into the space last year, the staff has worked to organize equipment and supplies while making sure it complies with all licensing and regulatory requirements. Those include the Ohio Department of Agriculture as well as Head Start’s rigorous standards.
The new kitchen provides separate work stations for meat, vegetables and fruit as well as greatly increased storage space for canned goods, refrigerated items and frozen foods. Another separate work station is set
up for preparing foods for children with allergies or restrictions keeping them safe from cross contamination.
Located in the former Campana’s Pizza on West 8th Street, the kitchen has plenty of space for staff to create new recipes and test them for how the foods travel and hold temperature and also how they will taste by the time they are served to the children.
The nutrition staff includes 13 employees. Seven work at the central kitchen and transport food to the Head Start centers. Six others serve the children and teachers at the Head Start directly operated sites and distribute the food to the classrooms.
Moms Invited for Muffins Book of the Month:
Please join your child in their classroom on May 9 at 9 a.m. for muffins and classroom activities.
We will be celebrating the amazing mothers, stepmothers, aunts, grandmas and special women in our lives. Your children are looking forward to hosting you! Come see what they have done and meet their friends.
One Groovy Read
Elyria Mayor Kevin Brubaker visited the Griswold Head Start Center earlier this month.
Mayor Brubaker read one of his favorite books – and ours – Pete the Cat! Mayor Brubaker, you’re one groovy dude!
Teacher Appreciation Week is May 5 through 9.
Show your appreciation with a short note or quick word. Smiles and hugs are timeless gifts that don’t cost a thing!
Sun Bucks returns this year! Make sure your address and other contact information are up to date with SNAP, Medicaid and your children’s schools.
We Are in a Book!
Children enjoy all of the books in Mo Willems’ Elephant and Piggie series.
If you can’t find We Are in a Book! try one of the other 25 titles - or try them all. These simple books are funny and feature the two friends solving problems together. In this story, Gerald and Piggie figure out that they are in a book and someone is reading their story aloud.
The silly ending creates a loop so the story continues as long as you want!
Find lots of Mo Willems’ books at your local library this summer.
Join us May 31 for Head Start night at the Crushers!
Help with Utility Bills Available Year Round
Ohioans can get help with utility bills throughout the year.
Apply for the Home Energy Assistance Program (HEAP) if you need help with last season’s heating bills. The deadline is May 31 and you can apply online at energyhelp.ohio.gov. No appointment is needed.
Benefits have been adjusted to pre-pandemic levels, according to the Ohio Department of Development. This year, the HEAP customer benefit range is $24 to $441.
Applications for the Percentage of
Income Payment Plan (PIPP) are open year round. PIPP lowers your payments to a percentage of your income making it easier to avoid crisis situations.
Winter Crisis ended March 31, but advocates are making plans for the Summer Crisis program. Summer
Crisis helps keep homes cool for seniors and those with medical conditions.
Exact criteria for 2025 have not been released but in recent years, those in disconnect status were also eligible for Summer Crisis.
Summer Crisis will begin July 1. Appointments can be made at www. lccaa.net beginning June 17.
Households must be living at or below 175% of the federal poverty level to be eligible for all programs mentioned.
Upcoming Events
X May 2: School Lunch Hero Day
X May 3: Cinco de Mayo Parade
X May 5: Home Visit Day, No School
X May 8: Health Services Advisory Committee Meeting, 9 a.m., Central Plaza
X May 9: Muffins with Mom
X May 12: Home Visit Day, No School
X May 19: School for all Children
X May 19-21: Bridging Ceremonies
X May 19: Policy Council, 5 p.m., Central Plaza
X May 21: Last Day of School
X May 22: Family Fun Days
X May 26: Memorial Day, Agency Closed
X May 31: Head Start Day at Lake Erie Crushers