Winter 2019-2020 Newsletter

WINTER 2019-2020 VOLUME 23 ISSUE 4

The PCCD Your Child - Your Family - Our Mission 32 Osgood Street Andover, MA 01810

439 S. Union Street, Building 1 Suite 110 Lawrence, MA 01843

WHERE ARE THEY NOW? Logan started in our PCCD Toddler Playgroups and then moved up to the Preschool. His mother, Seana, was happy he adapted so well to his first educational experience. “He benefited from being away from Mom and being around other kids his age”.

Logan ages 2 and 15

Seana continues: “He remembers many things about his experience at PCCD. He loved playing outside, sensory activities and making foam paint. He still talks about a day when Lemon the Duck came in for a visit.

Lemon was a duck, born with special needs who got all the children talking.”

Logan is now in grade 8 and says, “I’m playing tackle football and go to the Cormier Youth Center to the GRIT program. I love hanging out with my friends and walking around uptown. On 1/2 days we go to Casa Blanca. I am excited for high school and I plan to play football.”

Jennifer was in the Developmental Day School in the 1990’s. Her mother, Barbara remembers that “she was finally in a place where she was cared for in a way that was appropriate, with a specialized staff that understood her needs. I was scared at first, Jen was very young and I was still reeling from the diagnosis’ that she was likely to have significant special needs.

But, PCCD was a place where I didn’t feel alone.”

Her mother says… “When I visited, I initially thought that she did not belong there. I am sure I was in denial because all the other kids seemed very needy. I soon realized that Jen’s needs were just as complex as everyone else’s there”. She went on to say, “The staff there made our “new life” seem “normal”. I am very thankful to PCCD; they gave me time to ease into the world of special education”.

Today, Jen is 27 years old. She attended a collaborative program and moved on to a residential school. She is now happily living in a group home and attending a day program near her parents’.

INSIDE THIS ISSUE

3 Early Intervention & RCP 4 Toddler Groups 5 Preschool 6 Day School www.thepccd.org Andover 978.475.3806 Lawrence 978.688.5070

Jennifer ages 5 and 27

Partnering with Your Family Over the last year staff at The PCCD has been dedicated to making the shift to a growth mindset. In a growth mindset we can change how we operate, bring in new programs, and think creatively about how we approach our mission to overcoming the barriers to a child’s growth and development.

Let’s reflect on some of our accomplishments in 2019. We have been able to retain 89% of our workforce. This is to be celebrated! We were awarded grants from the Cummings Foundation, the Webster Foundation, and People’s United. We enrolled more students in the Developmental Day School than in the previous decade. The Early Childhood Program is growing. Technology advancements will continued to allow our staff to communicate and innovate.

My overreaching goal, has been to assure that the organization will be around for at least another 44 years, to match the tenure of our founder. I feel that we’ve made some strong advancements towards this objective and are set up to have a successful 2020. However, there is still a much to be done in order to realize our goals.

I’d like to thank the PCCD staff and Board of Directors for their hard work and dedication to the children and families we work with. None of this would be possible without their support. I can’t wait to see all that team PCCD will accomplish this year!

Executive Director - Chris Hunt | chunt@thepccd.org

Regional Consultation Program (RCP) Director - RACHEL DANIELS, MS, OTR/L, ATP rdaniels@thepccd.org

SAVE THE DATES FOR OUR UPCOMING RCP EVENTS! Parent Group Thursday, January 23rd, 6:30pm-8pm Dancing Lights Ropes Course (Junior and Regular) Ice Cream, All at Jordan’s Furniture February evening – date to be determined Building Your Village: Inviting and Accepting Help Parent Panel & Dinner March evening – date to be determined Supporting Early Childhood Communication Skills in Bilingual Communities Presented by Dr. Rachel Aghara Friday, March 20th 10am-1pm 2

Early Intervention (EI) Director - CHERYL BRUK, MS, CCC-SLP, CEIS | cbruk@thepccd.org

PCCD Announces an Exciting New Initiative Screening for earlier detection of autism in toddlers

The Professional Center for Child Development is committed to helping families with questions and concerns about their children’s development. The number of children being diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) is rising. The Center for Disease Control statistics for 2019, states the rate as 1 in 59 children. Children with an ASD Diagnosis have been shown to benefit from specialty services offered as early as possible. The PCCD Early Intervention Program has a systematic process to help identify children receiving Early Intervention services who could benefit from further testing to determine if an ASD diagnosis may apply.

Families of every child enrolled in our EI program are offered a Modified Checklist for Autism in Toddlers, Revised (M-CHAT-R) screening at 18, 24 and 30 months. The M-CHAT-R is a level one screening tool that assesses children from 16-30 months old for risk of ASD/developmental delays. If concerns arise with the results of that screening, The Rapid Interactive Screening Test for Autism in Toddlers (RITA-T), is offered on a separate date, with staff that has been trained in its administration. (See below for more details on the RITA-T.) Results of the RITA-T help guide discussions with families about potential next steps. If additional developmental/ medical testing is recommended, EI staff provides families with information to share with their pediatrician. In order to obtain diagnoses and services as soon as possible, PCCD has partnered with Dr. Christina Sakai, Developmental-Behavioral Pediatrician, from Floating Hospital for Children at Tufts Medical Center. Dr Sakai will provide “priority” evaluation appointments to interested PCCD families, at (A list of additional diagnosticians is also provided to families.)

Children with a diagnosis of ASD qualify for additional services from both PCCD and other Department of Public Health approved specialty services providers (SSP). These services may include additional services from EI staff that have specialized training and/or services from programs that provide Applied behavioral analysis (ABA) or Floor time services. PCCD works with families to help complete referrals to selected providers. Service coordinators work with families, pediatricians and SSP’s to coordinate interventions.

The Rapid Interactive Screening Test for Autism in Toddlers (RITA-T) is a Level 2 screening test that is administered to children who have a qualifying score on an MCHAT-R (Level 1) screening, or to a child whose parents/providers have concerns about ASD. The RITA-T can be administered and scored in about 10 minutes during a home visit.

The Level Two RITA-T screening can help to tell the difference between children at risk for autism and other types of developmental delays. The goal of this screening is to identify children at risk for ASD as early as possible.

More information can be found at https://www.umassmed.edu/AutismRITA-T/.

Anyone can refer a child to Early Intervention. Call us today at 978.475.3806 or visit our website at www.thepccd.org. Watch a How-To video on our Facebook page.

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Toddler Groups Coordinator - AIMEE PHLEGER, BS, SPED, CEIS | aphleger@thepccd.org

Inexpensive Indoor Winter Weather Fun Activities for Toddlers The winter is upon us, so about some indoor fun activities for your toddlers? The materials in your kitchen, bathroom and cupboards can make for fun inexpensive play activities for toddlers.

Encourage your child to explore, discover, and create. Hands-on activities will allow them learn about the world around them while exploring their senses and developing practical life skills.

Give it a try in your kitchen!

• A mixture of cornstarch and baking soda is a fun experiment. When it is mixed it will look like pretend snow.

Add some play animals, cups, bowls and spoons and your child will have a fun indoor activity.

• Simple sensory exploration are probably right inside your kitchen cabinets or pantry. Items such as rice, cornmeal, oatmeal and even couscous can be great for exploration.

• Put some shaving cream on a cookie sheet, and some food coloring, and let your toddler explore. Things will get messy, so you may want to dress your little in old clothes and put down some newspaper.

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Another fun indoor activity is to paint with acorns. (If the ground is covered with snow you can use other materials such as marbles or gapes.) In a bin, dip the acorns in paint, then roll them on the paper. Shake or roll to make fun patterns. (Reminder: Always supervise children when exploring with small items.)

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Lastly, make a musical symphony right in your kitchen using pots, pans, spoons and containers filled with rice or beans. Toddlers can pretend they are in a marching band using a wooden spoon and a pot as a drum. Fill plastic tuperware containers with rice or beans and they can shake and dance to the different sounds. Make sure you tape the containers tight, so rice or beans don’t end up on the floor!

Simple indoor, inexpensive activities like these will not only entertain your toddler while they are inside during the cold weather months, but they are learning, creating, and exploring all while developing their sensory, fine motor, language and cognitive skills.

Please share any of your family’s fun winter activities on Facebook and tag the PCCD. Have Fun!

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Early Childhood Program Director - HILARY ODOY | hodoy@thepccd.org

THE PCCD - YOUR HIGH-QUALITY EARLY CHILDHOOD CHOICE Many families of young children are seeking childcare for their little ones. For many, this means the start of the first educational and care experience away from home. The process can be overwhelming as there is much to consider when seeking a perfect fit, tailor made for your little one. The best preschool classrooms are designed to foster relationships and convey a feeling of security, comfort, and excitement.

In a high-quality program, there is evidence that children are developing positive relationships with their peers and the adults in the classroom. Give your attention to the relationships in the classroom and look for evidence that the program is growing a caring community of learners.

The importance of play is making a resurgence in the high-quality classroom. The opportunity to “Play raises the level of creativity as it involves some element of imagination. Academic training should never be an excuse to not let children play as it takes away their opportunity to learn,” says professor of psychology Dr. Peter Gray.

Play helps children learn how to regulate emotions, problem solve, make plans and follow through with their ideas. A predictor of a kid’s academic success in the 8th grade is how well they socialize with their peers earlier on.

Teachers work collaboratively to truly understand what each child knows, and what each child can do in a highquality classroom. Assessments are driven by observation, discussion and evaluation. Plans for the day are built upon expanding those skill set and knowledge. Teachers take time to decide which materials, activities, and experiences to add to the day to help children continue their learning.

The Preschool classroom at PCCD welcomes the opportunity to share our program with you, your friends and family. Please email hodoy@thepccd.org to schedule a tour and see what sets us apart from the rest!

References: What Does a High-Quality Preschool Program Look Like?, NAEYC, Washington, D.C. 2005 When kids play without expecting rewards, they learn life-skills, Express Parenting, Disha Roy Choudhury, Updated: 2019

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Developmental Day school Director - DEANNE CEFALO, M.Ed., B.C.B.A | dcefalo@thepccd.org

The Day School Staff have been working closely to identity areas of need and improvement. We have identified several areas listed below: • Updating equipment and instructional materials/curriculum for our students • Updating a variety of assessments that our teachers and therapists can use with our students • Increasing the technology (low tech/high tech) that includes a specific focus on each of our student’s communication needs • Making our staff spaces more efficient • Identifying hardware and software needs that increase the staff’s efficiency (e.g. software for writing IEP’s) • Expanding professional development opportunities for our staff so that they can keep up with the latest trends and best practices in order to continue to provide quality services to our students Here are just a couple of examples of the wonderful work being done in the classrooms! The first three month’s themes have been “All about Me” and Fall/Harvest. The top picture is from April’s classroom where they have just finished a cooking lesson and are waiting for their product (popcorn)! The the bottom picture is in Rhonda’s classroom working on a science lesson!

WE WELCOME DEANNE CEFALO! Hello, my name is Deanne Cefalo and I am the Program Director for the Day School! I am very excited to be joining such a wonderful agency and team at the Developmental Day School! Since September I have been very busy getting to know the staff, parent/guardians and most importantly the students.

PCCD Day School Program Highlights • • • •

Low student-teacher ratio Nurses in classrooms Individualized instruction Curriculum aligned with MA Common Core Standard • Augmentative & alternative communication • Certified assistive technology professionals 6

• • • • •

Feeding specialists Vision accommodations Integrated therapies Social work Opportunities for on-site inclusion • On-site equipment, • Orthotics, & assistive technology clinics

CONNECTING WITH OUR COMMUNITY

THANK YOU VISITORS Leading pediatric cancer researcher Dr. Dipak Panigrahy and three members of his laboratory team at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center came to PCCD in November. They read a story and involved the students in an interesting experiment.

Julie Higgins visited our Toddler Playgroups as a Community Guest Readers in December.

Julie, along with Maureen and Lucille joined us from Creative Living in Andover. We had a blast!

PCCD BOARD OF DIRECTORS BRIAN LATINA | Chairman MARK PASCARELLA | Vice Chairman JOHN DECOURCY | Treasurer JULIE PALMACCIO | Clerk NEAL BESWICK | Member SEAN CHENG | Member JOSE CRUZ | Member

For more information visit us on: www.thepccd.org Don’t forget to follow us on social media! #thisispccd Rocco and his family spent time with Santa

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Celebrating Your Child’s Success Our Daughter is Caught Up and Thriving…

We feel very empowered

Marina’s parents (Laurie and John Hashem) were concerned about her development. The family spoke with her pediatrician and she was referred to Early Intervention. After her discharge from EI we asked the family about their experience at The PCCD. Q - Tell us about your involvement at The PCCD? A - “Our daughter loved her time at PCCD! She got so excited to get dressed and put her backpack on for ‘school days’.

All of the staff interactions I’ve had at PCCD as a parent have been exceptional”. – Laurie A - “The EI services we received were really great. I learned as much from the therapist as my daughter did. Learning how to support my daughter made me feel much more confident.” – John Q - Did you have concerns when Marina was first referred and how has she progressed?

A - “I was scared to learn my daughter had a delay. I didn’t know what it meant for the future. The staff at PCCD really helped put my mind at ease by explaining the resources available to us. I’m grateful for their help.”

-John A - “Being a first time Mom, it was nerve wracking to realize my daughter was missing milestones.

Her pediatrician set up an EI evaluation and I was scared to learn she did have a delay. I didn’t know what to expect, but everyone from the PCCD has been nothing short of incredible. My daughter is caught up and thriving, and my husband and I feel very empowered. Thank you PCCD!” - Laurie

OUR MISSION Eliminate Barriers to Growth and Development for Children ages birth to 10.

Our Mission is to provide educational and therapeutic services for children of all abilities and their families, working with each child to develop to his or her full potential. We strive to eliminate barriers to growth and development for children with disabilities and families coping with health issues and challenges.

The Professional Center for Child Development places children on a path leading to achievement by providing support services so that children of all abilities may remain in a secure environment, teaching parents and caregivers to be successful advocates for children, working to transition children into settings beyond our classrooms and educating public organizations on how to provide continued community-based support for children with and without special needs.