Helping Children and Families Start Strong
The Kansas Head Start Association (KHSA) supports all 28 Kansas Head Start programs through advocacy, education and leadership in special projects benefiting young children and families. KHSA is helping to build school-ready children and self-sufficient families. School-ready children are strong in all areas of their lives—academic, physical, social and emotional. And strong, stable families with support systems are essential to their growth.
Program of the Month - Futures Unlimited
same is true for the Head Start program at Futures Unlimited, Inc. in Wellington.Each fall the preschool has a special event called Fall Feast, which hosts parents for a meal with their child! This year's event took place on November 24th. It was a Hawaiian-themed meal which included ham, pineapple, broccoli, cauliflower, carrots and Hawaiian rolls.
Happy Bear Teaches Preschoolers About Personal Safety
The "P.S. It's My Body!" personal safety curriculum was introduced in Cowley County Head Start this fall. The preschool unit of this curriculum includes an interactive play featuring "Happy Bear" and introduces the concept of welcome and unwelcome touches, private parts, resistance skills, personal space and telling an adult.
Parents were invited to attend a Family Fun Night where they viewed a video presentation of the Happy Bear play and were given safety tips and a Happy Bear activity packet to share with their children. The information was also provided to parents who were unable to attend. Children made a Happy Bear craft and were visited by Happy Bear. The following week, the Happy Bear play was presented in each of the Head Start classrooms. Children learned about the right to choose in giving and receiving touches, and identified trusted adults they could tell if they need help. Each class followed up with activity sheets that reinforced the concepts presented by Happy Bear.
