September Children's Advocate online!

The full September-October issue is online at http://www.4children.org/issues/2009/september_october/ -- for Spanish or Chinese, click the link at the top of any page.

Articles in this issue:

• Grassroots snapshot: Oakland parents successfully push for school repairs
• Hot topics: Parents design L.A. parent involvement model
• Early care and education: Classroom projects offer rich learning opportunities
• Raising kids: Families and parent educators share tips for stopping bullying
• Parent Voices: Parents and providers call on legislators to protect child care
• California Child Development CORPS: Riverside Corps participants build leadership
• Children's Advocates Roundtable: call for parent input, Childhood Matters returns to KISS 98.1FM, new food stamps and nutrition laws, health care reform, state budget cuts services for families

July Children's Advocate now online!

The full issue is online at http://www.4children.org/issues/2009/july_august/. For Spanish or Chinese, click the link at the top of any page.

Articles in this issue:

• Grassroots snapshot: Parents win change in school lunch policy
• Hot topics: A statewide quality improvement system for California?
• Early care and education: Teachers can help English learners build skills in two languages
• Raising kids: A parent shares how she helped her children cope with divorce
• California Child Development Corps participant speaks out—and is heard—at budget hearing
• Parent Voices: Parents rally for child care
• Children's Advocates Roundtable: bills in the legislature, combating the Cradle to Prison Pipeline, stimulus funds, state budget

Resources and tools

Advocacy for flexible work schedules

MomsRising is an internet-based campaign “to bring together millions of people who share a common concern about the need to build a more family-friendly America.” They’ve collected many great tools to help people advocate for more family-friendly work schedules, including part time, flex time, and more. www.momsrising.org/work

Health and safety information in Spanish

Nuestros Niños radio program (http://www.nuestrosninos.org/) has published a Spanish-language booklet of culturally appropriate child health and safety information, advice, and resources. This is the first in a series, ¡Adelante con Nuestros Niños! Agencies that would like to buy copies for distribution ($2 each for orders up to 250, discounts for larger orders) can contact Interactive Parenting Media, PO Box 1212, Berkeley, CA 94701 or info@interactiveparentingmedia.org

Building a child care business

Building Child Care is new collaborative of child care organizations that offers help with:

• Capital financing ideas
• Developing a business plan
• Locating grant and loan resources
• Finding local child care resources

The collaborative includes Insight Center for Community Economic Development, the California Child Care Resource and Referral Network, the Low Income Investment Fund, and The Children’s Collabrium. For info: 888-411-3535, http://www.buildingchildcare.org/

Read more news like this in the Jan-Feb Children's Advocate's Roundtable report, http://www.4children.org/issues/2009/january_february/childrens_advocate_roundtable/ (for Spanish or Chinese, click on the link at the top of the page)

January-February Children's Advocate

Check out our January-February Children's Advocate issue -- now available and online in English, Spanish, and Chinese! This issue includes our annual multicultural calendar with dates for key 2009 multicultural holidays as well as anniversaries of significant events. In this issue:

• 2009 multicultural calendar (online only!)
• Grassroots Snapshot: Families win pesticide buffer zone
• Hot topics: LIFETIME helps parents get their CalWORKs benefits
• Early Care and Education: Learning through play: Ways children can bump into numbers
• Hot topics: Union? Family child care association? Family child care providers debate the benefits
• Raising kids: Parents talk with kids about their family's tough times
• Community resources: Resources for families going through tough times
• California Child Development CORPS: The CARES stipend is a strong motivator
• Parent Voices: "Now everything I do incorporates Parent Voices"

In English at http://www.4children.org/issues/2009/january_february
(for Spanish or Chinese, click on the link at the top of that page)

November-December Children's Advocate

Check out our November-December Children's Advocate issue -- now available and online in English, Spanish, and Chinese! This issue includes a special supplement about how raising families’ income is a key strategy for improving the lives of young children

Special supplement:

• Money Matters: Community programs boost families’ incomes
• Money Matters: Money matters for child development
• Money Matters: What can I do to help?

Also in this issue:

• Grassroots Snapshot: Oakland homeowners win foreclosure protections
• Hot topics: Parents are taking action—in their homes and in the community—to protect girls from developing too soon
• Early Care and Education: Learning through play: Play activities that include letters and writing prepare children to read
• Hot Topics: Immigrant child care providers—and even many who were born here—sometimes find the system confusing
• Raising kids: Parents offer tips for talking with kids about advertising
• Bookbasket: Hard times
• News from the California Child Development CORPS
• News from Parent Voices
• News from the Children's Advocates Roundtable
  

In English at http://www.4children.org/current.htm
In Spanish at http://www.4children.org/current.htm#esp
In Chinese at http://www.4children.org/current.htm#chn

July-August Children's Advocate

The Children's Advocate July-August 2008 issue is now available -- and online -- in English, Spanish, and Chinese. This is a special environmental issue, with tips on raising "green" kids and connecting kids with nature, as well as a snapshot of anti-global-warming activism in Chula Vista and a bookbasket of environmentally themed kids' books. Check it out:

• Grassroots Snapshot: Parents help win Chula Vista global warming plan
  
• Hot topics: Families organize to bring children's issues into political campaigns
  
• Early Care and Education: Early care and education teachers share tips for helping children connect with nature
  
• Hot topics: Stressed-out parents find help and education in support groups
  
• Raising kids: Families and educators offer kid-friendly environmental tips
  
• Bookbasket: Children's books provide kid-friendly descriptions of environmental issues -- and suggest positive ways to make a difference
  
• News from the California Child Development CORPS: Working against budget cuts -- locally and statewide
  
• News from Parent Voices: Parents come together to create platform on family issues
  
• News from the Children's Advocates' Roundtable

In English at http://www.4children.org/current.htm
In Spanish at http://www.4children.org/current.htm#esp
In Chinese at http://www.4children.org/current.htm#chn

Bilingual schools: tips for success

New report

Successful Bilingual Schools looks at six elementary schools in San Diego, LA, and Ventura counties with successful bilingual education programs (despite poverty and students' limited English skills). The report identifies key features that contribute to success -- leadership, accountability, teacher qualifications, and professional development.

Successful Bilingual Schools
http://www.sdcoe.net/lret2/els/pdf/SBS_Report_FINAL.pdf

Child welfare terms in Spanish

New resource

It can be challenging to translate technical terms about issues affecting kids (esp child welfare services!) into Spanish, so this reference from the Child Welfare Information Gateway (part of the US Dept of Health and Human Services) looks very handy:

Child Welfare Terms, English to Spanish
http://www.childwelfare.gov/glossary/
terms_english_spanish_a-b.cfm