Sensory Friendly Learning Opportunity

Are you looking for fun, engaging, learning opportunities for you little one?  Does your little one struggle with sensory overload in new, unfamiliar or crowded situations?  Vivint and the Leonardo are working to combat the struggle with Sensory Friendly Mondays!  This is a free event on the first Monday of the month from 3 - 5 pm.

Shutterstock

The Leonardo, Vivint partner to offer ‘sensory-friendly’ day for kids

By KSL.com Staff | Posted - Nov 2nd, 2019 @ 11:32am

---

0

• 
• 
• 
• 

---

SALT LAKE CITY — It can be difficult to find activities for children with sensory processing differences.

That's why The Leonardo Museum of Creativity and Innovation partnered with Vivint Smart Home to create a monthly event they call Sensory-Friendly Mondays.

For parents looking for a weeknight activity to take their kids to, this free event is held at the museum, 209 E. 500 South, on the first Monday of each month from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. It includes “specialized activities for individuals of all abilities and their families,” according to a news release from the museum.

Lights will be turned down, noise reduced, and sensory goodie bags will be given out — which contain noise-canceling headphones, fidget tools, maps guides and verbal cue cards.

"We want to make curiosity and innovation accessible to all by providing a monthly event for those with sensory processing differences to have a fun, enjoyable and interactive learning experience," Alexandra Hesse, executive director of The Leonardo Museum, said in the news release.

Creating an inclusive event is what Sensory-Friendly Mondays are all about.

"Kids are able to enjoy an experience they were previously not able to enjoy. The staff is trained to handle kids with different abilities, so parents can feel a little bit more comfortable while they’re here as well," wrote Holly Mero-Bench, director of Vivint Gives Back, Vivint’s philanthropic foundation. "Children with autism and other intellectual and developmental disabilities and their families are especially important to us. Our goal is to give them greater peace of mind both at home and in the community."

The first event was held on Oct. 7 and the next one is scheduled for Nov. 4.

---

Editor's note: The content of this article was taken from a press release sent out by Silicon Slopes. This is not information gathered by a KSL.com reporter.

It's Halloween Time!

Holidays present a challenge with little ones, particularly when the celebration affects the child's schedule.  Parents with children who have sensory concerns or anxiety or delays in speech or . . . I guess we could say all parents . . . want their children to enjoy the holiday just like their peers.  Please consider your child and what they need to be able to enjoy the holiday.  Then consider the other children you see and do what you can to make their holiday experience successful also.

Happy Halloween!

Funding Early Childhood is the Right IDEA

Join Division of Early Childhood (DEC) flood their inbox campaign by sending an electronic letter to your Congressional leaders through CEC’s Legislative Action Center. Three easy steps and 30 seconds of your time for over 1 million kids. Click here https://www.dec-sped.org/single-post/IDEA, enter your name and address and hit submit! It’s as easy as that!

Join DEC and early childhood advocates from across the nation in asking Congress to invest in early childhood services for young children with developmental delays and disabilities.
In late July, the Funding Early Childhood is the Right IDEA Act H.R. 4107, was introduced by Representatives Mark DeSaulnier (CA-D), Rodney Davis (IL-R) and Jared Huffman (CA-D) (Press Release of Bill H.R. 4107). This bipartisan bill addresses the significant gap in federal funding for IDEA Part C and 619 Preschool Grant Programs. With 15 co-sponsors, this bill increases authorization levels over 5 years for these crucial programs and would bring us back to per-child peak funding, considering inflation. An identical Senate bill is expected to be introduced this fall.

The IDEA Early Intervention and the Preschool Special Education Programs currently serve over 1.16 million children, about double the number of children served in 1991. Although states and local communities continue to serve more and more children in IDEA early childhood programs, federal funding has not kept pace. Adjusting for inflation, per-child funding for both Preschool Special Education and Early Intervention have decreased from their respective peaks by more than 64%.

We are urging members of Congress to co-sponsor and support the House bill Funding Early Childhood is the Right IDEA and sponsor or support the Senate bill this fall.
We need everyone’s voice to help get funding for services back to peak levels for over 1 million children. #FundEarlyChildhoodIDEA

Family Stories

We would like to highlight children in our program by posting family stories on our website.  Please send your family story with a picture of your child or your whole family to mzeschke@dsdmail.net then watch for this new addition to our blog and on our website https://www.davis.k12.ut.us/academics/early-childhood/early-interventionspecial-ed-preschool

You can see samples of family stories at kidswhocount.org/stories. Kids Who Count is the Baby Watch Early Intervention Program serving the Nebo School District.

Along with posting pictures and stories on our website, we may use your family story and picture to educate legislators about services provided in early intervention.  We may also use your story to let more families in Davis County know what services are available for the little ones.  By sharing your story and picture with us, you are giving us permission to use them for any of these purposes.  We may even share on our Facebook page (without names or any personally identifiable information).

We appreciate your support for out program and we love working with children and families to build bright futures!  Thank you for letting us be a part of your lives!

Davis EI Face-to-Face Flyers

Posted above are the Davis Early Intervention Face-to-Face flyers for October with concepts and ideas to help you with your child's social-emotional development. See the top right corner of each flyer to find the developmental age range your child fits into and that will be the flyer that will be best for your child for their given developmental age.

Opportunity to Advocate for Early Intervention Funding

There is currently a bill in Washington DC to provide additional funding for Early Intervention Programs and Preschool Special Education Programs nationwide.  Please contact your legislator and ask them to support this bill for the benefit of our littles.

Advocacy at Home

Our members of Congress are back in their home districts for two more weeks. This is a prime time for us to personally reach out and ask for their support for early childhood and IDEA funding.

How you can Advocate at Home

Invite your members of congress to an in-person meeting or attend a town hall- invite them for coffee, to visit your community, school or program, or to meet with you and the children and families you serve. Meeting in person is a great way for members of congress to see firsthand how children and families benefit from additional funding, to make a connection with you as a resource on IDEA and early childhood issues and put a human face to the decisions they are making in DC. 

At the very least, we can all call or email to share our stories.

·         Ask for their commitment to support the early education of young children. 

·         Share how increased funding will benefit those we serve. 

Find your Elected Officials

Visit CEC's Legislative Action Center and enter your zip code under “Find your Elected Officials”.

Prepare

Read up on the issues and the position of your member of Congress. CEC has put together Issue Briefs to make it easy for you to educate yourself and your members of Congress.

Funding Early Childhood is the Right IDEA

Press Release of Bill H.R. 4107

Full Funding of IDEA Issue Brief

Have your “Ask” ready

Ask your House Representative to support the bipartisan bill H.R. 4107 Funding Early Childhood in IDEA is the Right IDEA, which creates new authorization levels for IDEA Part C and Part B Section 619 (preschool) programs.

Ask your Representative and Senators to support Full Funding of IDEA. The House bill is H.R. 1878 and the Senate bill is S. 866.

Follow-up

Always end on a positive by thanking your member of Congress for their time and efforts. Provide them with your contact information should they have questions.

EI in the Park