Child care providers may now return to their licensed capacity
Programs are required to adhere to the health and safety guidance, COVID-19 GUIDANCE for Child Care Facilities, which can be found in both English and Spanish on the Division of Early Childhood website. A return to licensed capacities requires child staff ratios per COMAR regulations. If a classroom currently has a group size of 14 children with one staff based on the relaxation of regulations due to the COVID-19 pandemic, a program may not add additional children to the classroom until an additional qualified staff person is assigned to the classroom. A group size of 14 children with one staff will be permitted only until October 30, 2020.
Read the full announcement on our website.
Registration for the Child Care & COVID-19 Training is now open!
The training is designed to equip child care providers and caregivers with the knowledge they need to stop the spread of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) in their child care facilities.
Course information and registration is available on the Training page of our website.
PROVIDERS: Child Care Scholarship Alert
Please go to Money4ChildCare.com and click on Online Survey Verification to
confirm that you have entered all scholarships listed on your Scholarship Specific rate.
Scholarships are listed from smallest to largest number. If you cannot find a scholarship ID number you must submit the scholarship by completing the Online Survey rate online. Faxing or mailing a copy of your Parent Policies and Procedures to CCS Central, prevents us from ending and reissuing a new scholarship to your parents. All scholarships must be entered or corrected by November 5, 2020.
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In partnership with MSDE's Title III Office, the Maryland State Advisory Council for English Learners has released A Guide to School for Families of English Learners for families new to the country and families of English learners. This guide, which provides resources for families beginning in early childhood, has been developed to help families understand the school system and offers suggestions for how to support children’s learning and family engagement. This Guide provides information about Maryland's early childhood system, including how to enroll a child in early childhood programs, support transition to school, and connect parents and families to additional supports.
Also available in Spanish.
CDA funding has officially launched!
The Maryland State Department of Education, Division of Early Childhood will provide funding to support child care providers with obtaining their Child Development Associate® (CDA) Credential™ from the Council for Professional Recognition. This initiative was funded through the PDG B-5 Grant and through the Governor’s Office to enhance the early childhood workforce in career advancement.
For more info, please visit:
https://earlychildhood.marylandpublicschools.org/CDA
Looking to Meet Quality Rating 3?
Check out two New FREE Resources that are…
- Easy to use
- Convenient downloadable forms
- Valuable for program improvement
Visit marylandexcels.org.
What’s New in Maryland Accreditation?
Exciting changes are coming to Program Improvement Visits that benefit your program
in our new virtual world.
Watch for more information soon.
Have you heard about CLASS ®?
The Classroom Assessment Scoring System (CLASS) by Teachstone is an assessment
tool that focuses on teacher-child interactions. Maryland EXCELS will be expanding the
use of this tool. Stay tuned for more information…
Child Care Providers
All licensed child care programs are now able to reopen. Please fill out the NEW Child Care Reopening Verification form and send it to your licensing specialist or region manager for approval.
Contact your regional licensing office with questions.
Emergency Preparedness Training for Child Care Providers
Project Security Blanket is a six -hour course that assists child care providers in completing an emergency plan for their programs. Information for upcoming Project Security Blanket training can be found on
the Clearinghouse Calendar or on the Project Security Blanket website.
projectsecurityblanket.org
Here’s How to Submit to Tuesday Tidbits
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Child Care during COVID-19 Survey Extended and Earn 5 PAUs for Helping
The COVID-19 Parent Survey About Child Care Needs is extended to November 6th and now every licensed child care provider in Maryland has the opportunity to earn a total of 5 PAUs to help the MSDE reach families across the state.
Tell your families about the survey and ask them to provide their email address to you for MSDE to provide a
direct link to the survey.
If you provide MSDE a list of every family in your program, the person identified as coordinating the effort will be awarded 2 PAUs.
The next step is to follow up with each family to ensure that at least 50% of your families have completed the survey.
When you receive at least 50% of your family's completion, you will be awarded 3 PAUs.
Get all of the requirements to earn PAUs for the survey at money4childcare.com.
The Family Child Care Provider Direct Grant Program
The Provider Direct Grant Fund Program reimburses up to $1000 in expenses that a provider
incurs to achieve or maintain compliance with family child care regulations. Reimbursement is
made in the form of a grant award.
Critical Competencies Training for Infant-Toddler Educators coming Fall 2020!
Trainers across the state who have been trained by Zero to Three experts, will begin offering the Critical Competencies training soon. Don't wait, sign up today!
Click the image to learn more.
Submission of Applications For Credentialing Branch
All Maryland Child Care Credentialing program applications should be submitted directly to Child Care Central:
PO Box 598 Baltimore, MD 21203
Email: cccredential@conduent.com
Fax: 410-229-0145
Applications for the following programs should not be mailed at this time. Applications should be sent electronically to credentialocc.msde@maryland.gov until further notice.
- Child Care Career and Professional Development Fund
- Quality Incentive and Family Provider Grant
- Training Voucher and Training Reimbursement Applications
Please do not mail applications in at this time.
Note: Training Voucher and Reimbursement applications can also be submitted using the following links:
Maryland Child Care Credential Program
Effective October 1, 2020, Credential Award Letter and Certificate will be sent directly to your email. Please make sure that you submit the correct email address on your Credential
application.
Special Needs Training and Technical Assistance for Infants and Toddlers
If you provide care for children under 3 years old, your program may be eligible to receive professional development at over 75% off!
Participants will receive:
Training - 2 or 3 COK hours
Technical Assistance (2 sessions) - 2 COK hours
Professional development is available statewide, but spaces are limited.
Learn more here.
Training for Child Care Providers during COVID-19
Effective immediately, trainers may conduct face-to-face training to a maximum of 30 participants. All trainers must continue to take precautionary measures to minimize the impact of COVID-19 and must adhere to the guidelines established by the CDC.
Virtual
Approved Online Training Organizations
Basic Heath & Safety
The FREE October training will run October 1 at 9:00am through October 22 at 9:00am.
Registration for the November course will be open October 22-29.
Online / Virtual
FDA Reiterates Warning About Dangerous Alcohol-Based Hand Sanitizers Containing Methanol
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration continues to warn consumers and health care professionals not to use certain alcohol-based hand sanitizers due to the dangerous presence of methanol, or wood alcohol – a substance often used to create fuel and antifreeze that can be toxic when absorbed through the skin as well as life-threatening when ingested.
Check the updated list here.
Chesapeake Nature Play & Learning Conference
Discover a range of outdoor learning environments and approaches to natural play space design during this one-of-a-kind virtual event! Enjoy a day full of engaging workshops that highlight ways to take learning out-
doors. If you are searching for ideas for your program's nature play space, or you'd like more information about the benefits of nature play, this conference offers a variety of examples from the Chesapeake region.
More info and registration is available at erafans.org.
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OCTOBER 20, 2020
Public Hearing: Prek and K Regulations
The Early Learning Branch of the Division of Early Childhood is seeking input on the
current Maryland Prekindergarten and Kindergarten regulations. The COMAR regulations can be found at the link below. There will be a public hearing on Thursday, November 5, 2020 from 1:00 pm until 3:00 pm. The hearing will be held virtually.
Please complete the registration form in order to sign up for the hearing. Participants
will be allotted four (4) minutes to speak and provide feedback on the regulations in the
order that they are received. Participants can also offer comments on the registration
form. The deadline for submitting comments is 5:00 pm on November 5th .
Register:
forms.gle/7jrLKDhF9KzzuiMv5
Updated Consolidated Health and Safety Guidance Posted (8/28/2020)
Guidance includes:
Guidance for Use of Cloth Face Coverings in Child Care Programs
Exclusion, Quarantine, and Closure Recommendations for COVID-19 or COVID19--like Illness in Child Care Programs
Guidance for Temperature and Symptom Screening in Child Care Programs
Frequently Asked Questions: Coronavirus (COVID-19) Guidance for Child Care Settings
Get the Guidance here.
Family Engagement Practices used in Early Care and Education Programs
DEC partnered with WIDA Early Years to conduct a qualitative research study, Young Multilingual Children in Maryland: Exploring Parent Perceptions of Children’s Language Development, Family Engagement Practices, and Decision-Making about Early Care and Education.
The 2020 Maryland Family Engagement Summit Webinar Series
Small Changes for Big Results: Understanding Equity and Implicit Bias when Engaging Families
November 12, 2020
"No Small Matters" followed by Research Study
3 – 4:30 p.m.
SAVE THE DATE
December 10, 2020 at 3pm - Equity on the Ground
Registration info coming soon!
State Systems & Public Media: Family Engagement to Advance PreK Computational Thinking
This webinar, presented by BUILD Initiative
Strong Foundations For Our Youngest Children, is for state early childhood leaders in early learning and care, home visiting, family support, public health and education whose programs and services support family learning.
November 13 at 2:00 PM
Learn more and register at zoom.us/webinar/
Maryland Families Engage Presents: The 14 Days of Halloween!
Visit marylandfamiliesengage.org for our daily featured events to celebrate the holiday safely. For all ages.
Administration for Children and Familie’s Office of Early Childhood Development (ECD) is hosting a series of conversations with key cross-sector partners throughout October and targeted engagements during the week of October 26th, 2020 to bring new insights for how RADICAL family engagement could change the landscape of education and early childhood systems, starting in the early years.
More info is available at smore.com. (Click the link)
PBS KIDS Talk About: Race & Racism
Parents and kids sat down for an honest conversation about an important topic. “PBS KIDS Talk About: Race & Racism” is now streaming on the PBS KIDS video app. The special features real families having real conversations about racial identity, racism, and standing up for what’s right even when it’s difficult. This half-hour program is hosted by Amanda Gorman, the country’s first National Youth Poet Laureate, and features clips from PBS KIDS shows “Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood,” “Xavier Riddle and the Secret Museum,” and “Arthur.”
Watch on pbskids.org.
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