January 2023 - Sparkler

Play ActivitiesScreening

January 25, 2023 by Admin 0 Comments

Q&A with Bethanne: How to Support Families with Ongoing Screening and Promotion

Sparkler spoke with Bethanne Vergean, who leads family and community engagement for Sparkler Connecticut and is the Learn the Signs Act Early ambassador for Connecticut, about the importance of ongoing developmental screening and promotion in the early years.

What is developmental screening and why is it important?

Developmental screening is a quick snapshot of your child’s developmental progress. Screening helps parents and providers to better understand children’s early growth and learning: Which skills have they developed? Which ones might need a little more practice or support? It’s estimated that 1 in 7 children are affected by developmental delays or other related challenges, but only about 1 in 5 of those kids gets identified before school begins. The earlier and the more that we screen, the better we can get at identifying which kids might need early interventions.

What is developmental monitoring? How is it different from screening?

Developmental monitoring is done by families and caregivers every day as they watch their child play, speak and move. Screening is a more formal process, using a validated tool like Ages & Stages Questionnaires, but both are important. We’re so excited to be sharing Sparkler with Connecticut families because it brings together monitoring, screening, and ongoing promotion, making it easier for families to track and support their children’s development in the early years.

You're the Learn the Signs. Act Early. Ambassador for the state of Connecticut. What is Learn the Signs?

Learn the Signs is a program from the CDC (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) that aims to improve early identification of children with autism and other developmental disabilities so children and families can get the services and support they need as early as possible. Learn the Signs shares checklists of the skills that most children develop at each age in early childhood. Parents can find these checklists in Sparkler’s app under Tips for Adults to check on what skills their children should develop between birth and age 5.

How early should families complete an Ages & Stages Questionnaire?

As early as possible! The first ASQs are for two month old babies! Ideally families will complete these questionnaires throughout their child’s early years to understand their development, celebrate the milestones they achieve, and have the info they need to support them.

Should all families complete ASQ? Or just families with concerns?

Everyone! Studies show that people — even experts — aren’t great at identifying delays if they are not using screening tools. When everybody screens, parents and providers have the information they need to know who might need extra support! The exception to this rule is families who have children who are already diagnosed with delays. If a child is already receiving early interventions, there’s no need to complete more screening. (Families can still use Sparkler to find fun learning activities to play together, regardless of a diagnosis!)

People say "repeat screening" or "screening over time" is important. Why? How often should families be doing this?

Children learn and grow so much — and so quickly — in the early years! The skills they develop in the first five years help them get ready for everything that comes later — succeeding in school, navigating friendships, playing on teams. Screening early and often throughout early childhood helps families understand and support their children’s learning along the way.

Families tend to enjoy completing the questionnaires. I've always thought it's because it helps them celebrate all the things their kids CAN do! How have you seen parents react to the ASQ over your career?

Yes! Screening helps parents learn what their children can do. When they try the skills in the ASQ — like walking up steps or drawing straight lines — parents are often surprised at all of the amazing skills that their kids have developed. Completing the screening can also help parents articulate questions or concerns they have, setting up really valuable conversations with their teachers or other providers.

How can parents use Sparkler to promote learning in an ongoing way after completing the screening?

PLAY! Plain and simple play is the most powerful tool we have to help children learn and grow in the early years. Playing games, pretending, creating, going on adventures, singing, talking: all of these playful moments in children’s days are helping them develop important skills. Parents can use Sparkler to find thousands of play activities that can help them play and learn with their children.

How can families use Sparkler to tap into the network of support available to families in the state of Connecticut?

Connecticut is the birthplace of Help Me Grow, a national system of early support that helps parents with young children. One important part of Help Me Grow is having a centralized access point for parents — a hub where families can get information and tools to help their kids if they have concerns in the early years. In Connecticut, that access point is 211 Child Development — and Sparkler connects parents directly with 211. If a parent asks a question in Sparkler’s two-way chat, they can get follow up and support from a care coordinator at 211; if they have a concern about their child’s development and are looking for what to do next, they can reach out to 211 through Sparkler. By putting Sparkler in parents’ pockets, we’re expanding access to the support that all parents need and deserve. It’s hard to be a parent. We never have all the answers! Sparkler is a tool that makes it easier for parents to access the answers and help they need.

YOU have been working on early childhood in Connecticut for a long time! Can you tell us a little bit about your background?

I have been working in Early Childhood for 20 years! Early in my career I experienced working with families and young children by providing Health and Developmental screenings. This opportunity brought me such joy to work with families and guide them on the development of their children. Being the Learn the Signs Act Early Ambassador, I have had the opportunity to travel around the state and provide training to healthcare professionals, state agencies, home visitors, and early childhood programs. It is even more exciting now that I can share my work as an Ambassador and being a part of the Sparkler team to ensure that families have greater access to the information and resources they need to help their children.

Play Activities

January 25, 2023 by Admin 0 Comments

New Year, New Content in Sparkler!

Sparker’s library of play activities is always growing, and we’re excited to let you know that we have added some Toddler and Preschooler activities about everyone’s favorite topic: dinosaurs! Families can find these activities under PLAY in their app … and providers can find it on the Dashboard Library tab. Here are a few highlights:

Fossil Match

Families can click here from a mobile device to open the activity in the Sparkler app! Here’s how to play:

Fossils are the remains of animals or plants that lived a long time ago. Let’s make our own fossils and play a matching game.
Let’s make five balls of playdough, and press a different small toy into each ball to make an impression.
Close your eyes while I mix up the “fossils.” Observe the fossil impressions closely — can you match the toy with the impression that it made in the dough?

Dino Menu

Families can click here from a mobile device to open the activity in the Sparkler app! Here’s how to play:

Different dinosaurs ate different things — carnivores ate meat and herbivores ate plants.
Let’s pretend to make a meal for your dinosaur. What does your dino have to eat today?
Let’s add ingredients to the bowl, mix it up, and serve our dinosaurs!

Print Investigator

Families can click here from a mobile device to open the activity in the Sparkler app! Here’s how to play:

Paleontologists are scientists that study dinosaurs. They can learn about how dinosaurs moved and how fast they moved from fossils of their footprints, called “Trackways.”
Let’s go on a family walk and make footprints in the water, sand or mud. Let’s move in different ways: walking, running, or tiptoes. How will our footprints change as we move differently?
Now, let’s circle back. Which print goes with which feet? Can you guess how they were moving by looking at their footprints?

ParentingScreening

January 21, 2023 by Admin 0 Comments

Q&A: How to Support Families with Ongoing Screening and Promotion

Sparkler spoke with Zulema Rubalcava Barron, the Developmental Screening Manager at Support for Families of Children with Disabilities in San Francisco, about the importance of ongoing developmental screening and promotion in the early years.

What is developmental screening and why is it important?

Developmental screening is a snapshot in time of your child’s developmental progress. It’s like taking a picture of your child and being able to see how much they’ve grown from the last time you took their picture, except with a screening, we can see your child’s developmental strengths and which skills might need more practice or support. Every child is unique and that’s why it’s so important to use the information from the screening to be able to help your child and their individual strengths and skills continue to grow and learn.

How early should families complete an Ages & Stages Questionnaire?

I love talking about the wealth of information that families can find in the Sparkler app! The Sparkler app has so many great learning activities at your fingertips that are so easy to do with your child. The questionnaires are great but using the “Play” tab to get ideas of how to play together will not only promote your child’s development but will also create timeless memories of having fun, as a family (and while they’re learning too)! There are also so many amazing parenting tips on the “Home” page, so that, as a parent, you can also continue to learn and grow your own parenting practices.

Should all families complete ASQ? Or just families with concerns?

The great thing about these questionnaires is that they’re meant for every family, even if you think your child is doing great. Like I mentioned before, all children develop at their own pace and all children can benefit from support at times. The ASQ gives you great individualized information about your child’s development, so that we can celebrate their success and provide support where (and when) they most need it.

People say “repeat screening” or “screening over time” is important. Why? How often should families be doing this?

The first five years of a child’s life are so important! These years are building the foundation for your child’s future growth and learning, so it’s important to check in periodically, especially in those first three years, when children are learning and developing so rapidly! There are different recommendations about how often we should ask families to fill out these questionnaires, but I don’t see any harm in letting families fill them out as often as they want. In general, you can’t screen too much, but you can screen too little; my hope is that families complete these questionnaires at least twice a year, if possible.

Families tend to enjoy completing the questionnaires. I’ve always thought it’s because it helps them celebrate all the things their kids CAN do! How have you seen parents react to the ASQ over your career?

Most families I’ve worked with tell me that they really like answering the ASQ’s because, not only do they learn more about their child, but also learn more about child development and the milestones children reach as they grow. Families often tell me that they continue to learn so much just by observing their child playing after completing an ASQ because they now have a better sense of what to look out for and how to continue to support their child’s development. I’ve also had families tell me that they’re so grateful they did this because they thought their child was developing typically, but after filling out the questionnaire they were able to see that their child was delayed in meeting some of their milestones and were able to get support from their teacher, pediatrician, professionals, etc., to the benefit of their child.

Do you have any tips for a provider having a conversation following screening with a parent who does have concerns about their child’s development?

Always start with strengths! Every child has things they’re doing really well, even if there are concerns in other areas, and it’s important that families hear what those strengths are before talking about the concerns. Be specific about the concerns and let families process the information in whatever way works for them; that might look like giving them more time, less time, more information, less information, etc. And, also remind families that as their provider, you’ll be walking alongside them to support them throughout the process of finding out more information about their child’s development or looking for resources that can support their child.

How can families use Sparkler in an ongoing way to support learning after completing a screening?

Support for Families helps families who have concerns to access evaluations or needed services. Can you tell us a bit about that care coordination piece and what supports there are for families in San Francisco with developmental concerns?

We’ve been around since 1983, helping families who have children with developmental delays or concerns, disabilities, and/or special health care needs in San Francisco by proving information, education, and parent-to-parent support. We have an amazing team of care coordinators and family resource specialists that speak multiple languages who partner with families to navigate the different systems that provide evaluations or other services. We typically get referrals from all different sectors, like early childhood educators, health care settings, or other community agencies, but families can also self-refer themselves and call themselves if they have any questions or just want to explore resources. We also have fun family events, parenting play groups, support groups, parent workshops…the list goes on!

How can Support for Families help programs that are using Sparkler and ASQ with their families?

We’ve been partnering with the Department of Early Childhood (DEC, also formerly First 5 and OECE) to help sites with their developmental screening systems, including using Sparkler. We have a variety of trainings on the ASQ and ASQ:SE, talking to families when concerns arise, and other trainings that support educators on everything from promoting self-regulation to supporting sensory needs to using visual aids, etc. We know that as we start screening, children who need a little more support will be identified and we want to make sure that this process is supportive for everyone — families and the providers who serve them. You can find all our supports on the Support for Families website.

You’ve been doing screening/early intervention for a long time! Can you tell us a little bit about your background?

I’ve been working with families for most of my career, as an early interventionist at first, but have been working on making sure there is universal access to developmental screening in San Francisco for more than 16 years now, with different projects, but always with a focus on making sure that families have all the support they need to help their child grow and learn.