Tips for Reopening Childcare

Guest Post
by Andrew Roszak
Executive Director, The Institute for Childhood Preparedness

As restrictions from the COVID-19 Coronavirus pandemic begin to ease, many early childhood programs are thinking about reopening. This is not an easy task and many find themselves attempting to balance feasibility versus safety. FunShine had the opportunity to talk about reopening child care with the executive director of the Institute for Childhood Preparedness, Andrew Roszak. Roszak has been working on emergency preparedness issues for over 20 years, including his service as Senior Director of Environmental Health, Pandemic Preparedness and Catastrophic Response – where he worked each day with the CDC and local health departments to better prepare communities for pandemics. Roszak submitted the following tips.

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Bring out Those Scissors!

Tips for Strengthening Preschool Cutting Skills
by Katie BrazerolMother cuts paper with his son

Providers and parents are often nervous about introducing scissors to their children for fear it will encourage cutting things other than paper. (Visions of dolls and younger siblings come to mind). However, if children are allowed to practice using scissors in the correct environment, they are more likely to understand the purpose for scissors while leaving haircuts to the professionals. (It is important, of course, to remind children of appropriate items to cut or not cut.)

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