HELPING KIDS THRIVE: "Ages & Stages Day" at RSS
By Contributor
BIRTH TO FIVE – WATCH ME THRIVE!
ROSSLAND, BC– Every parent wants their child to be healthy and on track with growth and development. From 9 am to 2:30pm on Monday, February 23, 2015 at the Rossland Summit School, the Family Action Network (FAN) will be hosting an Ages and Stages Day. During the event, parents with children ages five and under will have the opportunity to complete an Ages and Stages questionnaire and reflect on their child’s growth and development with a child development consultant.
The Family Action Network is a non-profit organization with a vision of the Lower Columbia region as the ‘best place to raise a child’.
“One of FAN’s priority projects is to increase opportunities for early developmental screening and an awareness of why early screening is so important for all kids five and under,” said Christy Anderson, FAN Regional Coordinator. “As parents, we all have questions about how our kids are doing at each stage of their development. Early screening gives parents a way to measure and track their child’s development. If a vulnerability is uncovered through the screening process, it can be addressed right away; preventing a little bump from becoming a larger hurdle down the road.”
Families pre-book an appointment for their children and have an hour with an early childhood specialist to complete an age-appropriate questionnaire and ask any questions they may have around topics like sleeping, eating, speech, social or emotional challenges. Parents provide their expert knowledge about their children and are full partners in the screening process.
Sonia Tavares, West Kootenay Early Years Coordinator, understands the importance of the event.
“We know that regular developmental checks are an essential part of early childhood growth and development,” Tavares said. “Screening provides a snapshot of your child’s development and parents tell us how much they appreciate being given clear information about how their child is progressing.”
Families learn about fun, follow-up activities to engage in at home with their children. Children love the screening day because it’s fun, and is largely play-based.
This is FAN’s fourth Ages and Stages event and its first mobile screening day. A parent survey conducted by FAN in 2012 identified regional transportation as a common challenge to accessing services and support. In response to this, FAN will organize two Ages and Stages events each year: one event every fall at the Kiro Health Centre in Trail and one event in a different Lower Columbia community each spring. By the end of February, FAN will have reached a milestone of providing opportunities for 100 children to be screened.
For more information, or to book an appointment for your child, please call Christy Anderson at 1-855-368-3707 (toll free). We gratefully acknowledge the support of the Columbia Basin Trust and Teck Trail Operations as funders of this initiative.
For more information contact:
Christy Anderson, Regional Coordinator
Family Action Network
250-687-1501
