Head Start Celebrates Week of the Young Child

MIDDLETOWN – Head Start students in Middletown, Scotchtown and Port Jervis celebrated April 16-20 as Week of the Young Child. Each April the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC) designates the week to celebrate early learning, young children, their teachers & families.

Each day featured a different learning topic. Music Monday activities help children not only develop creatively but learn literacy, language, and math skills through music. On Tasty Tuesday classes learn about health eating and fitness and try easy recipes. Work Together Wednesday encourages development of social skills and collaboration. Artsy Thursday has students explore senses through creating art projects.

Students created their own instruments and performed with special guest Maximilian Mezetin who brought an instrument that correlated sound and color and sent children home with kazoos. Students created yogurt sundaes and two classes collaborated to utilize the entire floorspace to create a maze out of blocks that explored the concept of navigating paths and dead ends. Families were invited to the classroom to sing songs and one parent read the book I Like Me which celebrates individuality. Parents crafted a banner that was used to lead a parade and were given materials to create art at home which was displayed at the schools’ “museum.” Works included sculpture and drawings. The Port Jervis Center celebrated with a guest reader, Orange County Legislator Tom Faggione, who read The Very Hungry Caterpillar.

About Head Start
Head Start programs support the comprehensive development of children in the learning centers and in their own homes. Development-focused services include early learning through instruction, health education including meals and dental support, and family well-being as parents are encouraged to achieve their own goals, such as housing stability, continued education, and financial security. Programs support and strengthen parent-child relationships and engage families around children’s learning and development.

About RECAP
RECAP’s services in Orange County benefit seniors, children, veterans, those struggling with substance abuse, domestic violence, individuals living with HIV/AIDS and those with income insecurity. Programs include nutrition and advocacy, Head Start, addiction services, supportive housing, job readiness with Fresh Start Café, and Orange County Reentry.
The agency was one of many community action agencies established across the U.S. in 1965 after President Lyndon Johnson’s State of the Union Address encouraged Americans to eradicate poverty and build a “Great Society.” RECAP celebrated 50 years of services in the Hudson Valley in 2015. Visit www.recap.org for information about programs, fundraisers and events.