Kiddie City Hosts Family Library & Literacy Night
Kiddie City recently hosted a Family Library and Literacy Night for parents and children in the Center's spacious library. Guests included Carole Enkler from Euclid Public Library and Michelle Powell, "The Felt Lady". Ms. Enkler gave a short presentation to parents on the importance of reading to children at home in the early childhood years. She also stressed the positive impact of reading to young children on language, literacy and vocabulary development. An interactive storyhour engaged the Kiddie City children, which included reading a picture book and several music & movement activities, focussing on rhyming and chants. Mrs. Powell, "The Felt Lady" shared Nursery Rhymes, songs, and short stories using her felt props. She showed parents how props can be used at home to reinforce early literacy as well as to integrate early academic concepts, such as counting, rhyming, and patterning. Parents were also introduced to the early childhood online educational resource called "Ready Rosie", which is sponsored by Universal Pre-Kindergarten as part of the "Invest in Children" initiative.
All participants at Family Library Night received a FREE Scholastic book to take home to enjoy with their parents and families. Kiddie City is the proud recipient of the Dollar General Literacy Grant, which has provided funding for the 2018-2019 year in reading and literacy materials and programs. With the generous support of Dollar General, Kiddie City has been able to purchase software and 5 laptop computers for reading and literacy games, a classroom library of books for the School Age classroom, and many other spelling, phonics, and language activity games. The "Kiddie City Dollar General Reading Club" was co-authored by Jennifer Morrison Garza, Curriculum & Instruction consultant at Kiddie City, and Gregory Bartram, retired Euclid City Schools teacher and professional grant writer.
Since 1993, Dollar General has provided funding of literacy and education programs, through its subsidary Dollar General Literacy Foundation. Every year, the Dollar General Literacy Foundation awards funds to nonprofit organizations, schools, and libraries within a 20-mile radius of a Dollar General store. It has awarded over $135 million in grants to nonprofit organizations as of July 2017. In 2018, the Dollar General Literacy Foundation celebrated its 25th anniversary and awarded $8.3 million to over 1,000 non-profits. Kiddie City, located near the Dollar General store on East 200th Street in Euclid, received $3,000 from the Dollar General Literacy Foundation for the 2018-2019 academic school year.
Kiddie City is an award winning 5-Star "Step Up to Quality" Center, located at 280 East 206th St. It serves children from 6 weeks to 6th Grade. For more information, please call 216-481-9044. It is an Ohio Healthy "Early Ages Healthy Stages" center through the Cuyahoga County Board of Health. It participates in CEOGC Head Start and "Invest in Children" Universal Pre-K.
Jennifer Morrison Garza
I am a 13-year staff member at Kiddie City Chilcare Community. I have served as an Infant/Toddler teacher and am now in the role of Curriculum & Instruction Consultant. I am a former Kindergarten and First Grade teacher with Euclid City School District.