Creating Together Blog

Community Resources

July 22, 2020 by Creating Together

Especially during this difficult time, we at EarlyON are here to support you! Toronto Public Health has come up with numerous resources and support lines for you and your families during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Click final Community Resources_May5.pdf for a complete list of resources and hotlines or see the embedded document below.

The document is organized into the following resource categories:

Toronto Public Health (parenting, healthy baby, breastfeeding, etc.)
Telephone Crisis Lines (for assaulted women, shelter, suicide, kids help, telehealth, etc.)
Child Protection Agencies (various children’s aid agencies)
Medical Clinics (Just for Kids, Tele-medicine, etc.)
Mental Health or Other Supports (Skylark, Walk-In Clinics, BounceBack, etc.)
Legal Services and Information (Support related to COVID, as well as other services such as Legal Aid, etc.)
Financial Support and More (COVID-19 Economic Support and Recovery for individuals, businesses, etc.)

Enjoying Summer in Nature

June 24, 2020 by Creating Together

Happy Summer Solstice everybody! Back in Spring we wrote about the importance of getting out in nature during COVID-19:

Free play in natural environments increases attentions spans, creative thought, and the desire to learn through exploration (1). It helps their motor, sensory, social and cognitive development – and is great for their general health and well-being (2).
(1) https://www.asla.org/ContentDetail.aspx?id=39558
(2) https://www.learningpotential.gov.au/the-benefits-of-outdoor-play

Well, this week we celebrated the longest day of the year on the summer solstice, and it’s a great time to enjoy all that the sunshine has to offer us. Get out and enjoy the beautiful bounty of the season while shaking off those solitude blah’s, with these fun activities.

First we’d like to kick things off with a fun nature walk with Tanya (here’s a hint – make sure you gather some flowers and small bits from your walk for your nature craft coming up next with Neetu!):

https://www.facebook.com/CreatingTogetherParkdale/videos/192916012130648/

And when you return, from your walk, here’s a fun “Flower Painting and Nature Bracelet” craft you can enjoy with Neetu! The materials you will need include:

Flowers,
Paints,
Paper,
Double Tape, and
Clear Tape.

https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=553455038660914

Have a very wonderful summer everybody! We’ll see you soon!

Online Story Time

June 17, 2020 by Creating Together

Literacy is key to our programming at Creating Together, for all of our families. And even when programs are closed due to COVID, we are here continuing to help reading be fun, for all of you.

Did you know that early literacy begins before a child can read? According to research by the Canadian Language and Literacy Research Network, children who are successful readers have usually engaged in many early language and literacy activities before starting school. In fact, hearing and engaging with books read aloud to them is one of the most important activities for infants, toddlers, and pre-school children.

So join us from home for live storytime with our staff – and enjoy the reads below with your little one at your next reading time!

Happy Reading!

Why I Love My Mommy (illustrated by Daniel Howarth)

This charming book features children telling, in their own words, endearing things about their mothers, with gentle illustrations of familiar animals. Perfect for that special day for mom, be it Mother’s Day, her birthday, or just to lift her spirits.

For more books to celebrate mothers and fathers days (Father’s Day is around the corner!), check out: https://myfamilystuff.ca/mothers-day-fathers-day-books-harpercollins/

https://www.facebook.com/CreatingTogetherParkdale/videos/2807224486073509/

If you Give a Mouse a Cookie (by Laura Numeroff, illustrated by Felicia Bond)

Help kids understand the importance of personal responsibility with this fun story about an energetic young mouse who follows a young boy making a string of requests…eventually tiring out the boy!

LEARNING TIP: Teaching our children that every action causes a reaction, is essential in parenting. Understanding cause and effect helps children see that our behaviors and actions has an effect on ourselves, others, and our environment. Use this book to continue this important lesson in personal responsibility.

https://www.facebook.com/CreatingTogetherParkdale/videos/940210046422398/

Twinky the Dinky Dog (by Kate Klimo, illustrated by Michael Fleming)

This story is perfect for children who love dogs, and who are ready to begin the exciting and fun journey of reading on their own. Twinky is a mix of determination, practice, and bravery – and shows the town that he is most certainly, not dinky at all!

https://www.facebook.com/CreatingTogetherParkdale/videos/586232192005802/

Hush Little Polar Bear (by Jeff Mack)

Jeff Mack has illustrated many books, but this one is the first that he both wrote and illustrated! Hush Little Polar Bear takes a girl and her stuffed polar bear on a beautiful trip through a variety of places before they return to her bedroom. A recommended bedtime read!

https://www.facebook.com/CreatingTogetherParkdale/videos/649125712611944/

Keeping Connected

June 11, 2020 by Creating Together

The heat of summer has arrived. In previous summers, families across Parkdale would find reprieve from the heat of the day and the confines of their home with air conditioned play space, snacks and programming at Creating Together. Yet here we are, in our 3rd month of closures as a result of COVID-19.

Continued Closures

As many of you already know from our last email update, Toronto Early ON Centres will remain closed in response to COVID-19 until June 19th, with more information to be posted then.

Amidst these continued closures, isolation is at an all time high – and it becomes more important than ever to keep connected so we can support one another.

Keep Connected by Keeping Informed

The safety of our families and communities is of utmost important, as is keeping our families informed – so please keep checking our website for more information, and join our mailing list if you haven’t already done so. We send out regular announcements to all of our families, and it’s often the best way to keep informed. Simply go to our Contact Page or Home Page and scroll down to the bottom, entering your contact information for the mailing list there.

Connecting with Staff and Each Other Through Online Programming

https://www.facebook.com/CreatingTogetherParkdale/

We are also committed to providing online programming through our Facebook Page, continuing our commitment to literacy, nutrition, activity and movement, and celebration. Some examples include circle time, story time, cognitive play, and cooking. Catch Tanya and Neetu live each day!

See you there!

Update: Supporting Torontonians with ActiveTO

May 27, 2020 by Creating Together

We all know how important it is for our health to keep active, though it’s been difficult to do since the lock-down and closures of our parks. ActiveTO is about making sure people have space to get outside, have space to get around while respecting physical distancing.

“Our streets are going to look different in many places in the post-COVID world. We will need more road space for walking. We will need quiet streets. We will need more bike infrastructure. We are going about this in a responsible, common sense way with Toronto Public Health, Transportation Services and local councillors all involved in making common sense, health-focused decisions which broaden out our transportation network.”
– Mayor John Tory

ActiveTO Initiatives:

Creating Quiet Streets

These will be local routes with traffic calming measures that will enable local car traffic only and open up space for pedestrians and cyclists. These projects will roll out fairly quickly and the initial target will be 50 kilometres of quiet streets. In our area, quieter streets include:

Kensington Market (area that borders Nassau Ave., Spadina Ave, Augusta Ave. and Dundas St. W.)
Lakeshore Dr./Lake Promenade (First Ave. to Forty Second St.)
High Park Ave. (Bloor St. W. to Annette St.)
Brock/Emerson/Cowan Ave. (Dupont St. to King St. W.)

Closing Major Roads

Transportation Services staff and Toronto Public Health have recommended closing some major roads adjacent to major trails or recreational attractions where crowding on weekends and holidays has been observed. These would include some locations with complete closures to all car traffic and would be delivered through recurring short-term road closures, such as on weekends. When this happens, on a trial basis, staff will be monitoring adjacent routes with real-time data and will make adjustments as necessary.

Normal weekend closures (except long weekends) will begin at 6 a.m. on Saturdays until 11 p.m. on Sundays. Public parking lots, such as those with access to parks and beaches, will not be accessible if they fall within the major road closure area.

Major road closures are being planned from Saturday, May 30 at 6 a.m. until Sunday, May 31 at 11 p.m. Specific locations will be posted on the City’s website here when they are confirmed.

Expanding cycling network

More bike lanes will help people move around the city as the restart gets underway.

A Council report released on May 25 asks Council to approve the installation of approximately 25 kilometres of new bikeways, for a total of approximately 40 kilometres of on-street cycling lanes approved for accelerated installation in 2020. The proposed plan includes flexibility so that bikeway installations can be adjusted based on considerations such as changing traffic volumes, and the evolving needs of residents and businesses in the wake of the pandemic.

If approved, the cycling network would be expanded quickly through temporary installations by repurposing curb lanes along several key corridors. Bloor Street East, University Avenue/Queen’s Park Crescent and Dundas Street East would be among the first installations. For updates, please check on the City’s website here.

Not very confident on your bike? Check out the Bicycle Safety Campaign for tips, resources, and support to get you and your family out there safely!