Family Resource Centre
Hello everyone,
Hope you are enjoying the summer and staying cool on those hot and humid days!
Creating Together is taking a short break for summer. Program will be closed from Aug. 16th to Sept. 3rd., and we will be returning Sept. 7th.
Stay tune for upcoming schedule for in person and virtual program for September.
We are looking forward to seeing again!
Young people are on the frontlines of the struggle to build a better future for all. The COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted the dire need for the kind of transformational change they seek – and young people must be full partners in that effort.”UN Secretary-General António Guterres
While Creating Together’s focus is on supporting children under the age of 6, many of our these little ones have older siblings – and each one of the children that come to Creating Together also grow up to be the youth of our communities. So next week on August 12 (and every day) we give a special hats off to the youth of Parkdale!
August 12 – International Youth Day
The United Nations hallmarks this day as International Youth Day. Each year, The Focal Point on Youth selects a theme for the day often with input from youth organizations and members of the UN Inter-Agency Network in Youth development. It also organizes a virtual commemoration of the Day. The Programme encourages youth around the world to organize activities to raise awareness about the situation of youth in their country. To read more about this year’s theme “Transforming Food Systems”, and how to get involved, visit: https://www.un.org/en/observances/youth-day
Did you know?
Youth can be a positive force for development when provided with the knowledge and opportunities they need to thrive. Today, there are 1.2 billion young people aged 15 to 24 years, accounting for 16 per cent of the global population . By 2030—the target date for the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) that make up the 2030 Agenda—the number of youth is projected to have grown by 7 per cent, to nearly 1.3 billion. They represent a huge amount of energy, idea, an innovation.
You Inspire Change
We do what we do here to give everybody a better start, in the hopes that they can be the best that they can be and create a better future for all of us. The children and youth today are the adults of tomorrow, and have so much to offer. Let’s all work together to create space for youth expression, supporting them to be the change.
Self-care is the ability of individuals, families and communities to promote health, prevent disease, maintain health, and cope with illness and disability with or without the support of a healthcare provider (World Health Organization). Paula Gill Lopez, PhD, an associate professor and chair of the department of psychological and educational consultation at Fairfield University in Fairfield, Connecticut, says the need for self-care is obvious. “We have an epidemic of anxiety and depression,” she says. “Everybody feels it.”
Self-care is a lifelong habit and culture. It is the practice of individuals looking after their own health based on the knowledge and information available to them. It is a decision-making process that empowers individuals to look after their own health efficiently and conveniently, in collaboration with health and social care professionals as needed.
Global Self-Care Federation
The pandemic over the last year and a half has showed us all that self-care behaviours are the true first line of defence in public health emergencies. A 2020 study found that 95% of Canadians agreed that they need more tools to care for themselves and a strong, resilient, publicly funded healthcare system for when they can’t. So, in January 2021 Food, Health & Consumer Products of Canada published the Blueprint for a National Self-Care Strategy calling for efforts to improve health literacy and provide greater access to self-care opportunities for all Canadians.
In the mean time, there’s a lot we can do for ourselves and our families. The Community Access Network came up with these great tips to teach your children about self-care, and Selfcare.ca describes 7 pillars to self-care. Check out the links below for stats, resources, and supporting links for each of these critical areas:
And of course, if there’s anything we can do to support you here at Creating Together, remember you are not alone – we work with a number of organizations across the city and can certainly connect you with the resources you are looking for.
The goal of National Injury Prevention Day is to raise awareness on the prevention of serious injuries on the road, at home, and at play, and to provide the necessary information to reduce injury and disability while enjoying full and vibrant lives. (BC Injury Research and Prevention Unit).
According to Statistics Canada, injury is the leading cause of death for Canadians aged one to 44, ahead of cancer and heart disease. Injury is the third leading cause of death overall in Canada, after cancer and heart disease. And, according to The Trauma Association of Canada, “virtually all of these injuries and deaths, and the resulting costs, could have been prevented” (Trauma Association of Canada).
How do we help children take healthy risks, while also keeping them safe?
Closing the door: Closing the door after you should be your number one safety measure to introduce at home. This will not only ensure that intruders cannot access the house and also the younger kids cannot find their way out.
Secure furniture to prevent tip-overs: Purchase furniture that has a wider base, heavier back panel, and/or interlocking drawers to prevent furniture from tipping over. You can also learn to anchor your furniture, at Anchorit.gov.
No Playing or Going into the Road: There is always motorist in a rush and may not even consider that they are driving where children play.
Safe sleep: Suffocation, often in a sleep environment, is the leading cause of injury-related death for children under the age of 1. Remember: babies sleep best alone, on their backs, and in a crib / bassinet that meets safety standards.
Teaching Which Rooms are Off Limits: In the early years you can use things like baby gates, but beyond a few years it is important they know which rooms are off limits (such as laundry, pantry where chemicals are stored, or tool room).
Recalls: On average, one or more children’s products are recalled each week. Manufacturers often don’t do enough to make sure everyone who has the product learns of the recall. To keep up to date on recalls and incident reports, check your products at https://healthycanadians.gc.ca/recall-alert-rappel-avis/index-eng.php.
The term “helicopter parent” was first used in Dr. Haim Ginott’s 1969 book Parents & Teenagers by teens who said their parents would hover over them like a helicopter. It became popular enough to become a dictionary entry in 2011. Are you a helicopter parent? Take this Quiz! How did you rate? Check here for some great tips on how to balance helicopter and free range parenting techniques, or talk to the staff at Creating Together for some supportive suggestions.
June is National Indigenous History Month, and the 21st was National Indigenous People’s Day. This year, we honour the 25th anniversary of celebrating the heritage, diverse cultures and outstanding achievements of First Nations, Inuit and Métis peoples.
This year however, we all grapple with a very serious and tragic side of our history, and the month is dedicated to the missing children, the families left behind and the survivors of residential schools – a system set up by the Canadian government and administered by churches that had the nominal objective of educating Indigenous children and indoctrinating them into Euro-Canadian and Christian ways of living. The system forcibly separated children from their families for extended periods of time and forbade them to acknowledge their Indigenous heritage and culture or to speak their own languages. Accounts of horrific abuse among survivors are being shared today, however many children (The Missing Children) didn’t return home, either because they ran away or because they died of abuse or disease.
As families inheriting this history, we have many opportunities to learn about indigenous history and culture – but speaking about this history can be very hard. Yet, it is such an important part of our history as a country, and the evidence of this harsh history are all around us. Take a look at this article by Parenting Today, for quotes about the experiences of survivors, to help your children understand what happened.
You can also honour indigenous history and culture through things like art, crafts, language, stories. Be sure to check out all of the National Indigenous Peoples Day virtual activities happening across the country through Celebrate Canada, and learn more about indigenous history by trying some of these great activities.
Also, we encourage you to watch this reading of “We are Water Protectors” with your children, written by Anishinabe/Métis author Carole Lindstrom and illustrated by Tlingit and Haida artist, Michaela Goade and discuss with children the history and ongoing settler-colonialism in what is currently known as Canada.