Our son, Brady, came to Partners In Learning after being terminated from another daycare.  Little did we know, this was an absolute blessing.  Partners In Learning not only accepted Brady and the challenges of caring for him, but committed to his learning and development as well as educating us, his parents.  Now, Brady has made excellent gains with communication and social interactions. The teachers are educated in behavioral techniques and learning through play.  When combined with a caring soul and patience, there can be nothing but success.  This developmental center and more specifically Brady's classroom, teachers and therapists have changed his life and our life as a family - in just a short time.  We see positive results and have great hope this will continue for our precious baby boy!

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Demonstrating various emotions with the help of their "happy eyes, sad eyes" glasses.

Last year, Chariel Dye was a lead teacher at Rowan-Cabarrus Community College.  Her class was filled with enthusiastic and energetic four-year-olds.  While teaching at the college clinical site, Chariel incorporated many pieces of the CSEFEL social-emotional curriculum into her program, teaching children how to regulate emotions and develop emotional literacy, such as gaining skills to articulate feelings and using these skills to communicate with peers instead of habitually relying on physical demonstrations of communication, such as hitting, kicking or yelling .  When the college site closed, Chariel took all the CSEFEL strategies that had been working at RCCC and applied these same strategies in her new classroom at Christie Farms Child Development Center.   From visual supports that provide children with pictures to reinforce verbal prompts, to a morning check-in chart that allows children to indicate how they are feeling when they arrive in their classroom each morning, Chariel continues to rely on the support that the CSEFEL program provides the children in her classroom.
 

Teachable moments happen often in a child care setting. What the teacher does with them is a sign of many things. How responsive he or she is to the childrens' interests, flexibility and willingness to deviate from the plan of the day and often simply is the teacher willing to seize the moment or just let it pass.

Recently at Partners we witnessed a teacher displaying all of the aforementioned. Kelly, who teaches three-year-old children, did not let the recent snow and ice come and go without taking advantage of the wonderful opportunities it brought with it. The first day back at school Kelly came armed with her bibs and sled. She took small groups of children out to the hill near the center and pulled them down in the sled.

Not only was Kelly embracing the teachable moment, she was creating fond memories for the children in her care.  
 

Latoya working on orientation

Brittany Brown, of Raleigh and Latoya Rone, of Chapel Hill are interns for this Spring semester 2011 from Livingstone College. They are studying social work and will be inducted into the Phi Alpha Honor Society for the National Association of Social Work. They will walk across the stage on May 7, 2011. Graduate school is their next destination. At Partners in Learning they will be working closely with our Family Support Specialist. 

Brittany's first impression of Partners In Learning is "This is a five-star quality facility at first site, even from the Website." Latoya's first impression was, "The teachers are very friendly, this is a welcoming environment, and the children are the first priority." Brittany expects to take away a strong executive approach to help her in the social work field to be an administrator and work her way up. Latoya expects to take away from this internship how to conduct herself in a professional setting and proper mannerisms with children and our parents.

  Teacher of the month
 

Britney Martin works in one of our More at Four classrooms, she helps each child individually to face the next stages of their journey into kindergarten.  Britney always carries a smile, has a friendly personality, a wonderful co-worker, and makes you feel so welcome in her classroom.  Britney will go out of her way to help anyone that needs help at anytime.  Laura Medford

                                 Partners In Wellness

All through my childhood and as a young adult, my parents taught us to eat healthy and be active.  I was never allowed to eat sugary snacks, sodas, or even eat fast food fare (not that there were many).  We were always outside playing or involved in something physical.  I continued this healthy living style for over 30 years and then....What happened?  60 pounds later and not feeling well most of the time, I decided that I needed to get back to a lifestyle of health and fitness.  Three years ago, after 8 months of eating well and exercising every day, I was once again healthy and felt great.  What happened?  Now, 40 pounds heavier and once again not feeling well, I am now accepting the challenge to be well for life!   I can feel the change in my physical and mental wellbeing. I have changed portion size, choose healthier foods, and have increased my physical activity.  I have learned to be proud of what I have done, be supportive to anyone who is struggling whatever it may be. Not to beat yourself up if you blow it but to just get back on track. Taking little steps at first are much easier than BIG GIANT strides and surprisingly the little changes you make, whatever they may be, to live a healthier lifestyle that works for you is your success. For me, I know my choices determine my experience!  Good Luck and God bless everyone in their efforts to be your BEST SELF!  Colleen Carman                         Share your story with us on Facebook!
 

 Staff Anniversaries:                              Staff Birthdays:
 Amy Wagoner - 9th - 2 years                         Elena Avilez - February 3

 Debra Jean -  16th - 11 years                         Amy Wagoner - February 5

                                                                       Jeannie Anthony - February 7

                                                                       Shaina Freeze - February 14

                                                                       Kristen Sipes - February 18

                                                                       Pam Ingram - February 20

                                                                       Deborah Howell - February 28