Tag Archives: live in childcare Long Island

Au Pair in America Scarecrow

Stony Brook Village Annual Scarecrow competition has begun.  Au Pair in America put up a scarecrow near the Post Office, in front of Chicos. 

Our Scarecrow is named Au Pair Annie and if taking care of her three host scarecrow kids! 

Go down and visit her and the other scarecrows.  They will be set up through Halloween.  You can vote for our scarecrow, too!

Thanks so much to Juliana from Colombia for her help setting up the scarecrow!

 

September Back to School & Routine Cluster Meeting

September is an important time of year for Long Island families.  The kids go back to school and routines change.  Au Pair in America Suffolk County Au Pairs gathered at Community Counselor, Cindy Garruba’s house to get some important tips.

The meeting began with making ornaments for the International Holiday tree au pairs and host families will decorate for the Stony Brook Village Promenade of Trees in December.  Everyone painted a heart ornament to represent their country or their experience in the USA.  The au pairs are so creative.  They spend a lot of time doing arts and crafts with their host kids!

The agenda included Minimizing Morning Madness, School Bus Stop Safety, Safe Driving including no cell phones and distractions from kids in the car.  We discussed the use of the child’s backpack as the communication tool between school and home, keeping on top of homework and school notices.  We also talked about baby safety because September is Baby Safety month!

Cluster meetings are an important part of the au pair experience.  Not only do they learn important tips for a successful year as an au pair, but they also have an opportunity to make friends with other au pairs!

We celebrated Carmen from Bolivia who has spent almost 2 years in the USA with her host family in St. James.  She earned her education certificate and will get a certificate for completing the Au Pair in America year when she returns home to Bolivia in October.

Au Pair Volunteers with Turtles on Long Island

Flora Solorzano Zamora from Costa Rica has spent the past year with a host family in Setauket.  Au Pair in America has been a great experience for her.  She is looking forward to her travel month and exploring more of the USA before she returns home in October to continue her studies in Costa Rica to become a pharmacist.

Flora volunteered during some of her free time in a study of turtles in the ponds near her host family’s town.   Flora said, ” I really enjoyed doing the turtles this year! I am happy I had this experience.
This project was about looking for turtles around the beach, weight and measure them to find out if they lay or not. We followed them until they lay their eggs and then we protected the nests from predators. After days we get to see the baby turtles hatching and we also release the ones we rescued.
It is awesome to have the opportunity of follow all the process!”

For more information on this project, please check out the Friends of Flax Pond.

Flora earned a Volunteer Certificate from Au Pair in America for her work with the turtles.  She also earned a completion of her education certificate and will get a certificate for the Au Pair in America program when she returns home to Costa Rica.

Sunset & Pizza Cluster Meeting

The Suffolk County Cluster of Au Pair in America gathered on May 10th to enjoy each other’s company while watching the sunset on the Long Island Sound.  West Meadow Beach in Setauket is a beautiful spot with picnic tables and playgrounds.  Many of the au pairs take their host kids there to play on the playgrounds. 

Community Counselor, Cindy Garruba, treated the group to pizza and everyone had fun on the beautiful evening.  We even saw the spectacular full moon rising. 

 

 

 

 

Everyone shared a little about themselves, their country, their time here in the USA.  Every month the au pairs have a cluster activity organized by their Community Counselor.  Sometimes the activity is an event, like a Broadway Show or a baseball game.  Other times, it is a chance to get together and talk.  Often there is information learned about childcare and safety.  The meetings always provide an opportunity for the au pairs to make more friends.

Big Snow Coming Tomorrow!

60 degrees and feels like Spring is coming, but a major snow storm is expected to start during the night.  Here is the predicted snow map:

SLOT1_LIPlease be prepared to stay home and do activities with the kids inside.  Click here for some great ideas to keep everyone happy and busy!

When it stops snowing, get outside and build a snowman!

 

Basketball at SCCC

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The Au Pairs from APIA Suffolk County enjoyed an afternoon of college basketball.  The men’s team at Suffolk County Community College won their game today while the au pairs cheered along.

20170129_145234_resizedIt was Tabea’s last cluster meeting.  She earned her education certificate and we all wished her well on her next journey.  She is headed home to Germany and hoping to have a visit soon from the friends she met here.

 

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A Global Awareness Lesson on Germany

20161219_122810_resizedVanessa Kleyer from Germany volunteers regularly in her host child’s 3rd grade class in Mastic Beach.  She brings in games from Germany and plays with a some of the kids during their lunch break. The week before the holiday break, Vanessa gave the kids a special lesson.  She taught them a little about her country.

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First she had her host child find Germany on the world map.  They learned how far away Germany is from the USA.

Then she taught some German words and phrases to the children. She showed them the German flag and each child colored a flag on a flyer she handed out.20161219_122517_resized

 

 

 

 

 

She told them some stories that were written in German and the children were excited when Vanessa introduced her mother visiting her for the holidays.  Her Mom read “The Princess and the Pea” in German to the children after telling them about the story.  The children listened intently.20161219_124555_resized

 

 

 

 

Each child received a piece of chocolate from Germany to try.  Then they split up into groups with the teacher, assistants, Vanessa and her Mom to play some German games in small groups.  The lesson was fun and informative.  The children truly loved hearing about Germany from their friend Vanessa!20161219_130221_resizedLearn more about Global Awareness, sponsored by Au Pair in America, by visiting the Global Awareness website.  http://www.globalawareness.com/

Holiday Party with My Au Pairs

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Suffolk County au pairs from Au Pair in America had an International Potluck Holiday Party at their counselors home this Sunday, Dec. 11.  Au Pairs prepared favorite dishes from their home countries to share with their friends.

20161211_144848_resized20161211_152825_resizedWe played a game drawing Christmas trees while plates were on our heads, 3 winners got to pick prizes! 

imagejpeg_0-4Community Counselor, Cindy  Garruba, handed out some gifts she prepared for each au pair.

 

 

 

 

Each au pair brought a wrapped gift for the gift exchange.  A game was played to the story of “A Night Before Christmas” to scramble up who got which gift. 20161211_155002_resized

15338704_1304817629581333_6980585745348250251_nDessert was served, lively conversation and holiday plans were shared.

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Au Pairs learn Safety and Back to School Tips

20160918_152122_resizedOn Sunday, September 18th the Suffolk County Cluster of Au Pairs gathered for a fun and useful cluster meeting.  Each au pair painted a heart ornament for a holiday tree we will decorate in December.  The hearts represented their country or time in the USA.

The craft project gave each au pair a chance to be creative.  She also had time to socialize with other au pairs.  Many of the au pairs arrived during the summer months and this was their first meeting!20160918_134650_resized 20160918_135720_resized Beautiful ornaments will be added to the holiday tree20160918_135733_resized20160919_102112_resizedThen we had a few safety and back to school tips to review:

  • Playground safety
  • Minimizing morning madness
  • The backpack – communication between school and home
  • School bus stop safety
  • Distracted driving
  • Driving tips for all au pairs
  • September is Baby Safety Month and safety was reviewed

We also went over some upcoming great activities for au pairs this fall.  Then everyone enjoyed socializing while having some pumpkin pie and apple cider. 

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Happy 4th of July!!

4th-of-July-with-FamiliesThe Fourth of July or Independence Day, July 4th has been a federal holiday in the United States since 1941, but the tradition of Independence Day celebrations goes back to the 18th century and the American Revolution (1775-83). In June 1776, representatives of the 13 colonies then fighting in the revolutionary struggle weighed a resolution that would declare their independence from Great Britain. On July 2nd, the Continental Congress voted in favor of independence, and two days later its delegates adopted the Declaration of Independence, a historic document drafted by Thomas Jefferson. From 1776 until the present day, July 4th has been celebrated as the birth of American independence, with typical festivities ranging from fireworks, parades and concerts to more casual family gatherings and barbecues.

Here are some fun facts about the food you are likely to enjoy while celebrating the 4th of July!

Although there is no fixed menu for the celebration of the Fourth, you can count on traditional favorites such as hamburgers and hot dogs, chicken, ribs, garden salads, potato salad, chips and watermelon.

  • There’s a 1-in-6 chance the beef on your backyard grill came from Texas. The Lone Star State is the leader in the production of cattle and calves.
  • The chicken on your barbecue grill probably came from one of the top broiler-producing states: Georgia, Arkansas, Alabama, North Carolina and Mississippi.
  • The lettuce in your salad or on your hamburger probably was grown in California, which accounts for nearly three-quarters of USA lettuce production.
  • Fresh tomatoes in your salad most likely came from Florida or California, which, combined, produced more than two-thirds of U.S. tomatoes. The ketchup on your hamburger or hot dog probably came from California, which accounts for 95 percent of processed tomato production.
  • As to potato salad or potato chips or fries, Idaho and Washington produces about one-half of the nation’s spuds.
  • For dessert, six states — California, Florida, Texas, Georgia, Arizona and Indiana — combined to produce about 80 percent of watermelons last year.
  • And the apples in your apple pie? They most likely came from Washington or New York, the two top apple producing states.

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And for the children, visit this link for fun coloring pages, craft ideas, puzzles and games to celebrate the 4th of July holiday

http://www.apples4theteacher.com/holidays/fourth-of-july/