Michele & David Chazen

Playground Safety Tips

Posted by: mchazen on May 27, 2009

 Now that the weather is nice outside and school will be over soon many of you will be enjoying the outdoors with the child/children you take care of. I want to remind you of some safety tips for using playground equipment.

Some tips to keep in mind are:

• Always supervise children when on playgrounds. Maintain visual and auditory contact at all times.
• Ensure that children use age- and size-appropriate playground equipment.
• Prevent unsafe behaviors like pushing, shoving, crowding and inappropriate use of equipment. Continually enforce the rules of safe play.
• Remove hood and neck drawstrings from all children’s clothing. Never allow children to wear necklaces, purses, scarves or clothing with drawstrings while on playgrounds.
• Tie shoelaces to prevent tripping and entanglement in equipment and look for trip hazards on the playground.
• Make sure that children use playground equipment in a safe manner. They should use ladders to get on slides, slide feet first; sit on swings; and not jump off moving swings or walk in front of or behind moving swings. In addition, children should use handrails and guardrails on equipment and should not climb or sit on top of elevated bars.
• Make sure the surface of any playground on which children are playing is safe. Acceptable surfaces include loose-fill materials maintained at the appropriate depth, usually 9-12 inches, such as hardwood fiber mulch or chips, pea gravel or fine sand. Shredded rubber, rubber mats, synthetic turf and other artificial materials are also acceptable surfaces. Asphalt, concrete, grass or soil are not acceptable surfaces. Surfacing should extend a minimum of 6 feet in all directions around stationary equipment and further around swings and other moving equipment.
• Check for unsafe design elements on the playground, such as open “S” hooks, equipment which is not securely anchored, openings between three and one half inches and nine inches which could allow head entrapment, inadequate spacing between equipment, platforms with no guard rails and protrusions or sharp edges that could cut a child or catch a string or item of clothing. Any problems should be fixed immediately or reported to the playground’s maintainer.
• Make sure playground is regularly maintained.

Public Playground Safety Checklist

• Surfaces around playground equipment have at least 12 inches of wood chips, mulch, sand, or pea gravel, or are mats made of safety-tested rubber or rubber-like materials.
• Protective surfacing extends at least 6 feet in all directions from play equipment. (For swings, be sure surfacing extends, in back and front, twice the height of the suspending bar.)
• Play structures more than 30 inches high are spaced at least 9 feet apart.
• No dangerous hardware is apparent (like open “S” hooks or protruding bolt ends)
• Spaces that could trap children, such as openings in guardrails or between ladder rungs, measure less than 3.5 inches or more than 9 inches.
• There are no sharp points or edges in equipment.
• Absence of tripping hazards, like exposed concrete footings, tree stumps, and rocks.
• Elevated surfaces, like platforms and ramps, have guardrails to prevent falls.
• Remember, check playgrounds regularly to see that equipment and surfacing are in good condition and carefully supervise children on playgrounds to make sure they’re safe.

Introducing Au Pair Answer Mom

Posted by: mchazen on May 15, 2009

In addition to our office staff and your Local Childcare Coordinator (LCC), there is someone else who can help answer questions about hosting an au pair: the Au Pair Answer Mom

The Au Pair Answer Mom shares her own thoughts on some of the most common questions about hosting a Cultural Care au pair through short video clips. Check out some other topics on the page above labeled Au Pair Answer Mom to view additional videos.

I encourage you to view her answers to the following questions:

- What is an Au Pair?
- What can au pair do?
- What are the qualifications for becoming an au pair?
- How should I interview an au pair candidate?
- Can my au pair teach my children her native language?
- Is hosting an au pair right for me?

 If you have a question that isn’t listed here, please feel free to email the Au Pair Answer Mom with your own question at aupairanswermom@culturalcare.com.

The Au Pair Answer Mom is, in fact, Susan Robinson, who has worked for Cultural Care Au Pair for 13 years and been host mom to 9 au pairs herself. Susan’s professional and personal experience make her a great resource for families who need an expert opinion on any topic related to our program.

Our hope is that our Au Pair Answer Mom videos will help you feel confident about choosing the right childcare solution for your family. Please be on the lookout for more from the Au Pair Answer Mom in the coming weeks!

May Meetings

Posted by: mchazen on May 14, 2009

For those attending the Disco Cruise this Saturday please be at the pier by 6:00 pm. Directions are included below.

If you are not attending the Disco Cruise the makeup meeting will be on Tuesday May 26th from 8-9 pm at Starbucks on route 9 and 33.

New York City Disco Cruise - Map and Directions Pier 83
WEST 42nd STREET & 12th AVENUE
                         (212) 563-3200BY SUBWAY
Take the 1, 2, 3, 7, 9, A, C, E, N, Q or R train to Times Square 42nd Street; train B, D, F to 5th Avenue and 42nd Street, or 4, 5, 6 train to 42nd Street Grand Central Station.
Follow directions below for bus.

 BY BUS
From 42nd Street take the M42 “Crosstown 42nd Street Pier” bus directly to the Circle Line Pier, or take the M42 “Crosstown Javits Center” bus to the 11th Avenue stop and walk one block west. From 49th Street take the M50 “Crosstown 42nd Street Pier” bus directly to the Circle Line pier.

From Lincoln Tunnel, New Jersey:
Upon exiting the tunnel, follow uptown signs on Dyer Avenue to the 3rd light. Turn left onto 42nd Street. Turn right on 11th Avenue and turn left on 43rd Street. Go straight on 43rd Street to Pier 83.

Parking is available on Pier 83.
Monday through Friday: $25 before 3pm, $30 thereafter.
$30 all day on Saturday and Sunday.
(During events an additional $5 for SUVs)