Tobosa Developmental Services

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Essential Daycare

June 16, 2020 By Melinda Olivas 2 Comments

Essential Daycare

By: Michelle Pruitt

When it comes to daycare, we are essential. We serve the community to offer childcare to parents who are deemed, essential workers. During this crazed time of COVID-19, the doors of Little Steps Learning Center has remained open to help those families and to provide childcare for others in the community who, before, may not have needed assistance.

Somedays, before COVID-19, my staff would dream of nice quiet and slow-paced days without a lot of commotion. Then COVID-19 hit, it was almost surreal walking into Little Steps. We lost a few staff who decided it would be best health-wise for them and their family to stay home during the uncertainty. Day in and day out, we would come to the center with high hopes and pray that we would get to see some of our kiddos. We went about six weeks with only having a few kids in the mornings. Until something like this happens, you do not realize the impact of going from a classroom of 10-15 per day to having only one or two kids per class and what it does to your spirits. It is like walking into an amusement park and expecting to see all the lights, kids smiling faces, and laughter to only a few kids, and nothing is open.

We are thankful to continue to have the opportunity to work because there were so many people in our community who were not able to keep their jobs during this time. I would personally stay until noon or 1:00 p.m. each day and lock up, which is not something I usually do. Walking through the classrooms, envisioning the children who used to occupy them and their sweet voices made it that much harder. As the months have passed, more and more kids continue to show up weekly. We follow regulations that the state has set for the health and safety of our children, families, and daycare workers. Things are still uncertain in some areas, but we are getting back to a new normal. Our kiddos, ages three and up, wear masks and do a great job of keeping them on. Surprisingly, our three-year-olds do the best!

Our teachers are finally getting back into a routine with their days, and we love seeing more kiddos return. Unfortunately, our summer will look a lot different this year due to not being able to go to the free movies every week, splash pad, or local pool. Thankfully we have some creative teachers coming up with ideas to keep the kiddos entertained. Every class is still having a water day once or twice a week and finding fun hose attachments for the kids to play in.

We have scheduled our own movie days in the classrooms with popcorn, snacks, and juices. Even though COVID-19 has reshaped our daily activities & routine, we are all doing our best to make sure our kiddos have a great summer!

We continue to do our part with social distancing, wearing masks, washing hands, and sanitizing. During these unpredictable times, we are thankful to be able to continue to serve the Roswell community and its essential workers.

Support Our Teachers & Kiddos of Little Steps
During COVID-19

Division of Tobosa Developmental Services We are a non-profit agency.

Filed Under: Recognizing great work Tagged With: childcare, children services, COVID-19, daycare, essential workers, learning center, little steps

Water Their Spirits and Watch Them Grow

May 1, 2019 By Melinda Olivas Leave a Comment

Water Their Spirits and Watch Them Grow

By: Felicia Juarez

When we plant a garden, we are careful to ensure that our garden is given the necessary “ingredients” to thrive.  We make sure seeds are planted in the right place with good soil, have appropriate sunlight, fertilizer, water, etc. and the same should be true for our children.

Children need a safe, nurturing environment that has food, water, education, positive recognition, and encouragement to learn and become successful.  Other “supplements” that may be necessary are special education, therapy, and educational supplies. Most people naturally assume that all those things are automatically provided, but in reality, some or all are missing in a child’s life. Currently, New Mexico ranks 50th in the Nation for Child Poverty and 1st in the Nation for Child Hunger (2019 Center for American Progress). Those rankings translate to our kids not having the clothes, shoes, or even diapers that are essential for everyday life. Sadly, this also means that most kids do not know where or when their next meal will be. This is NOT ACCEPTABLE! New Mexico was ranked as the worst state to be a child according to the Annie E. Casey Foundation based out of Baltimore. This foundation was established in 1948 and is devoted to developing a brighter future for millions of children at risk of poor educational, economic, social and health outcomes.

Planting the Seed

Tobosa’s Children Services Department is taking as many steps as possible to notch away at this problem in our community. Little Steps is not a place where we only watch over children; it is a childcare center where we do exactly that, provide care to children. We take our time and put forth the effort to promote an educational and safe environment for all our “littles” Monday through Friday from 7:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Little Steps ensures the children receive five daily meals: breakfast, morning & noon snack, lunch, and late afternoon snack. We do not want our littles to go home hungry, and we know children learn better when their tummies are full and can concentrate on what is being taught instead of those growling stomachs! All snacks that we serve follow Federal Nutritional Guidelines to ensure healthy food intake.

Cooking up some Tasty Treats!

Another area that Little Steps is passionate about is ensuring that our children leave the center having learned something that helps them with everyday routines or accentuates what they have been learning at Head Start, Pre-K or Elementary school. We know that children learn best through experiential play and class lessons that are interactive and fun and that is what we aim to do. Our After School Program makes it a priority to set aside time for children to complete homework and read every day.

Trips to the Library

Little Steps is always exploring different ways to continue to be helpful to the families we support. We are the only center in the Roswell area, that provides pick up services from seven elementary schools as well as pick up AND drop off  (mornings) to both Head Starts. Transportation is a significant challenge among working families, especially for single parents who are the sole provider and lack the flexibility to leave work to pick up their children. Families who are unable to work might not be able to provide for their children adequately, and Little Steps is here to assist in any way possible. 

More About Us

Our center supports between 65-75 children at any given moment. We are continuously striving to increase those numbers and the quality of services provided in ways that will benefit our community. Our kids enjoy participating and volunteering in community events and programs that help to feed the homeless and needy families and bring smiles and friendships to the elderly who reside in nursing homes. We are a non-profit agency doing what we can to keep our community great while we nurture children into healthy, caring, educated, and empowered young girls and boys!

Giving Back
Our Littles delivering Flowers & Smiles!

Little Steps welcomes the community to come by and see what we do firsthand, and we are always grateful for volunteers and donations such as educational items, toys, books, jackets, etc. Please visit littlestepscenter.org or trytobosa.org for more information or to make a monetary contribution to help us continue our mission.

Support Us

If you would like to speak with a Director, please contact Michelle Pruitt (575) 623-6402, mpruitt@lospasitos.org or Felicia Juarez (575) 624-1025, fjuarez@lospasitos.org. Our CEO, Rosy RubioShe welcomes any inquiries you may have. You can reach her at (575) 624-1025, rrubio@trytobosa.org.

Filed Under: Success Story Tagged With: children services, community, early education, learning center, little steps, new mexico, tobosa

Get in touch

(575) 624-1025
info@trytobosa.org

Contact Us

Address

204 W 2nd Street, Suite #1
Roswell, NM 88201

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