Starfish Family Services

Starfish blog: Creepy Crawly Bug Hunt

July 23, 2021 by Starfish Family Services

“Bug Hunt” is a great way to get your children outside and interacting with nature. Plus it’s an educational and FUN activity that can help develop math skills (like counting) and science skills (observing and investigating). It also helps little ones get over any fears of “icky, creepy, crawly” things. Insects found in their yard, playground, or park are mostly harmless to humans and are necessary to our ecosystems.

All you need:

Bug Hunt checklist (printable below) or you and your little ones can draw your own checklist of bugs typically found in your yard/park on a piece of paper.
Crayons/markers.

How to hunt:

Start with some safety ground rules! Explain that children should be finding bugs, not touching them (to avoid any potential bites/stings or allergic reactions).
Be curious about where you investigate! Start with flowering plants that are at a little one’s eye level. They are basically blooming hotels for buzzing insect. Then move down to ground levels (exposed soil, plant beds, grass) and sift under wood chips or logs (with help from Mom and Dad).
Check off each bug you find and count how many you find of each and your overall total “buggy” discoveries.

The insect wrap up:

Explore the world of inserts even more together. One of our favorite books: The Very Hungry Caterpillar.

Starfish blog: American Rescue Plan summary

May 11, 2021 by Starfish Family Services

The American Rescue Plan (ARP) provides many sources of direct and indirect financial relief for low-income families. These payments and tax credits do not affect family income in determining eligibility for Head Start and Early Head Start programs or count towards adjusted gross income for tax filers. Encourage families to file 2020 taxes to receive available credits. (Source: Office of Head Start)

Learn more about understanding and accessing available tax credits: EITCOutreach.org
Free tax preparation services may be available for eligible families at Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) sites in your area.

Stimulus Checks

Single adults earning up to $75,000 and head-of-household filers (e.g., single parents with children) earning up to $112,500 will receive a one-time payment of $1,400, plus $1,400 for each qualifying dependent.
Married couples earning up to $150,000 will receive a one-time payment of $2,800, plus $1,400 for each qualifying dependent.
This round of payments includes dependents who are included on the filer’s tax return but were excluded from previous stimulus payments: college students and adult dependents.
- For example, a single mother with two children claimed on her tax return should receive $4,200.

What can families do? Track the status of payments using the Internal Revenue Service’s (IRS) Get My Payment tool. If a family didn’t get a first or second stimulus payment or got less than the full amounts, they may be eligible to claim the Recovery Rebate Credit and must file a 2020 tax return even if they don’t usually file. Payments will be included in 2020 refunds.

Unemployment Benefits

The first $10,200 of unemployment benefit payments received in 2020 are no longer taxable.
For families currently receiving unemployment payments, there is a $300/week federal increase in payments until Sept. 6, 2021.
The ARP also extends the special pandemic Unemployment Insurance (UI) program for people who do not usually qualify for UI (e.g., self-employed and gig workers) through Sept. 6, 2021.

What can families do? Families who received unemployment benefits in 2020 and already filed a 2020 tax return should file an amendment to receive money owed. Families who are not receiving UI but may be eligible can find information about eligibility and filing through their state unemployment office.

Monthly Child Allowance

The ARP created a monthly child allowance to replace the current Child Tax Credit. Beginning in July 2021, families who are eligible for the ARP stimulus check will receive monthly payments of $300 per child under age 6 and $250 per child aged 6–17.
This one-year program will end on Dec. 31, 2021.
Individual Taxpayer Income Number (ITIN ) holders, including immigrant families with children born in the U.S with a social security number, are eligible to receive this credit.

What can families do? Families should start receiving monthly payments in July. The payment amount is based on the number of children claimed as dependents on a family’s most recent tax return (2019 or 2020). To ensure they receive the monthly payments starting in July, families should file a 2020 tax return by May 17, 2021. Families will retroactively claim this allowance from January–June 2020 on 2021 tax returns.

Child Care Expenses

The ARP expands the size of the Child and Dependent Care Credit. Parents are eligible for this tax credit if they needed care for any child under age 13 or a disabled dependent of any age while working or looking for work.
This includes any amount paid (full or co-pay) for center-based child care, babysitter care, summer camp, or care by adult relatives outside of the tax household.
ITIN holders, including immigrant families with children born in the U.S with a social security number, are eligible to receive this credit.

What can families do? Families should keep records of their child care expenses to report on their 2021 tax returns. Even those who do not owe taxes should file because the credit will be fully refundable.

Food and Nutrition

The ARP extends the current 15% Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) increase until Sept. 30, 2021.
States can choose to increase Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) benefits for four months, specifically to provide more fruits and vegetables to mothers and children.
Through at least the summer, Pandemic-Electronic Benefits Transfer (P-EBT) assistance is extended. Like SNAP benefits, P-EBT can be used to replace the free or reduce price meals children miss when they do not attend school or child care in person.

What can families do? Families who are already enrolled in SNAP and WIC do not need to do anything. Most changes keep benefits at their current levels, and any adjustments will be automatic. Newly eligible families can enroll via their local SNAP or WIC office. Participating states will issue their own guidance for summer 2021 P-EBT.

Rental Assistance

The ARP extends the eviction moratorium and makes more funding available for more people with overdue rent. Families are now eligible for renter’s assistance if at least one person in the household meets any of these criteria:
- Qualifies for unemployment
- Has had a decrease in income
- Has experienced some kind of financial hardship because of the COVID-19 pandemic
Families can also qualify if they are at risk of experiencing homeless or if household income is at or below 80% of the median income for the area.

What can families do? Families who owe rent should contact their landlord about applying for assistance. A renter or a landlord can apply for assistance and the money is paid directly to the landlord or utility on the renter’s behalf. Find more information in this fact sheet and on the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau website. In addition, as of April 1, 2021, there is a temporary U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) eviction protection declaration. This is a temporary halt in residential evictions to prevent the further spread of COVID-19.

Starfish blog: Small Tool to Face Big Feelings

May 5, 2021 by Starfish Family Services

Childhood is one big roller coaster of emotions. Beginning with toddler tantrums, kids experience highs, lows, and myriad confusing feelings in between. As adults, we are able to at least identify our emotions. For a child, it’s bewildering especially when they don’t have the words to express how they’re feeling. That bewilderment can lead to frustration, making it hard for children to listen, pay attention, and learn. What can we do to help them navigate challenging big feelings? (Feeling Faces information adapted from National Center for Pyramid Model Innovations (NCPMI)

Express yourself: Feeling Faces

Important tip! The best time to talk about feelings with your children is when they are not in the midst of an emotionally-charged moment. Create a calm space and try this activity where you and your little ones can explore and practice the language and skills to express emotions.

Use pictures (like the Feeling Faces here) to talk about, identify, and describe different emotions that children (and adults) experience.
This will help them identify those big feelings and give them a vocabulary to talk about their feelings.
Start with just a few emotions then gradually introduce additional and more complex emotions to expand their vocabulary. Teach a balance of “positive, comfortable” and “negative/uncomfortable” feelings.
The Feeling Faces are also great “emotion check-ins.” Children can draw their own faces (print out the below) to let you know, “This is how I’m feeling today.”

Starfish blog: #ThankATeacher A Year of Extraordinary Educators

May 4, 2021 by Starfish Family Services

***An awesome teacher is hard to find, difficult to part with, and impossible to forget.***

“Through all the challenges we’ve faced this year, educators and families have stuck together to show students a bright path forward. This Teacher Appreciation Week, communities across the country will come together to appreciate educators and the lengths they will go to ensure every student, no matter who they are or where they live, has the tools to learn, grow, and thrive.”—National Education Association President Becky Pringle

At Starfish, we have over 200 educators who each play a crucial role in the lives of the children we serve. They are rock stars! They strive to provide the highest of quality care to those they serve daily. Without a doubt, we have the most caring, generous, flexible, and creative teachers in our organization. Throughout the pandemic, they showed they were extraordinary!

Center Leaders, Coaches, and Preschool Behavioral Health Therapists (PBHTs) work together at a center level to support our teaching staff. This allows them to successfully teach and support our families emotionally.
Family Service Guides collaborate with our teachers to help educate the families we serve. They collaborate by providing resources for basic needs, parenting strategies, and stressing the importance of being a part of their child’s education journey.

With all this support and because of their selfless spirit, Starfish teachers have been able to create a nurturing, positive learning environment and instill a sense of normalcy and dependability—during unpredictable pandemic stress.

Teaching is a work of heart! And Starfish teachers are master artists!

Starfish Statement: Journey towards justice

April 23, 2021 by Starfish Family Services

Message from Starfish CEO Ann Kalass

As is true for so many of you, the anxiety and anticipation of the verdict in the Derek Chauvin trial has dominated my head, my heart, and my hands. Upon hearing ‘guilty’ for all three counts, there was a sense of relief. Yet, reprieve faded quickly before focusing again on the work ahead to seek a just society in which all children, families, and communities have equitable opportunities to grow, learn, and thrive. This verdict was not justice and will not return George Floyd to his family. It was, however, a step towards accountability.

For nearly 60 years, Starfish Family Services has been strengthening families to create brighter futures for children across metro Detroit. Our high-quality programs are focused on early childhood education, behavioral health services, and empowering families. We recognize that children are inherently connected to their families and communities, and that we must engage wholistically. Additionally, we know that every child and their family is further linked to society and our nation’s history.

There is an undeniable and historic link between institutional racism and experiences of family poverty, educational disparities, and trauma. Communities of color have been disenfranchised for generations, limiting economic viability and access to high quality health care and education. This is the landscape that encircled the life, and murder, of George Floyd. Every day, Starfish interacts with families who face these systemic barriers as they strive to maintain stable housing, build careers, provide nutritious food, navigate schooling and education goals for their children, connect to mental and physical health supports, and stay safe. Each family brings immense strength, intelligence, resilience, and commitment to their children.

This trial and verdict have made all too clear that 400 years of oppression and violence against Black and Brown communities can only be answered with radical courage and meaningful change. No parent or caregiver should worry about their child experiencing violence at the hands of an authority figure, or from those whose hatred has been further exposed and stoked over the last decade. As Starfish provides critical support services, we must also include in our priorities and actions the steps to eradicate broken systems and partner across the fabric of non-profits, government, and schools to pursue lasting change. We commit to learning, listening, discomfort, and inviting the voices and experiences of families and communities as we continue our journey towards justice.

I ask everyone to take a moment and pause. Reflect. Close your eyes and just be with your heartbeat. Take care of yourself so you are rested and stronger for tomorrow’s sunrise. At Starfish, we are providing unique spaces and supports for employees to process their feelings and experiences. When we help our incredible teams cope and build wellness strategies, we can be our best for families and children. Here is also a link to a Race & Self Care toolkit for parents.

Every child deserves more than surviving.

Every child deserves a great start in school and in life.

Every child deserves joy.

I am humbled by the opportunity to lead Starfish through this complex time and thank you for your trust as we are called to build a powerful future for the children of greater Detroit.