Read Across America with Dr. Seuss

Students nationwide will pick up a book to celebrate Dr. Seuss today, March 2, National Education Association’s 18th annual Read Across America Day celebration of reading and Dr. Seuss’s birthday. NEA, in partnership with Dr. Seuss Enterprises, created NEA’s Read Across America Day in 1997 to promote the joy and importance of reading and to celebrate the birthday of beloved author Dr. Seuss. NEA’s Read Across America has grown into a year-round literacy program engaging more than 50 national partners and millions of children, teens, and adults.

Take part in this exciting celebration! Here are some ideas:

1. Take the Reader’s Oath

2. Visit your local library and read one of Dr. Seuss’ books

3. Make reading fun at home! Find great ideas on our Pinterest!

Art Impact

The Arts leave a lasting mark on youth, inspiring self-expression, self-esteem, and critical and creative thinking. According to research by the John F. Kennedy Center, youth who regularly participate in arts programs tend to display more intellectual curiosity, experience higher levels of excitement from their school work, and apply more effort during their attempts to complete school projects and assignments. Parents of these youth noticed their children taking more risks, solving problems with ease, and respecting other people’s ideas and opinions. Students in the Kennedy Center’s Arts in Education Research Study were more confident, intellectually curious, and positively challenged citizens who may be better equipped to generate original ideas to improve their communities and contribute to a creative global economy.

To help nurture the potential of our youth, the Y offers a Y-Arts programs to help improve creative and tactical skills, learn to socialize and build relationships. The Y-Arts program can make all the difference for some children, keeping young minds creating and discovering.

Community member and parent to a former Y-Arts student, Rosanna Salcedo tells us “the Y-Arts program gave my child the freedom to express his creativity, and encouraged him to explore new forms of artistic expression, in a supportive environment. Thanks to Y-Arts, he has experience using a variety of materials and techniques.”

Learn more about Y-Arts! Registration is open for the next Y-Arts Session. Classes meet once a week from 4-5 pm for 6 weeks at the YMCA in Exeter, 30 Linden St. Each class costs $85 for 6 weeks. All classes are taught by local Exeter artist, Marissa Vitolo.

Y-Arts Session 2: Tuesday, March 10^th – Thursday, April 16^th

Tuesdays: Painting and Drawing

Thursdays: Hand building (clay)

Register today!

Fun and Friends at Family Camp

Each fall, Camp Lincoln opens it’s doors, cabins, and activity areas to families for a long weekend. We call it Family Camp, and it is exactly as it sounds. Children, parents, grandparents and friends settle into lakeside cabins, unroll their sleeping bags onto wooden-framed bunk beds, pull on their wool socks and hats (or bathing suits!) and enjoy and challenge themselves at camp activities. From kayaking to hiking, pumpkin carving to campfires, families enjoy a relaxing and fun weekend at camp!

Thank you to the ten families who joined us for a beautiful weekend at camp! Family Camp 2014 was a great success. We look forward to seeing all of you again next fall.

Does this sound like your cup of tea? Learn more about Family Camp at Camp Lincoln, and join us in 2015!

FUN With Your Family

August is Family Fun Month! There are only a few weeks left before school starts. Here are some fun and creative ideas to have fun with your family. How many can you complete this month?

1. Visit a local park: Go for a walk, toss a frisbee, pack a lunch, and don’t forget your picnic blanket!

2. Host a dance party: Turn your living room into a party zone by dressing up in funky clothes, dimming the lights, and turning on your favorite dance music. Disco ball is optional!

3. Beach outing: We are lucky to live in an area close to the beach, take full advantage while there is still a little bit of warmth! Take your kids out to the beach and let them boogie board while you soak up some sun and relax.

4. Book Night! You don’t always have to leave the house to have fun. Take a trip to the local library and check out some books so you can huddle up with your family and read. You might want to include a longer novel where everyone can read a chapter or two.

5. Scavenger hunt: Give your kids a list of things that they will need to find around the house or in your neighborhood. Have some prizes ready for the person who finds all items on the list!

6. Backyard movie night: Why not watch a movie in your own makeshift movie theater? Play your family’s favorite movie using a projector and a blank wall. Make sure to pop some popcorn!

Friendship Day

Today is Friendship Day! We think about friendship daily at the YMCA as we watch children and staff creating bonds, learning together, and building community.

Considering the valuable role friends play in our life it was deemed fit to have a day dedicated to friends and friendship. The United States Congress, in 1935, proclaimed the first Sunday of August as International Friendship Day. Since then, celebration of Friendship Day became an annual event. The idea of honoring the beauty of friendships caught on with people worldwide and Friendship Day has become a hugely popular festival in many countries.

In 1997, the United Nations named Winnie the Pooh as the world’s Ambassador of Friendship.

How will you celebrate Friendship Day?

Every Duck Makes A Difference

Thank you to everyone who purchased a duck as part of the Every Duck Makes A Difference fundraiser on July 12! We raised more than $1,200, all of which will go towards scholarships for local children to attend year-round YMCA programs such as School Age Child Care or summer camp at YMCA Camp Lincoln.

The winning ducks were:
First place- 222, Second place- 261, Third place- 197, Fourth place- 259, Fifth place- 69

Congratulations to our Rubber Duck Race winners!

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Health Benefits of Winter Activity

We know that February can be a hard month to get out of the house, exposing your family to the cold and snowy weather. Staying active throughout the winter is important for your health and happiness. Here are some creative ideas for your family to enjoy the fresh powdery snow! Have fun!

Ice Skating This activity can be slippery for newcomers, but is easy to get the hang of, and certainly worth the learning! Check out your local ice rink for public skating opportunities. The Rinks at Exeter offers public skate and skate rentals for only $10. Make sure to bring your own helmet (a bike helmet will do), and a buddy for balance and laughs!

Building with Snow Pull on your snowsuits and strap on the boots for this accessible and fun activity! You can build a snowman in your yard; it’s as easy as rolling a few snowballs into snowman body parts, and then decorating with sticks, fruit or vegetables. Kids of all activities can enjoy this activity! Already have a snow family in your yard? Try building a snow igloo!

Snowshoeing People who love walking or hiking will enjoy this activity! Your kids will have fun pretending to be big foot, crunching down into the snow with their big snowshoes. This is a great way to get cardiovascular exercise outdoors in the winter. Most outdoor gear retailers will sell snowshoes and poles (poles are optional). Maybe your neighbor has some snowshoeing gear that you could borrow for an afternoon?

Sledding A winter activity that never grows old, no matter your age! Grab a sled, saucer or toboggan and find a hill to glide down. Make sure to bundle in warm clothes for this activity; you’ll have so much fun that you want to stay outside for a long time! The ride down is super fun, and you get a nice workout climbing to the top of the hill. Not to mention the added health bonus of laughing!

Foxes, Trees and Squirrels

Our School Age Child Care program is currently operating in 16 local communities, to more than 660 students, facilitated by more than 80 staff members. The program’s focus is on four core content areas: Art, Literacy, STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math), and Health and Wellness, and consistently recognizes the YMCA’s 9 Dimensions of Well-being: Health, Character, Achievement, Giving, Meaning, Safety, Belonging, Inspiration, and Relationships.

One successful tool utilized by our SACC program is CATCH, which stands for Coordinated Approach to Child Health. CATCH Kids Club is a physical activity and nutrition education program designed for elementary aged children in an after-school setting – how perfect! For us, CATCH is an incredibly valuable resource base for nutrition education materials, snack activities, and physical activity ideas. Some of our students’ favorite CATCH games are Dragon Tails, Sherlock Holmes, Satellites, Up and Over, and Foxes, Trees and Squirrels. Have your children played these games? Which one is their favorite and why?

CATCH games have become so popular at our sites, that when non-CATCH games are played, the children “CATCHify” them – adjusting games so that everyone is included and can play the entire time. Dodge ball, a favorite, becomes dodge ball with re-entry. Knock Out, a basketball game that usually ends up with all but 2 players sitting on the sidelines, becomes a game of double Knock Out, where two games are played simultaneously, and when a child gets out of one game they switch to the other. “CATCHified” games have become a wonderful tool for teaching a few of the YMCA’s 9 Dimensions of Well-being. And best of all, everyone is having fun!

Crisp and Healthy Apple Chips

With the arrival of snow, it is finally starting to feel like winter! While you might think apple season only lasts through Thanksgiving, many local farmers grow storage varieties of apples that you can buy throughout the winter. Check out this great website, Seacoast Harvest, to connect with local farmers at farmstands and farmers’ markets year-round.

As we continue into holiday season, remember to consider your health when preparing foods. Here is a simple and delicious recipe for apple chips, brought to you by A Couple Cooks.

Apple Chips

Makes: 4 to 6

What You Need

• 4 apples (crisp apples work best- try Crispin, Mutsu, or Baldwin)
• Parchment paper
• Ground cinnamon

What To Do

1. Preheat the oven to 225F.
2. Wash the apples, then slice them as thinly as possible using a mandoline (or very sharp knife). Leave the cores in the apples; remove any seeds as you cut.
3. Line baking trays with parchment paper. Lay the apples on the tray in a single layer, as close as possible without touching. Sprinkle with cinnamon.
4. Bake for 1 to 2 hours, until as crisp as desired (a shorter baking time yields a chewier chip; bake time also depends on the thickness of the chip).

Real Results By HEPA Standards

Every day we serve fresh fruit, vegetables and healthy grains to children in communities across New Hampshire. And almost every day, in at least one community, we hear children say “I don’t like that”. We know it’s normal for a child to express disinterest in something they are unfamiliar with. We follow up with questions “Have you ever tried it?” and always encourage a “no thank you bite” – hopefully fostering a desire or willingness to try new things. Recently in Hampstead, a little boy would not try the vegetable offered at snack (red and orange peppers). He was insistent and only ate the grains; however, afterward he was still hungry. A staff member suggested he try the peppers because they taste good and he just might like them. He agreed, stiffened up, and braced himself for the taste of an orange pepper. After a big bite, his face changed and he said “Wow! This tastes like candy!” He said that because the peppers were red and orange, like the color of fire, he had thought they would be spicy and hot. Now, he is happily eating peppers!

We see similar examples endlessly, children exclaiming “Ew, beans!” at the start of a quesadilla cooking lesson, and by the end saying “yum, I love beans!”. We are proud to say we follow the HEPA (Healthy Eating, Physical Activity) Standards in each of our 16 afterschool programs.  We are encouraging nearly 700 children daily to try new fruits and vegetables, and we are providing them with 30 minutes of physical activity per day.

We have children in Raymond going home to their families and teaching them how to make “fruit salsa” and then reporting back to our YMCA staff with the results. There are children in Exeter (among other towns) who now continually add fruit to their water because one time a staff person role modeled by putting slices of grapefruit and lemon in their water. Children are watching staff and their peers try new things on a daily basis and they’re becoming more inclined to join them. Following HEPA Standards continues to have wonderful impact on our communities. We are passionate about this movement and are hopefully grooming children in our programs to be our futures spokespeople.