[New-York-News] NYPBC childcare information for convention

Fri Sep 20 19:57:05 UTC 2019

Hello friends and Federationists,
   As anticipation of cozy sweaters and crisp fall weather grows, so does the crackle of convention prep.  The Ny division of parents of blind children, (NYPBC), is excited to contribute to the bustling atmosphere with an array of efforts aimed at inspiring our next generation of conventioneers.  Below you will find a detailed description of what we have planned for the children of the New York State convention attendees this year.  Aside from the desire to share the fun, we are reaching out in an effort to gauge participation levels  in child care at the Ny state convention.  If readers of this message have any questions or would like to talk about our plans, please contact Maura Kutnyak-Smalley, contact information below.
Phone: 716-563-9882
Email:maurakutnyak at gmail.com

   In an effort to more closely align the mission of (NYPBC) with that of the federation, the board and officers have put together a menu of braille, mobility and arts inspired programming for the childcare component of convention.  We strongly feel that sowing the seeds of independence and high expectations begins and best flourishes when our children are guided by confident blind adults and exposed to meaningful experiences.  What follows will be a schedule for the childcare shifts on Friday, Saturday and Sunday.  This includes a description of planned activities.  The closing paragraph describes a fun adventure scheduled for Friday night as an alternative to childcare.
Friday 9/18,9:00am-12:00pm : Arts block lead by Suzie Molnar, a Buffalo public school art teacher and professional sculptor.  Children will work with a moldable medium to create shapes inspired by the season and experiment with Braille lettering in clay.

12:00pm: break for lunch, parents will collect children and enjoy a lunch of their choosing.

2:00pm-5:00pm Block 2: Get on the Cane train.  This block will be lead by Chester Smalley.  Chester is a trained O and M professional who learned under Dr. Edward Bell at Louisiana Tech.  Children will enjoy a range of cane centric activities.  Games will be incorporated into this block of time.

5:00pm:  Break for dinner and prep for evening activity.

6:00pm-8:00pm: Outing and Workshop at The Bird’s Nest Circus Arts Studio.  Children will be treated to a hands on experience designed to expose them to the delight and challenge of being a circus aerial acrobat.  More about this at the end of this message.

Saturday 9/19, 9:am-12:PM: Arts Block, This time children will have the opportunity to decorate a cain in seasonal embellishments in preparation for a scavenger hunt to be lead by our onsite O and M professional Chester Smalley during the afternoon block.  In addition, Emma and Sterling Smalley will lead a coin identification game and money folding activity to reinforce tactile skills.  Emma is CEO of the Good Neighbors Federal Credit Union.

12:PM: Break for lunch.  Parents will collect their children and proceed as on Friday.

2:pM-5:pm:  Chester Smalley will lead children individually on a scavenger hunt.  Children will be given clues and together, Chester and each child will find different locations in the hotel.  The final of which will contain a goody bag for each child.

5:PM: Break for dinner for children and banquet prep for parents.

7:PM-10PM: Movie night and games .  Children will be supervised while relaxing and watching a movie.  Card games and art supplies will be available.  

Sunday 9/20:
9:AM-12:PM: Music and story time with the self-proclaimed “Groovy Grandma” Linda Lazzaro.  Children will have the opportunity to relax and hear a story read allowed by a proficient Braille reader.  Once they are ready to burn off some steam, Linda will lead the children in song with an array of percussion and other light instruments to spice things up.

Friday Night Fun: I, Maura, am a blind aerialist who has been training in this amazing physical medium for 6 years.  I am passionate about this art because it is incredibly challenging, great for the mind and body and fully accessible.  I am very excited to help expose somme of our lovely blind children to this fantastic physical realm.  Children will have the opportunity to experience: Aerial Silks, Static Trapeze and Aerial sling.  3 CPR certified and highly trained aerial arts instructors will give  each child one on one attention as they learn poses, grips and kinesthetic concepts.  For more information, do not hesitate to reach out and to learn about The Bird’s Nest please visit, https://birdsnestbuffalo.com Note: this will be run as a private event so questions should be directed to Maura. Information pertaining to this specific event will not be on the website..

   Any parents planning to join their child in on the Friday night fun is asked to contact Maura Kutnyak-Smalley by the October first childcare registration deadline.  To run the workshop we will need a minimum of 3 participants.  Children will need a guardian at the studio at the time of workshop participation.  A waver will need to be signed granting permission for each child to join the event.

    (NYPBC) is thrilled to offer diverse and meaningful programming to our next generation.  Please register your child soon and lets all prep for a great convention.  Warmest thanks from the leadership of the New York division of Parents of Blind Children.
,

Maura Kutnyak 
716-563-9882
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