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Storytelling Tent at River Festival!
June 5, 2015 6:29 pm Comments Off on Storytelling Tent at River Festival!

StoryStream Cambridge will host a day full of Storytelling at River Festival on Saturday, June 6th from 12-6! Stop by the Storytelling Tent at the corner of Sidney Street & Massachusetts Avenue to participate in the stories and create your own Story Flag! American Sign Language interpreters will translate stories all day.

Schedule of events

12:00 Storytellers Tony Toledo and KR Glickman.
Unseen Borders: Stories in American Sign Language and English
12:45 KR Glickman presents: Growing Up Deaf in a Hearing World

1:40 True Story Theater …
Your own stories brought to life!

3:00 Story Flags and Memory Stories with Cambridge residents from all over the world

3:30 Storyteller and mime performer, Motoko presents:
Sumo Mice and Power Rice: Tales from Japan

4:30 Story Flags and Memory Stories with Cambridge residents from all over the world.

StoryStream Cambridge is a collaboration between many city agencies and individuals. Our goal is to connect all the people of Cambridge with the joy and power of listening to and telling stories.

After the Storytelling Tent, check out the many other wonderful activities at River Festival. Click here for information: River Festival
StoryWalk Cambridge- Donnelly Field & Fresh Pond!
May 21, 2015 4:40 pm Comments Off on StoryWalk Cambridge- Donnelly Field & Fresh Pond!
It’s a reading adventure at Donnelly Field! Can you find all the pages?

Join us on Friday, May 29 from 5:30-7:00 p.m. for the first StoryWalk of the season! The opening celebration is at Donnelly Field (behind King Open School between Willow and Berkshire). Free books, activities, pizza, & a performance by Silly Sally! For families with children 2 to 8 years old. For more information, call 617-665-6825 or click here: Flyer-Donnelly-Field-2015final

Rain location: King Open School Cafeteria. Sponsored by Agenda for Children Literacy Initiative, Center for Families and the Cambridge Public Library.

Continue the fun on Saturday, May 30th at Fresh Pond Day from 11:00 to 3:00! Join the Water Department and many agencies in celebrating a great Cambridge resource. Look for the StoryWalk around the pond, see live wildlife presentations, a wildlife and bike parade, live music, face painting, and much more! For more information, click here: Fresh Pond Day info
Supporting Early Math Development
May 8, 2015 3:56 pm Comments Off on Supporting Early Math Development
Math for young children consists of three areas: counting, shapes and patterns. By taking opportunities during everyday activities to count up and down, notice patterns and play with shapes, parents and caregivers are helping children get the foundation they need in order to start school and learn addition/subtraction, algebra, and geometry.

Math is everywhere and adults can help children see it by counting cars or steps when talking a walk, noticing patterns when building with Legos, counting scoops of flour when baking, looking at shapes when doing a puzzle, counting fingers when taking a bath and much more!

For tips, resources and a list of children’s books with math, click on the links below:

Math Techniques Math Key Messages and Books

Remember to have fun while doing math with young children!
Children’s Dental Health
February 13, 2015 12:54 pm Comments Off on Children’s Dental Health
Did you know that dental decay is the most prevalent chronic childhood disease – 5 times more common than asthma. It is almost entirely preventable, with a few simple measures. Here are some tips from the Cambridge Public Health Department’s Healthy Smiles program for keeping children’s teeth healthy:
- Brush twice a day.
- Drink tap water – not bottled water – to benefit from fluoride.
- See your dentist twice a year.
Want tips by age? Click here for tips for Infants, Toddlers and Children 3 to 8 years old. Steps To Healthy Teeth
Babies on the Homefront
February 3, 2015 4:29 pm Comments Off on Babies on the Homefront
ZERO TO THREE has developed a great new resource, Babies on the Homefront. This free app for smart-phones, available in both English and Spanish on iTunes and the Google Play store, is designed especially for military and veteran families as they navigate the many transitions that are part of serving, including deployment and reintegration, moving, and transitioning back to civilian life. The app makes it easy to select from behavior tips and activities for parents and children, with a special section for parental self-care. Click http://bit.ly/16szUxF for more information or download the free app today!
Parent Workshops: Early Literacy Development
January 6, 2015 3:18 pm Comments Off on Parent Workshops: Early Literacy Development

Join us for a four-part series – Early Literacy Development: Dads and Moms Make a Difference!

Learn concrete strategies to support your child’s language and literacy development (birth to five years) and share your successes and challenges with other Dads and Moms.

Topics include talking, storytelling, reading, and managing screen time. Free books and giveaways!

Facilitated by Jen Baily, Agenda for Children Literacy Initiative.

Wednesdays, January 21, 28, February 4, and 11
6:15-8:00pm, Center for Families, 70 Rindge Ave.

Limited child care available upon request. Light snacks served.

To register contact Christine at 617-349-3003 or cdoucet@cambridgema.gov.

Co-sponsored by the Center for Families and Let’s Talk!
Family Fun Day!
2:51 pm Comments Off on Family Fun Day!
Looking to get out of the house in the winter?

Children ages 0-8 and their families are invited to join the Center for Families for a fun morning of arts & crafts, moon bounces, face painting, free books from Let’s Talk!, a light lunch, and more!

Saturday, January 24, 10:00-1:30
Peabody School Gym,
70 Rindge Ave.

Contact the Center for Families at 617-349-6385 for more information.
Register for Winter Community Playgroups
December 4, 2014 7:09 pm Comments Off on Register for Winter Community Playgroups

Registration is now open for the winter session of Cambridge Community Playgroups. Playgroups meet weekly for 8 weeks starting the week of January 20th, 2015. Children and their moms, dads or caregivers attend and get to play and learn together through songs, books, and fun activities.

Playgroups are held in different locations around the city. There are four groups for children 2-5 years and two Tiny Tots groups for children 15-23 months. Details about the times and locations of groups are on the registration form.

To sign up, fill out the registration form below and return it by January 9, 2015.

Winter 2015 Community Playgroup Registration Form

By mail: Center for Families, c/o DHSP, 51 Inman St., Cambridge, MA, 02139 In person: Give it to anyone at the Center for Families (70 Rindge Ave.) or the Agenda for Children Literacy Initiative (119 Windsor St., ground floor). You will hear from us by January 14th to know if you are in a group or on the waitlist.

Questions? Contact Priscila at 617-665-3825 or pdecalvache@challiance.org.

Playgroups are sponsored by the Center for Families and the Agenda for Children Literacy Initiative.
New App: Zero to Three
October 21, 2014 5:52 pm Comments Off on New App: Zero to Three
Zero to Three, a national organization focusing on young children, just unveiled a new free app called “Let’s Play!” which provides parents and caregivers with easy, fun ideas for engaging babies, toddlers, and preschoolers during daily routines, emphasizing the importance of using everyday activities as an opportunity to talk with children.

The app is available for free from the Apple App Store and the Google Play Store. Activities can be accessed via age of child (0-18 months, 18-36 months, or 3 to 5 years) or by activity time (meals, bed and bath, shopping, commuting, etc). Check out “Let’s Play!”! It’s fun and easy to use!
Family Literacy Fun Day
October 19, 2014 5:58 pm Comments Off on Family Literacy Fun Day
Join us on Saturday, November 1st for the 18th Annual Cambridge Family Literacy Fun Day to celebrate the beginning of National Family Literacy Month, held each November. This free event will take place at Cambridge City Hall from 10:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m., and is open to all Cambridge families with children in pre-K through grade 3. The event includes children’s activities, free books, Bonaparte the Magician (show at 1:30 p.m.), sing-a-longs, face painting, and more! For more information, call 617-349-6492.

This event is sponsored by the Cambridge Family Literacy Collaborative, which includes Agenda for Children Literacy Initiative, Cambridge Public Library, Cambridge Public Schools – Title 1 Program, Community Learning Center, Cambridge CFCE (Center for Families & Community Partnerships for Children), and City of Cambridge Department of Human Service Programs.