Early Learning Coalition of Orange County

Celebrating Grandparents at All Kidz Preschool in Winter Garden!
Students got to spend quality time with the special grand people in their lives.
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The Early Coalition of Orange County applauds 👏 all Grandparents serving as role models who help children improve their social skills, academic performance, and emotional well-being.
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BTW: National Grandparents Day is always the first Sunday in September after Labor Day. Next year takes place on Sun. Sep 7, 2025!


https://www.allkidzpreschool.com/

Happy Friday the 13th
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Here is a spooky fact... missing even a few days of preschool can make it harder for children to be prepared for kindergarten. 😱 🎒 🚸

Ready, Set, READ!
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The Early Learning Coalition of Orange County took part in the first of three Family Literacy sessions at the Green Day Early Learning Center last week as a part of the Reading BrightStart! program.
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Parents learned how to introduce reading and writing to their children and make it a part of their everyday routines.

You can do the same by focusing on developing 6 skills.
1. Reading
2. Writing
3. Listening
4. Talking
5. Singing
6. Playing

New Office Tradition: CEO Dr. Scott Fritz posing with the newest Moms on our team. And we can't forget the littles!
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6 adorable babies = best day at work EVER!
The Early Learning Coalition of Orange County is committed to making sure children like these are ready for kindergarten.

DID YOU KNOW? 💭 🤔
By the time a child enters kindergarten, their brain has already developed over
85%, including the foundations of learning, memory, social-emotional skills,
self-regulation, cognitive development, and language development.

Do you remember 🤔 1️⃣ 9️⃣ 9️⃣ 9️⃣ 📟 💾
The Early Learning Coalition of Orange County is celebrating 25 years of making a difference. Our look has changed but our mission remains the same.
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To provide every Orange County child with equal access to high quality early learning programs by supporting those who help children grow and develop.
Our vision is for every child in Orange County to enter kindergarten with the foundation necessary to reach their full potential.

Watch this Video 🎥 to see all the positive ways we impact the community!
https://youtu.be/WrnYHM_Hmjc?si=HaQF0PJkqnCaIZmw

The Early Learning Coalition of Orange County extends gratitude to the following sponsors for making our Destination Kindergarten breakfast a success.

-Advent Health
-Orlando Utilities Commission
-Orlando Health
-The Market This Week
-Learning Beyond
-Orlando Magic
-Suncoast Credit Union
-Vector
-Gardner Media
-Early Education Group
-Florida Association of Child Care Management
-Early Learning Shared Services Alliance
-Addition Financial
-UCP of Central Florida
-Fairwinds Credit Union
-Duke Energy
-Procare Solutions
-Lena
-MarcoPolo Learning
-Sam's Club

We value our relationships with community leaders, board members, and partners.

Watch this video 🎥 to learn more about our projects and partnerships.

https://youtu.be/WrnYHM_Hmjc?feature=shared

The Early Learning Coalition of Orange County sends a 🦖 dinosaur-sized
"thank you" to everyone who attended our Destination Kindergarten breakfast at the Orlando Science Center.
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Community leaders, board members, and partners gathered to learn how ELCOC supports School Readiness and VPK programs for Orange County children.
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The DinoDigs room was truly DINO-MITE!
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ELCOC needs your support.
Your financial commitment as a donor will make a big impact on the life of a small child who is waiting for the opportunity to learn, play, and grow.
Your time commitment as a volunteer will help us build a brighter future, one child at a time.
For more info go here
https://elcoforangecounty.org/partners-2/

A tiny and very hungry caterpillar 🐛 ate two pears on Tuesday.....
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Who remembers the classic children's book, "The Very Hungry Caterpillar"
by Eric Carle? The plot follows a caterpillar that eats various foods before transforming into a butterfly.
🍎🍐🍓 🧀 🍦 🍭 🍰 🍉 🦋
The Early Learning Coalition of Orange County took part in the first of three Family Literacy sessions at Kidz College last week as a part of the Reading BrightStart! program.
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Parents and children enjoyed practicing how to connect reading and writing as a shared experience in their homes by drawing together and talking about the story.
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Upon completion of all three sessions, families receive a free ReadyRosie account
that offers weekly videos of age-appropriate activities parents can do with their children. The resource remains available until their child reaches 3rd grade!

I can, I will! 🌟 🙌
Dedicated Child Development Associate credential graduates came together at ELCOC this week for the ICAN Inaugural meeting.
ICAN stands for Institute4EL's CDA Alumni Network.
The Institute for Early Learning offers opportunities for early childhood professionals to enhance their evidence-based practice and business skills in the field of early care and education.
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Please reach out to Melissa Gish at [email protected] for more information.

The Early Learning Coalition of Orange County is dedicated to the success of every child. Our amazing staff members listen to understand, so we can help! 😄
This past week, we assisted parents at Lake Weston Elementary in Orlando and the John Bridges Community Center in Apopka.
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ELCOC connects families and kindergarten programs to resources that provide every child with equal educational opportunities. For info on provider services, please call 407-841-6607.

Pencils & School Buses & Apples, oh my!
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ELCOC Family Services staff members wore school-themed accessories to celebrate the First Day of School in Orange County on Monday!
Share your back-to-school outfits with the hashtag or tag

Thumbs up and good luck! 👍 🎒 🍊
Orange County families are gearing up for the first day of school on Monday, August 12th. It’s going to be a great year!

“Don’t Panic.” 🫨😌
When you are overwhelmed, a calming voice can make all the difference.

Shiquita Crumity works as a Family Services Specialist at the Early Learning Coalition of Orange County.

She helps connect Orange County families with financial aid, parenting skills training, early learning and child care locator assistance, and other services.

As a mother, Shiquita’s WHY is simple.

“My Son and I know what it’s like to be a single parent. Those are my two reasons for being here.”

The Early Learning Coalition of Orange County is committed to ensuring that every child in our community has equal access to high quality early learning programs by supporting those who help children grow and develop.

If you need information on provider services,
please call 407-841-6607.
Call Center hours are Monday-Thursday: 7:30am-4:30pm
and Friday: 7:30am-11:30am

Meet Buffy Johnson. 🍎
Buffy is a week away from completing masters degree from Arizona State University in Family and Human Development.
Buffy loves working with children. Today she spent the day learning the work we do in the Communications Department at the ELCOC.

We are honored to have our CEO Dr. Scott Fritz on this list !

Meet the 2024 Most Influential Leaders - Orlando Business Journal Meet Orlando's 2024 Most Influential Leaders, Central Florida executives who use their cachet to help better the region and the business community for all.

We were honored to be a part of the Orange County Neighborhood Centers for Families Family Engagement and Resource Expo!!

Our Family Services Department takes a break to enjoy an icy, ice cream treat. They have been working hard helping Orange County families fine quality, affordable childcare. 🍨

Another huge congratulations to the 26 providers who were celebrated this past weekend for completing a yearlong program with the Accreditation Academy! 🎉

The ELCOC held its first series of, “It’s Ok To Play in VPK” workshops. The training is based on the Florida Early Learning and Developmental Standards and builds on the participant’s knowledge of the standards as participants learn why play is critical to the development of young children and how to intentionally teach and reinforce the standards through developmentally appropriate everyday activities.

The Great Gardens Project is designed to establish vegetable gardens in early childhood programs, to facilitate young children’s understanding of healthy eating. The target population is young children, three to age five in childcare programs in the City of Orlando.
We would like to thank City of Orlando - Government for partnering with us on this project.

Gardening Benefits includes:

· Offers professional development training for early childhood providers.​

· Supports healthy food choices among young children and their families.​

· Highlights the importance of taking care of the environment.​

· Children are more likely to try new vegetables and fruits when actively engaged in gardening.

Our new ELCOC call center is up and running and our Customer Service Team is here to help Orange County Families find affordable, quality childcare. Call us at 407-841-6607.