This project will provide weekly yoga classes, music & movement, & gardening, for infants, toddlers, & preschoolers who have experienced trauma as a result of homelessness or maltreatment. These activities are part of a comprehensive, trauma-informed child development program. They help foster creative self-expression, channel children's abundant energy into wellness activities, & help them learn the coping & self-regulation skills that are critical to healthy social & emotional development.
Whether they are referred to Children Today because of their homeless status or through their involvement with Child Welfare, the children we serve have experienced serious trauma and the ordeals they have faced can have long-lasting consequences. Exposure to the repeated and prolonged trauma that can occur when a child experiences homelessness or abuse/neglect can affect their health, emotional development, behavior, cognition, and their ability to form secure relationships.
As part of a comprehensive, trauma-informed child development program, these enrichment activities help children develop the coping, self-regulation, and social/emotional development skills they need to learn effectively.
Children enrolled with Children Today and engaged in these enrichment activities will show growth in meeting developmental milestones, which are key indicators of school readiness. Developmental assessments conducted every six months will demonstrate developmental progress by an average rate of 40%.
This project has provided additional documentation in a PDF file (projdoc.pdf).
