Blessed Sacrament Academy Beneficiaries – Together We Can Dance

I like to call beneficiaries to our Blessed Sacrament Academy ministry by another name as well. Whether they contribute time, networking, finances or advice they further our Mission and have become Missionaries in our part of God’s Vineyard.

A generous time donator left me with a delightful story concerning one of her challenges which seems to me to relate to our challenge. “I can learn dance steps half body at a time. I learn the feet and leg movements, then the arm and torso movements and I’m ready to dance. Problem is that I can’t put them together to make my whole-body dance at the same time.” I laugh each time I think of how adept she has been at organizing my office and how puzzled and jerky is her dance.

Our Mission calls us to a ministry which requires us to learn how to reach out in compassion to children vulnerable to the poverty into which they were born. BSA personnel have the head and heart functioning to the Gospel directive of helping those in need. The feet and legs in this dancing comparison need assistance. To provide the education, training, mentoring and networking our children and their families need to move beyond the handicap of believing there is no way out, we ask our BSA Missionaries to assist us with the funding we need, in addition to volunteer time and in-kind resources.

To that effect March 28, 2019, the Big Give SA 24 hours of online giving is on the horizon. We need all of our BSA Missionaries to gather around us and make this one-day event successful in bringing hope to our children through funding needed to extend the hand of care, training, and education. This is an online event. However, our Big Give crew will facilitate other ways of giving. Call 210-532-4731 before or during the Big Give to find out how.

Together we can dance with joy and delight in God’s growing Vineyard. When God is the conductor amazing things happen for us, for you. Please join us in this dance and be amazed at the life of a BSA Missionary. Thank you.

Sister Odilia Korenek, IWBS, CEO

For children, playing outdoors is more than just having fun

Twice daily children attending Child Development Center have the opportunity to play outside in a well-equipped and safe environment. Physical exercise is essential to a child’s development. For almost 30 years, the Child Development Center at Blessed Sacrament Academy has been providing quality, affordable care to children age 6 weeks to 5 years. Director Carol Silva continually improves the program by supporting staff development, enriching curriculums and completing (with staff) the intensive and detailed application for NAEYC accreditation. The program now also includes several Early Head Start classrooms.

• Playing outdoors is a form of exercise that promotes well-being and wholesome physical development.
• Children are naturally drawn to active play outdoors: it allows them to explore their environment, develop muscle strength and coordination, and gain self-confidence.
• Other skills which they can learn more effectively outdoors include throwing and catching, jumping, crawling, swinging and running.
• The outdoors is also a great place for them to learn problem-solving, communication with other children as well as a deeper appreciation and respect for nature and the environment.
• Although outdoor play for children may be more prevalent during summer, spending free time outside can particularly benefit a child’s development when pursued year-round.

Albert Einstein said it best: “Play is the highest form of research”.

Celebrating Week of the Young Child

The Week of the Young Child™ is an annual celebration hosted by the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC) celebrating early learning, young children, their teachers, and families. This year's event is April 16–20, 2018!Blessed Sacrament Academy’s Child Development Center including Early Head Start program and those children who accompany their parents to Parents’ Academy classes will be participating in activities that focus on the importance of early childhood learning programs.  There will be different activities every day at the CDC including, a petting zoo and City Fire and Police Department visits—always a favorite.According to Brightwheel an early childhood educational resource, early education matters. Studies consistently show the development that happens in the earliest years of life (zero to five) is absolutely critical to a child’s future. Consider this fact alone: 85% of brain development happens in the first three years of life. Furthermore, pre-k childcare and education provide important building blocks, including physical, social, and emotional development – along with language and learning behaviors such as literacy and math skills.As educators, we know more than ever before about the importance of children's earliest years in shaping their learning and development. Yet, never before have the needs of young children and their families been more pressing. Parents and families certainly play a big role here at the Child Development Center which is a big plus for the children in our care.For more information about the Child Development Center phone 210.532.5363

Child Development Center begins NAEYC accreditation in early 2018

When Child Development Center Director Carol Silva chose to seek accreditation through the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC), she knew she was adding more to a full plate of responsibilities. “Our whole team understood the accreditation process would be very thorough and take a real investment in time, resources and funds,” Silva said.NAEYC represents the mark of quality in early childhood education, and is dedicated to improving early childhood education offering a voluntary accreditation process for high-quality programs. NAEYC accredited programs invest in early childhood education because they believe in the benefits to children and families. In addition, the CDC has maintained their Texas Raising Star qualifications each year since 2004.Silva and the entire staff have worked together as a team over the past 18 months making a professional commitment to manage the four step process which includes meeting the 10 standards considered benchmarks of NAEYC accreditation. Read more about the accreditation process.Early childhood experiences—from birth to age 8—have an enormous impact on children’s lifelong learning and positively contribute to their health and development.  Early childhood education programs with the mark of quality benefit children for success in school by laying a foundation of school readiness. “We knew the process of accreditation would make us better equipped to give all our children an even stronger foundation for their subsequent educational paths and a good start in life,” said Silva.“All this hard work is paying off,” said Silva as she announced the accreditation team will come to CDC for the final evaluation process in early 2018. “Looking to the future, we want to be able to serve more children while keeping or improving the quality of our programs. Accreditation can also put us in a position to acquire more funding in the form of grants, or as a part of a larger community Pre-K effort. 

Meals just got better at the Child Development Center

With a little help from our Early Head Start collaboration, all the children attending the Child Development Center at Blessed Sacrament Academy are now enjoying an even tastier and more nutritious menu.The EHS nutritionist worked with our staff to incorporate new guidelines and offered a well-attended nutrition class for all our parents. Some of the changes are: more whole grain products, more fresh fruit and vegetables, baked fish and baked sweet potato ‘fries.’“The children like the new food choices and are open to tasting foods they aren’t familiar with," said Carol Silva, CDC Director. “And, the menu changes every four weeks, so there will be more variety.”The CDC is also a Texas Rising Star certified child care provider and is advancing on their NAEYC accreditation application.The Child Development Center serves children 6 weeks to 5 years (Pre-K). Call Carol Silva at +1 (210) 532-5363   for information.