Loading summary
Transcript67 lines
- [00:01]
Gloria Rivera
Calling all early educators Neighborhood Villages, an innovative nonprofit organization working towards a transformed early childhood education system that meets the needs of all children, families and educators, invites you to learn about Learning Through Exploration, its new play based curriculum created specifically for toddlers and their caregivers, Learning Through Exploration offers an anti bias, Reggio inspired approach to teaching. This developmentally conscious curriculum provides toddlers with playful, engaging and joyful learning experiences. It also offers support for teachers as well as recommendations for activities and children's literature. The Best News it's free and available now on Neighborhood Villages website. Visit www.NeighborhoodVillages.org to download the curriculum. You'll also find free webinars and resources to get you started.
- [00:59]
Unknown
Guess what? Discover is accepted at 99% of places that take credit cards nationwide. You heard right, 99%. If you don't think so, maybe it's time to face facts. You're stuck in the past. Based on the February 2024 Nielsen report. Learn more at discover.com credit card.
- [01:20]
Gloria Rivera
Hey everyone. First off, we want to thank you for listening to no One Is Coming to Save Us. And now we want to hear from you we what you've learned, what's sticking with you, what questions you still have, and what you're motivated to do as a result of listening. Right now, you can take our short survey to help us better understand the impact of our work. And even better, once you've completed the survey, you can enter for a chance to win a $100 Visa gift card. The survey is short and sweet, I promise, and it will really help us keep bringing you content you love. Take the survey at bit ly noonesurvey that's bit ly no onesurvey thanks again.
- [02:02]
Terri Chevit
Lemonada.
- [02:07]
Julia Louis-Dreyfus
The COVID 19 pandemic has taken a serious toll on children's mental health.
- [02:11]
Gloria Rivera
Leading child health care groups, including the.
- [02:13]
Unknown
American Academy of Pediatrics, said today the pandemic has triggered a quote, national state.
- [02:18]
Gloria Rivera
Of emergency in mental health among America's youth.
- [02:21]
Grace Blanco
Talk to parents and teachers. Talk to young people.
- [02:26]
Gloria Rivera
They'll tell you there's a serious youth.
- [02:28]
Grace Blanco
Mental health crisis happening right now in this country.
- [02:33]
Gloria Rivera
It's really hard to turn on the TV or scroll through social media these days without reading something about kids and mental health. We can trace it back to the pandemic. In 2021, pediatricians and psychiatrists declared a state of emergency in children's mental health. But did you know mental health starts even before kids learn their ABCs? I'm talking about the very real emotional lives of toddlers and babies. What's actually going on in their brains behind those smiles and frowns. So here's what the data says. The Centers for Disease control found that 1 in 6 children ages 2 to 8 years old had a diagnosed mental, behavioral or developmental disorder. And that's pre pandemic data. One 2022 study found that babies born during the first year of the pandemic have nearly twice the risk of delays in communication and social development than babies born pre pandemic. If your anxiety just spiked, don't worry. Experts tell us kids can bounce back from these setbacks. What they need are supportive adults like the childcare workers looking after our kids day in and day out. I'm Gloria Rivera, and this is no One Is Coming to Save Us, a show about America's childcare crisis. This week we're talking about the mental health of our young children. I talked to Terri Chevit, an infant mental health consultant. I had no idea this job even existed, but she's been doing it for over two decades. And by the end of our chat, I was convinced every child care center should have a Terry. You'll also hear from Grace Blanco, the director of a child care center serving low income families in New Jersey. When childcare centers reopened, Grace saw firsthand how the pandemic stunted young children's development. Before all of that, we need to take it back to the beginning, to the start of every child's story. From the moment we are born, our brains are poised to be profoundly shaped by the world around us and the those in it.
- [04:48]
Terri Chevit
When babies are born, there are a hundred billion neurons in their brain that are relatively undecided about what they're going to do.
- [04:59]
Gloria Rivera
That's Terri Chevit. She works at Jewish Family and Children's Service in Boston.
- [05:04]
Terri Chevit
Some are targeted to help us breathe. Some are targeted to help our heartbeat. But most of them are yet unconnected. And they get connected up by the experiences that young children have in their lives. Some of those experiences are great. Some of those experiences are not so great. But it's those experiences combined with our hard wiring that make us who we are.
- [05:29]
Gloria Rivera
Clearly, she is the perfect person to ask about what could be happening in those cute little heads. I had a lot of questions. Let's say I ran into you at a cocktail party or a dinner party, and I asked that dreaded Washington, D.C. d.C. Question, I am in Washington. What do you do? What would you tell me?
- [05:51]
Terri Chevit
I would tell you that I support the relationships that young children have with their caregivers. And then I would tell you I'M an early childhood mental health consultant, which is a mouthful and very hard to understand because in essence, what it is, is a person who supports the relationships that young children have with their caregivers.
- [06:14]
Gloria Rivera
It's amazing to me, and it will never cease to be amazing to me that this all happens between zero and five and it's not a clean slate. I know, but so much is to be decided. How does that happen?
- [06:28]
Terri Chevit
It happens through repeated experiences. So a baby is born. They cry. We cry because we're hungry. Hopefully there's a caregiver who, who can identify, oh, that cry means hungry and feed a child. Over time, that child learns to associate that feeling with the idea of hunger and starts to know over time, oh, when I have that internal sensation, I'm supposed to feed myself. That means my body is hungry. I'm supposed to eat. So it starts out by those littlest, tiniest moments and happening again and again and again. The little moments are what make us eventually who we are and teach us what to expect from the world, who we are in the world, and how the world is going to treat us.
- [07:18]
Gloria Rivera
That phrase, what to expect from the world, that's such a big phrase. How did you get into this work?
- [07:24]
Terri Chevit
I ended up here like probably most people who are so curious about how do we become who we are. So I started. I got a degree in counseling psychology. I worked in a psychiatric hospital. And I was fascinated by some of the hard things that I saw and wondering what happens to make this so that makes life so hard for some people. So then there was an opportunity to work with new mothers as a volunteer at the center for Early Relationship Support at Jewish Family and Children's Services. And I went on to work for that organization supporting infant mental health through the experience the children were having with parents. What I realized in my early years of working with new mothers was that if we can take good care of the caregivers, then they will be able to take care of their children.
- [08:21]
Gloria Rivera
I love that phrase, if we can take good care of the caregivers. That is something that I haven't heard put quite like that. And it fills me with, okay, yes, that is what we need to do.
- [08:33]
Terri Chevit
Yes, that is what we need to do, Gloria. That on every single level, if we change the policy in America, if we change the focus, that everything happens in the. Particularly those first three years. It's not that children are done by the time that they're three, but so much has happened, so much of the wiring is set, so much of our nervous systems are set by the time children are three. Children succeed because of the relationships they have. If we want children to have good mental health and to grow adults who have good mental health, we have to give them that experience as young children. Let's think about who's raising our children. Most children are in some form of daycare, and most daycare teachers or early education and care professionals qualify for federal assistance because they don't make enough money. They have two and three jobs. And think about yourself as a new parent or as a parent now. When are you most able to help your children with their big and hard feelings? When you're rested, when you're calm, when you're fed, when you're not worried about 20 other things. How are we taking care of the people that are taking care of the children?
- [09:53]
Gloria Rivera
We're going to take a quick break. When we come back, how Terri helps take care of children's mental health and the adults too.
- [10:13]
Julia Louis-Dreyfus
Hey, Julia, Louis Dreyfus here. If you listen to me on my Wiser Than Me podcast, you probably already know that I'm an investor and an evangelist for the Mill Food Recycler. There are a lot of reasons to love mill, but for me it's all about the impact. Keeping food out of the garbage is one of the most powerful things we can do to help the planet every single day. We're talking banana peels, carrot tops, old takeout. When that stuff heads to the landfill, it becomes a huge driver of climate change. If you already compost, great. But of course there's the smell, the flies, the running to the curb every day with a little leaking compost bag made of cornstarch. That's where mill comes in. It makes keeping food out of the trash as easy as dropping it in. It can handle nearly anything from a turkey carcass to like 20 avocado pits. It works automatically while you sleep. You can keep filling it for weeks and it never ever smells. Mill makes dry, nutrient rich grounds that you can use in your garden, add to your compost, feed to your chickens. Or mill can get them back to a small farm for you. But you kind of have to live with mill to really get it. And that's why they offer a risk free trial. Go to mill.com wiser for an exclusive offer.
- [11:28]
Unknown
Are you still quoting 30 year old movies? Have you said cool beans in the past 90 days? Do you think Discover isn't widely accepted? If this sounds like you, you're stuck in the past. Discover is accepted at 99% of places that take credit cards Nationwide. And every time you make a purchase with your card, you automatically earn cash back. Welcome to the now it pays to Discover. Learn more@discover.com creditcard Based on the February 2024 Nielsen report.
- [12:10]
Gloria Rivera
You'Ve observed a lot of children. What does good, healthy mental health look like in a child?
- [12:18]
Terri Chevit
Oh, I love that question so much, Gloria. It looks like a child going towards an adult when they need help with their big feelings. So often we see children who are growing up in less than ideal circumstances with parents who are not available to them to help them with their big feelings. And instead of going towards an adult to help them manage that, go away from an adult because they don't necessarily trust that an adult is going to be able to help them with that. And so my work is to help the grownups stay regulated enough, calm enough, available enough to help the children manage those big feelings and learn what are they called, what do I do with them and how can I feel better?
- [13:07]
Gloria Rivera
I love it when I hear stories about children who say, I just feel. And it's like, yes, what? What? Tell me what you feel. That's what I want to know. But it's not often that clear when it's not overt. What have you observed in children that has clicked for you and made you think, aha? They're trying to figure it out. It might be quiet, it might be a behavior they're doing by themselves. What does that look like?
- [13:37]
Terri Chevit
Let's start even with babies, I see something, I'm a baby, I light up and you delight in that. With me, I might coo and you might coo back at me. What happens to the baby that doesn't have somebody respond to them? They start to become more and more locked in themselves and they grow into a child and they think, well, what do I do if I need something? Well, I'm not really that important or people don't care that much about me or I'm not going to be responded to. I don't expect that somebody is going to care about what I'm feeling, what I'm experiencing and what I need. So I'm going to try to figure it out on my own. So now this baby is a two year old who is pushing their friends or clearing the table when they're upset or. Or not being able to seek connection in a positive, straightforward way so they go about it in a negative way. For so many parents who are unavailable or so many teachers who are unavailable, they don't respond to their children in those fun moments, those delight with Me moments. They respond to their children when they're doing something wrong, when they're doing something bad, when they need to be corrected. And so children learn that the way I can get that connection, that need, that vital connection, that fuel, is by doing something to get in trouble. So I think of that as like getting connection through the back door rather than the front door, by asking straight for it. And that also is the beginning of poor mental health, poor relational health. And that just grows. It just keeps getting bigger and bigger.
- [15:18]
Gloria Rivera
You talk to teachers all the time. You're always teaching the teachers, so to speak. When I look at this, it's like these teachers need to be part social worker, part therapist, you know, part everything to do their job the way the children really need it to be done. Can you give me an example of a common topic that comes up for you when you're teaching teachers?
- [15:44]
Terri Chevit
So this is what I've also learned, Gloria, is that adults need a lot of what kids need. You know, I'm always sad when I go into a classroom and a child is sad or crying and the teacher says, or any adult says, you're fine, you're okay. That's maybe the only way that they have to tell us that they're feeling something. And I want them to pay attention to what that is. Teachers think that their job is to help children learn their colors and their numbers and their ABCs because they are taught. They learn how to become teachers. They become certified to become teachers, at least in Massachusetts, by taking one course on human growth and development and then being in a classroom. Nowhere are they taught that relationships are the center of how this process works and the most important piece. Well, how do I teach something or how do I create something that I didn't experience? That's the biggest problem. It's very hard for me to be patient with children if nobody was patient with me or curious about children if nobody was curious about me.
- [16:58]
Gloria Rivera
Wow, Terry, your job just got a lot more complicated than I thought coming into this interview.
- [17:03]
Terri Chevit
It's very complicated. Creating systems of care that are consistent, reliable, and predictable. So teachers who are consistent, relationships that are consistent, that is something we want for all children, and that is mental health promotion. I think it's really important to note that it's not the bad things that happen to us that undo us. It's how we understand them and manage them. So if a bad thing happens to a child, a traumatic experience, and they have a relationship with adult who can help them through, through that process, they will be okay. But children who have a lot of bad things happen to them or toxic stress, which is just repeatedly having bad things or hard experiences happen to you. Without a caregiver to help them manage that, they don't do so well. But positive childhood experiences buffer the experience of adverse childhood experiences.
- [18:02]
Gloria Rivera
And what keeps you going after decades in this world?
- [18:07]
Terri Chevit
The way teachers light up when we introduce the critical nature of their work and building brains and nervous systems through relationship. They light up. Most people get into the field because they care about children and they want to do the best by children. So when I say relationships matter, let's start there. Almost always they are excited to jump on board. That keeps me going.
- [18:42]
Gloria Rivera
Thanks to people like you and the work that you do. We do have hope. So thank you so much, Terry.
- [18:47]
Terri Chevit
My pleasure. Thanks so much, Gloria.
- [18:49]
Gloria Rivera
We are going to take another break. When we get back, we'll hear from Grace Blanco, a childcare director in Newark, New Jersey. She's been helping build those little brains and nervous systems for 19 years. That's after the break.
- [19:15]
Unknown
This week is Teacher Appreciation Week. So join Teach for America, a bold group of change makers working to ensure all kids get the education they need to succeed. And Ripple, a tech company creating greater economic opportunity through transformative crypto and blockchain enterprise solutions in celebrating teachers. Because teachers don't just impact what children learn. It's the little things teachers do every day that create a chain of possibilities that go far beyond the classroom. That's the TFA Ripple effect and we can't thank teachers enough. So celebrate that teacher who juggles lessons, laughter and lost homework. When you donate to Teach for America Today, Ripple will partner to match your gift. Visit teachforamerica.org/r I P P L E to give because for our teachers, a little thanks can add up to a lot. Want a sneak preview of hot new audiobooks? Then check out your next listen, a new podcast from Lemonada Media and Simon and Schuster Audio. We've got everything, the hottest new thrillers, best selling celebrity memoirs and swoony romances. And these aren't tiny clips either. They're entire chapters you can listen to. Your next listen is out November 11th. Wherever you get your podcasts.
- [20:47]
Gloria Rivera
Let'S just start with you introducing yourself for our listeners. How would your friends or co workers describe you?
- [20:55]
Grace Blanco
Oh, that's a good question. I think my friends would describe me as someone very energetic and determined. My co workers would probably say the same. I remember when I first started working at elc, people were amazed and how much energy I would have because I Would be ready to mop and hang things on the wall. Whatever was needed, I said, I can do it.
- [21:26]
Gloria Rivera
This is Grace Blanco. She's the director of the Ironbound Early Learning center in Newark, New Jersey. As director, she's not really mopping or hanging things on the wall anymore, but she is still full of energy and passion for looking after kids. Even over zoom, I could tell that almost 20 years in the industry has not slowed her down. And that energy is really needed because the families lean heavily on the center to afford childcare. Ironbound prioritizes enrollment for those experiencing extreme financial hardships. Some are single parents, unhoused or doubled up, living with another family so they can put a roof over their heads. Many families immigrated from Latin American countries. You'll hear a mix of English, Spanish and Portuguese at the center. Some families are from Brazil, like Grace. The center cares for children ages 0 to 5. And Grace is really tapped into helping them build strong, healthy relationships during this crucial time of their lives.
- [22:27]
Grace Blanco
I tell my teachers, your brain engineers, you have the power to really make that child thrive. You know, even if you compensating for what they're not getting at home sometimes. You know, every time we read a story to a baby, we sing a song, we cuddle with them, we hug them, we pay attention to something that they're showing us, we compliment them. The brain's making those connections, right, In a positive way. And they grow on to develop healthier. So yes, we have that power.
- [23:05]
Gloria Rivera
And it's an incredible power. I want to talk a little bit about what you observed before the pandemic, during the pandemic and after, because we know a nurturing, stable environment is magic. Magic food for the brain. What did you see during the pandemic and how it impacted the kids social and emotional development and really their ability to form relationships with their caregivers, with their brain engineers.
- [23:37]
Grace Blanco
Yes, we know that the pandemic has been a traumatic event in everybody's lives, right? Our families are already facing many different adversities as an additional. So the level of stress have increased to the roof. We had children who lost parent, parents who lost employment, food, insecurity, just to name a few. So the levels of stress and when a parent is stressed, the parent really cannot connect with that baby, right? Or with that toddler. So our four year olds leaving to kindergarten now are still pandemic babies, right? They just turned five and they may not have had all that family embracing and positive interactions, not to mention the lack of social interaction, the isolation. So when they came to us for back into in person learning. Yes, the teachers immediately felt the difference.
- [24:46]
Gloria Rivera
The science backs up teachers intuition. Research tells us infants and toddlers raised during the pandemic showed signs of delayed cognitive and motor skills and even language. In non Covid times, kids naturally build these skills with their peers. They are playing pretend or building things with big legos or whatever it is all with their friends. The pandemic also complicated access to kids care for children with developmental delays and disabilities. Think of childcare centers as an early warning system. When kids are there, educators and parents can see that they're developmentally behind other students. The earlier the signs are spotted, the sooner adults can help kids catch up. But all of this depends on those developmental delays getting noticed in the first place. When the pandemic upended our systems in so many ways, Grace saw many children.
- [25:43]
Grace Blanco
Go without this support because the parents were isolated. Also, especially if you're a first child, you don't know that my child may have a development delay because I didn't see the other children to be able to compare. It's my first run as a parent. They didn't have any concerns until they came to school. And we identified a few children with severe, severe development delays that their parents had absolutely no idea.
- [26:16]
Gloria Rivera
And how did that affect their ability to access services? I guess maybe it's a simple answer. You don't know what you don't know and therefore why would you ask for help?
- [26:26]
Grace Blanco
Yeah, exactly. They didn't know they needed to ask for help. Right. But even those that may have noticed during the pandemic, those services were interrupted for at least four months. And then when they were actually, when they figured things out, they were actually able to provide some kind of intervention. It was done online. Can you imagine an 18 month old baby getting anything from a screen?
- [26:53]
Gloria Rivera
No, I can't.
- [26:55]
Grace Blanco
So the three to five year old is a little bit different. Right. They have to be in a school setting for parents to be able to receive services, not the child. And when we came back, there was a shortage of key professionals to provide services.
- [27:16]
Gloria Rivera
I mean that is so hard to hear. That's just so hard to hear. My question is, have you observed children who came back into the center, let's say at a young age, between 0 and 3 and made progress where intervention, being around caregivers on a consistent basis, receiving the message that when I need something, my need will be met. What kind of transformation did you see when intervention worked?
- [27:45]
Grace Blanco
Yeah, we did see progress, even those children that were severely delayed. So I usually go in the classroom in the morning to greet the children. I say, how's everybody doing? Thumbs up. And, you know, they're in the bathroom and they're, like, putting their finger up for me. And one day I go to this classroom where this little boy we're talking about is there, and he comes to me like this.
- [28:12]
Gloria Rivera
Two thumbs up, you know?
- [28:13]
Grace Blanco
Two thumbs up. He doesn't speak a word. Right.
- [28:16]
Gloria Rivera
Oh, my gosh.
- [28:17]
Grace Blanco
But that's an interaction. He's connecting with me, which for him is an advancement. You know, he is connecting, which is an amazing skill for a preschooler. Persistence.
- [28:31]
Gloria Rivera
Well, speaking of persistence, let's talk about, you know, the call to action. Right. Because I can tell from the way that you speak and your passion for this that you also, I would guess, think about what needs to change. I guess the first question I would ask you is, do you think about policymakers coming out of this pandemic and what they need to do?
- [28:56]
Grace Blanco
I think we lost the momentum. I think right after there was a lot of talk about the importance of childcare. Just thinking about. Thinking about the economy. Politicians are thinking about money, right? Yes, but we somehow lost the momentum.
- [29:14]
Gloria Rivera
Right, but you think. I mean, it's important that you say, like, we lost the momentum, because I have felt that watching this very closely since we launched this show in May of 2021. Do you feel like there's anything that you received during the pandemic that you would like to see stick around? Is there any hope for that?
- [29:35]
Grace Blanco
Yes. So funding. Yes, we get a lot of supplemental funding during the pandemic. We are able to raise salaries. The difficulty about getting people interested in working in this field is because the salary is so low. Yeah, you can make more working for McDonald's. Sometimes assistant teachers make less than 40,000 a year. I'm not talking about those just starting because that's on the 30s. 40,000. It's not a living wage, you know.
- [30:05]
Gloria Rivera
I mean, that is something right there that is tangible and concrete, and people can go out and use their voice and demand it. Right. So I thank you for that. I thank you for your time. Grace, I have to tell the listeners behind you, you have so many incredible signs. Amazing Grace is one you can do. This is one. My brain has too many tabs open. That's probably true, too. Thank you again, Grace. We appreciate you and the work that you do.
- [30:31]
Grace Blanco
Thank you. Thank you for the opportunity.
- [30:35]
Gloria Rivera
Listen, I know that paying our childcare workers more is not going to suddenly solve our widespread mental health crisis. It is just not that simple. I wish that it was. What I do know is that high quality childcare will set a kid on the right path. Terry told us that you get healthy, happy kids when their caregivers are healthy and happy too. So when we fail to support our caregivers, we fail our kids. Fortunately, none of this is irreversible. People like Terri help our teachers manage their own emotions so they're better equipped to help kids showing signs of trauma. Everyone learns how to express themselves in kinder, healthier ways. The issues we have with childcare didn't start with the pandemic, but it was the boiling point and Grace showed us how important childcare providers are in helping kids return to normal. They really are heroes, but they're not superhuman. They need to get paid fairly so they don't have to pick up a second or third job just to make ends meet, and instead they can go home and be with their own families. Providing full mental health and support services to young children is entirely possible. It's already happening. Just look at K12 schools across America. They have counselors, support staff, and access to resources outside of school to meet all the needs kids might have. So there's no reason this can't happen in the zero to five space too. Our guest Terry is actually involved in a pilot like this right now in Boston. She's collaborating with our partner Neighborhood Villages and other schools you've heard from this season, Epiphany and Ellis. They are bringing these K12 resources to child care centers. There's no reason to wait until kids are five to start showing that we care about their mental health. There's more. No One Is Coming to Save Us With Lemonada Premium subscribers get exclusive access to bonus content like unheard clips from our interviews. Subscribe now on Apple Podcasts. No One Is Coming to Save Us is a Lemonada original produced with Neighborhood Villages. I'm your host, Gloria Rivera. Crystal Genesis is our senior producer. Tony Williams and Jennifer Tiffany Bouie are our producers. Tony Williams and Johnny Vince Evans are our audio engineers. Our music is by Hannis Brown. Jackie DanZiger is our VP of Narrative Content. Executive producers are Stephanie Whittles Wax and Jessica Cordova Kramer, along with me, Gloria Rivera. The series is presented by Imaginable Futures, the J. Willard and Alice S. Marriott foundation, the Baynham Family foundation, and the Conrad N. Hilton Foundation. If you like the show and you believe what we're doing is important, please help others find us by leaving us a rating and writing a review. And most importantly, tell your friends. Follow no One Is Coming to save us. Wherever you get your podcasts or listen ad free on Amazon Music with your prime membership. Thanks for listening and we'll be back next week. Until then, hang in there. You can do this.
- [34:33]
Unknown
It's Teacher Appreciation Week, so join Teach for America, a group of change makers working toward educational excellence for all kids, and Ripple, a tech company creating greater economic opportunity through transformative crypto and blockchain enterprise solutions. In celebrating teachers for the little things they do that create possibilities that go far beyond the classroom, you can celebrate your favorite teachers with a gift that helps them create their biggest ripple effect for America's kids. Give today@teachforamerica.org ripple and ripple will partner to match your gift.
- [35:10]
Gloria Rivera
Hey, I'm Reshma Sajani, founder of Girls who Code and Moms First. I consider myself a pretty successful adult woman. So why is it that in midlife as I'm about to turn 50, I feel so stuck? Join me as I try to find the answer on my so called Midlife from lemonada Media. I talk to experts and extraordinary guests about divorce, exercise, menopause, sex, drugs and more to understand what we're going through and how to make the most of it. Listen wherever you get your podcasts.