Educator/Provider Fact Sheets

NEWBORN WARNING SIGNS

Newborn babies go through many changes as they are getting used to the world around them. Some babies may be fussy and other calm. Your baby’s temperment will have a lot to do with how your baby reacts to these changes. Most of the time babies adjust very well. However, there are some warning signs that you should be aware of an watch for.

They are:

• No urine in the first 24 hours at home. This can be difficult to assess, especially with disposable diapers.

• No bowel movement in the first 48 hours.

VIOLENT BEHAVIOR – RISK FACTORS

We live in a world where violence appears to be common and almost acceptable. On television, movies, and video games children are subjected to various kinds of violent, disrespectful and aggressive behavior. We can see this displayed by children acting out what they see. These behaviors can result in other behaviors such as lying and stealing. Children who begin to show aggressive, antisocial behaviors earlier in childhood are most likely, without intervention, to progress to more serious behaviors.

SIGNS OF HEARING LOSS

There are many causes for hearing loss in children. Some from problems at birth. Others from middle ear infections. You may notice that the baby is not reacting to sounds, some early warning signs to look for are:

Babies

• Not reacting normally to sounds

• Not startling with noise

• Trouble locating the source of sound or voices

• Speech delays

• Trouble developing correct speech sounds

• Your child may not respond to your voice

Children

• Difficulty following directions

SHAKEN BABY SYNDROME

Babies cry, they cry loudly, and often. Fussy babies can cry for extended periods of time. On occasion, a parent or caregiver can become very frustrated or even angry when the baby will not stop crying. When a person severely shakes the baby or toddler it can cause Shaken Baby Syndrome. (SBS)

SEIZURES

Seizures are fairly common in childhood and teen years. Seizures can be caused by high fevers or other illness that effects the brain. The seizures will usually go away after the child’s fever goes down. These types of seizures do not mean the child has epilepsy.

Epilepsy is a term given to seizures that happen more than once in a healthy child or when the child has a physical condition that causes seizures from time to time.

SCHOOL PHOBIA

It is not unusual for children to be anxious about going to school. Extreme school fears, or sometimes called ‘school phobia', are different from normal school anxiety. A child with school phobia may be so terrified of going to school he fights to stay at either his home or his family childcare home. Children from ages 5-11 may exhibit the following:

WARNING SIGNS FOR MRSA?

WHAT IS MRSA?

MENENGITIS

Meningitis in very serious. There are various causes and types of meningitis. If your child has any of the symptoms listed below, it is important to seek medical care to have the type of meningitis identified and treated correctly. The following information is from the Mayo Clinic.

Meningitis is an inflammation of the fluid and membranes (meninges) surrounding your brain and spinal cord. The swelling from meningitis typically triggers signs and symptoms such as headache, fever and a stiff neck.

 LYME DISEASE

WHAT IS LYME DISEASE IN CHILDREN?

Lyme disease is an infection caused by bacteria called Borrelia burgdorfeeri.  The bacteria are usually spread by tick bites.  Lyme disease is a year-round problem, but it peaks during the spring and summer months.  It can cause short-term symptoms and may cause long-term problems.

WHAT CAUSES LYME DISEASE IN A CHILD?

Lyme disease is caused by bacteria that are spread to people by tick bites.  The ticks that carry the bacteria are:

LEAD PAINT POISONING

Lead is very dangerous to children. A child’s growing body absorbs more lead than adults do. A young child between to ages of 9 month and 6 years old are at most risk. Their brains and nervous systems are very sensitive to the effects of lead. If you are pregnant, lead can hurt your baby.

One of the reasons babies and young children are so susceptible to lead poisoning is because they are constantly putting their fingers and other objects into their mouth that can have lead from dust or soil on them.

CHILDREN CAN BE EXPOSED TO LEAD BY:

HAND, FOOT AND MOUTH DISEASE

Hand, foot and mouth disease is usually seen in children under 10 years old but may also occur in adults. This disease is often seen among children in childcare during the summer and early fall.

SYMPTOMS:

• Blisters on the sides of the tongue

• Blisters inside the cheeks

• Blisters on the child’s gums

• Blisters may also appear on the palms of the child’s hands, fingers, soles of their feet, and buttocks.

• Blisters last for 7-10 days

• A low-grade fever may occur for 1 to 2 days.

HAND, FOOT AND MOUTH DISEASE

Hand, foot and mouth disease is usually seen in children under 10 years old but may also occur in adults. This disease is often seen among children in childcare during the summer and early fall.

SYMPTOMS:

• Blisters on the sides of the tongue

• Blisters inside the cheeks

• Blisters on the child’s gums

• Blisters may also appear on the palms of the child’s hands, fingers, soles of their feet, and buttocks.

• Blisters last for 7-10 days

• A low-grade fever may occur for 1 to 2 days.

COMMON SIGNS OF DYSLEXIA

Dyslexia is a language-based disability that affects both oral and written language. With help, children with dyslexia can become successful readers. Find out the warning signs for dyslexia that preschool and elementary school children might display.

FACTS ABOUT DYSLEXIA

Startling facts about dyslexia and related language-based learning disabilities:

• Fifteen to twenty percent of the population has a reading disability.

AUTISM SPECTRUM DISORDER (ASD)

ANXIETY DISORDERS IN CHILDREN

It is normal for children to feel worried or anxious to a certain extent.

For example, first day of school or moving to a new area.

As a parent you need to be concerned when the anxiety is affecting the child's behavior and their thoughts are interfering with their normal life.

ANXIETY SYMPTOMS IN CHILDREN:

• become irritable, tearful or clingy

• have difficulty sleeping

• wake in the night

• start wetting the bed

• have bad dreams

In older children you may notice that they:

VISION PROBLEMS

As babies develop, they should hit certain ‘milestones’ in development.
Most baby’s eyes, before 4 months, occasionally look misaligned. However, after 4 months of age inward crossing or outward drifting that occurs regularly is usually abnormal. If one of these is present, let your child’s doctor know.

HYPERKINETIC BEHAVIORAL DISTURBANCE

Hyperkinetic Behavioral Disturbance is a behavioral syndrome in children. Many times children with this specific disorder will be diagnosed under the Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) category.

Children with Hyperkinetic Behavioral Disturbance:

• Have a hard time paying attention

• Are easily distracted

• Have difficulty controlling their own behavior

• Move around a lot seemingly without a purpose and without thinking

• Can sometimes be aggressive toward other children

FIFTH DISEASE

Fifth disease can be particularly problematic in a childcare setting because a child or adult is contagious before symptoms occur. Transmission of fifth disease is from by direct contact from person-to-person through respiratory secretions.

Here are the symptoms:

• A red rash on the child’s face, often looks like the child has been slapped.

• A lace-like rash on the child’s trunk and arms and legs.

• The rash can reappear for several weeks when child is in the sunlight, change in temperature or emotional stress.

VIOLENT BEHAVIOR – CHILDREN AT RISK

We live in a world where violence appears to be common and almost acceptable. On television, movies, and video games children are subjected to various kinds of violent, disrespectful and aggressive behavior. This can be displayed by children acting out what they see. These behaviors can result in other behaviors such as lying and stealing. Children who begin to show aggressive, antisocial behaviors earlier in childhood are most likely, without intervention, to progress to more serious behaviors.

USE TIME-OUT AS COMFORT TIME

Time-out is a technique used to remove a child away from others for a short period of time. Time-out should never be used as a punishment, to shame the child, or label the child as “naughty” or “bad”.

Time-outs should be used when a child’s behavior is so disruptive that it cannot be ignored. There are times when a child becomes so out of control that they are throwing objects, kicking, hitting, biting and they cannot accept comfort and in fact, the more you try to soothe the child, the more out of control she gets.