Extension
It Starts With Us
Improve Individual and Family Development
Life skills
Cockerham
Financial Education - General
Positive Employability
Stories, Songs, and Stretches
Artistic Skill Development
“School-readiness” is a broad term that refers to multiple precursor cognitive, physical, and social-emotional skills that indicate young children are prepared to learn and thrive in the school environment. A wide body of research shows a strong foundation in school readiness is indicative of school success. Emerging research also indicates that there is a synergistic effect when early learning activities activate physical and cognitive skills simultaneously, as opposed to doing so in isolation. However, in the state of Kentucky only 50% of children are deemed “school-ready” when they enter Kindergarten. These numbers indicate a need for more activities that support school-readiness by building multiple skillsets simultaneously.
96,000 children in Kentucky live in kinship care. Kentucky ranks first in the nation for the most children in kinship care settings in the country. 15,000 children are in kinship care due to removal from their home. Kinship care providers need support.
Promote positive personal finance behaviors prepares Kentuckians for any future economic shift. The United States has been in an extremely long period of economic expansion; however, expansions are cyclical, meaning growth is eventually followed by recession. Securing financial stability for Kentuckians will help families thrive no matter the economic outlook. Financial stability is achieved when families are able to secure and manage resources needed to supply food, clothing, and shelter. Through increased financial knowledge, families may be able to make wise financial decisions, increase buying power, avoid overextended credit, develop savings habits, and manage risks.
Having soft skills in order to secure jobs is also a challenge to those seeking employment in an already economically challenged area. The Kentucky Extension Community Assessment Statewide Report 2019 indicates that money management for families and youth and employee “soft/essential skills” training continue to be important issues statewide. Research conducted by Harvard University, the Carnegie Foundation, and Stanford Research Center indicates 85% of job success comes from having well developed soft and people skills, and only 15% of job success comes from technical skills and knowledge (hard skills). Employers are often prepared to teach technical job skills; however, the intangible skills of being a team player, time management, and positive attitude are difficult to teach on-sight but critical to success.
Homemaking skills cover a vast array of skill sets, from sewing, to budgeting, teaching children or grandchildren, crafting, quilting, painting…these life skills are important in achieving quality of life for individuals ranging from 0 to 110. Sharing these skills with others is often how they are passed from generation to generation. Leadership skills are often the conduit to which knowledge is exchanged.
Increase the number of children who are “kindergarten ready” in the state of Kentucky.
Improve academic success for children in Kentucky
Better family money management skills, such as reducing debt, increasing savings, and financial planning.
More effective employees and community leaders.
Improved financial capability for Kentuckians, results in a better quality of life and stronger families.
- Increase opportunities and access to more preschool learning activities outside of the home
- Increase number of children who are “kindergarten ready” in Johnson county
- Increase number of learning activities experienced at home
- Increase child and parent social-emotional skills such as heightened self-awareness, responsible decision making, and self-management.
- Increase caregiver advocacy for children in their care including legal, medical, social, and educational services Increase access of community services to caregivers
- Practice one or more resource management behaviors resulting in increased savings or investments
- Adopt financial planning strategies for short-, mid-, and long-term goals
- Increased skills for employability
- Increased skills for managing home life
Kentuckians understand the importance of developmentally appropriate play to their child’s academic success
- Increase child’s ability to express appropriate emotion
- Improve child’s gross motor skills
- Improve child’s early literacy skills including phonological awareness, print awareness, and vocabulary
- Increase awareness of indicators of high-risk adolescent behaviors
- Identify key points of adolescent development
- Establish realistic expectations for teen behavior, and explore changing relationships within families
- Increased knowledge and skills related to managing financial resources, including savings, credit, and financial planning.
- Change knowledge, opinions, skills, and aspirations, to improve employability through work and practical living skills and continuing education practices.
- Increase financial literacy (knowledge and skills) related to savings and investment
Outcome: Kentuckians learn fun age-appropriate activities to aid in their child’s healthy development.
Indicator: Number of parents who expressed learning new activities to engage their children at home.
Method: Parent Survey
Timeline: January - December
Outcome: Increase child and parent social-emotional skills such as heightened self-awareness, responsible decision making, and self-management.
Indicator: How many children increased their ability to express emotion after attending the program?
Method: childcare programs surveys
Timeline: July - June
Outcome: Increase number of children who are “kindergarten ready” in Johnson county.
Indicator: Several – (i.e. How many parents reported improved gross motor skills, social-emotional skills, and early literacy skills?)
Method: Kentucky Governor’s Office of Early Childhood Kindergarten Readiness Results
Timeline: July- June
Outcome: Increase skills and resources of caregivers to provide effective care for young relatives
Indicator: Several – (i.e. How many caregivers improve skills/knowledge in child development, discipline and guidance, legal issues, and advocacy)
Method: Parenting a Second Time Around (PASTA) Evaluation
Timeline: Post program evaluation
Outcome: Increased awareness of sound financial behaviors
Indicator(s): Number of individuals who implemented at least one
strategy to reduce expenses or manage money
Number of individuals who made a sound financial decision
(regarding credit, budgeting, savings, and/or debt)
Method: Retroactive pre-post
Timeline: Following financial education workshops
Outcome: Increase knowledge and skills related to
managing financial resources
Indicator: Number of individuals reporting increased levels of
understanding in the area: confidence in handling money issues
or specific financial matters
Method: Retroactive pre-post
Timeline: Following financial education workshops
Outcome: Increase knowledge and skills related to
estate planning
Indicator: Number of individuals who took action toward
implementing at least one estate planning strategy in regard to the subject matter presented
Method: Retroactive pre-post
Timeline: Following financial education workshops
Audience: Preschool aged children and their parent(s)
Project or Activity: Various
Content or Curriculum: Parent Expo
Inputs: FCS Agent, FCS council, early childcare council
Date: Available February 2021
Audience: Adults, Young Adults
Project or Activity: Positive Employability
Inputs: FCS Council
Date: as requested
Project or Activity: Various (ie FCS classroom outreach, daycares)
Content or Curriculum: Stories, Songs, and Stretches
Inputs: FCS Agent, Local Preschool, FCS Council, Early childcare council, FCS teachers
Date: On-Going
Audience: Kinship Caregivers
Project or Activity: Various
Content or Curriculum: Parenting a Second Time Around, Life Story/Memory Banking, Traditions, AARP Prepare to Care, arts
Inputs: FCS Agent,
Date: Available Fall 2022
Audience: Adults, young adults, and teens
Project or Activity: Financial Life Skills
Content or Curriculum: Money Habitudes, Recovering Your Finances
Inputs: FCS Agent, curriculum publications and resources,
Money Habitudes cards, Family Resource Center Directors, Drug Court
Date: as requested
Audience: Adults
Project or Activity: Estate Planning Workshop
Content or Curriculum: Estate Planning
Inputs: FCS Specialist (family finance and resource
management), curriculum publications and resources, and local
partners such as an attorney, CPA and/or financial planner
Date: virtual presentations as available
Audience: Adults, young adults, and teens
Project or Activity: Credit Education
Content or Curriculum: Good Credit Game, Recovering your finances
Inputs: FCS Agent, curriculum publications and resources,
Good Credit Game set
Date: TBA
Project or Activity: Financial Education
Content or Curriculum: Real Skills for Everyday Life
Inputs: FCS Agents, FRC, Drug Court
Date: TBA
Audience: Recovery Centers
Project or Activity: Financial Education
Content or Curriculum: Recovering Your Finances
Inputs: Coordination with community stakeholders, Drug Court
Date: TBA
Author: Brenda Cockerham
Major Program: Family Development General
Parent Expo is an event held annually by the Early Childcare Council on which the FCS agent serves. The objective of the group is to insure that preschoolers are as prepared as they can be in the 5 topics they are tested on before entering school: 1. Health and Physical Well Being 2. Social and Emotional Development 3. Language and Communication Development 4. Approaches to Learning 5. General Knowledge and Mathematics. The past two years we were unable to have the event due to covid. This year
Author: Brenda Cockerham
Major Program: Active Living and Health Promotions General
Hosting programming during the Pandemic for large gatherings has been difficult, but due to the vaccine and low numbers of people contracting covid, we were able to host a Health Fest event outside. We partnered with UK College of Dentistry (who were screening for throat cancers, as Johnson County and Kentucky rank as some of the highest rates in the nation), along with several local agencies, to present information beneficial holistically to the health of the whole family.Viewing health holisti
Author: Brenda Cockerham
Major Program: Active Living and Health Promotions General
The health and physical fitness of those 55 and older can sometimes be a challenge as we age. Bingocise is a program from Western Kentucky University working in partnership with Extension state specialist to train agents to extend these opportunities throughout the state. The Johnson County FCS agent, received the training and then delivered it to local clientele of this age range. The curricula meticulously advances participants through a progression of movements designed to increase mobility,
Author: Brenda Cockerham
Major Program: Active Living and Health Promotions General
Fit Blue is a program originally designed for people desiring to increase and maintain their physical fitness as it relates to flexibility and strength. It has a complimentary app that can help record fitness levels and improvements. The recommended fitness schedule offered in the program, was followed routinely twice a week for a month where 10-16 people attended each session. Farmer's market tokens were given to those who attended to encourage healthy eating selections at the market.
