Extension
It Starts With Us
Promoting Individual and Family Development
Empowering Youth, Individuals and Families to Succeed
Jill Harris,
Family Development General
Aging-General
Essential Skill Development
People are living longer. Kentucky’s current population of seniors (65+) is 16.4% (2019 Census Data). By 2040 it is projected that every district will see an increase in the percent of the population that is age 65 and older (Zimmerman/KY by the Numbers). As the largest and fastest-growing segment of the U.S. population, older adults influence everything from consumer behavior to health-care costs (U.S. Census). While we may be adding years to life, there is concern about life quality. This is because a person’s life expectancy, the total number of years a person is expected to live, does not always match a person’s “health span”—time spent in good health (Institute of Medicine). The life expectancy of Kentuckians, 75.1 years, fluctuates as much as 9 years between counties and ranks among the bottom five states. Heavily influenced by life-long lifestyle behaviors and choices, including quality of diet, physical activity and tobacco use, the Kentuckian health span is also below national averages. Kentucky FCS can help individuals and families establish healthy lifestyle behaviors and relationships throughout the lifespan as way to positively influence optimal aging and help reduce issues such as chronic disease, obesity, opioid and alcohol abuse, and mental illness.
“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 skill sets 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.
- Programs and policies will promote healthy aging in Kentucky
- Kentuckians improve health span through lifestyle choices and behaviors related to overall health and well-being
- Increase the number of children who are “kindergarten ready” in the state of Kentucky.
- Improve academic success for children in Kentucky
- Kentuckians of all ages adapt healthy lifestyle choices, including diet, physical activity, no smoking/binge drinking.
- More Kentucky households prepare for caregiving
- Kentuckians will seek health screenings and vaccines
- Older Kentuckians will prevent falls
- Kentuckians will address mental health
- Increase opportunities and access to more preschool learning activities outside of the home
- Increase number of children who are “kindergarten ready” in _______ 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
- Kentuckians understand the importance of lifestyle choices and behaviors throughout their lifespan on their overall health, well-being and life quality
- Kentuckians learn how to make healthy lifestyle choices
- Kentuckians learn that caregiver preparation in important
- Kentuckians learn that disease prevention and early detection is important
- Kentuckians learn about resources to enhance life quality, safety and to support aging families
- 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
Outcome: (ST) Learn about prevention and how to adapt healthy lifestyles
Indicator: Total number of individuals/families reached with information to improve healthy lifestyle choices specifically related to aging/longevity
Method: Lesson Evaluations: Keys to Embracing Aging, Stand up to Falling, Bedrooms, Bathrooms and Beyond (Home Accessibility), RAAD/VDT, AARP Prepare to Care, 10 Warning Signs/UAD
Timeline: Ongoing
Outcome: (I) Adapt healthy lifestyles related to aging and longevity
Indicator: Of the total number of individuals/families who learned information about healthy lifestyle choices related to aging/longevity, the total number of individuals/families/caregivers who adapted their behavior
Method: 3-6 month Post Lesson evaluations: Keys to Embracing Aging, Stand up to Falling, Bedrooms, Bathrooms and Beyond (Home Accessibility), RAAD/VDT, AARP Prepare to Care, 10 Warning Signs/UAD
Timeline: Ongoing
Outcome: (LT) Kentucky’s overall health span increases
Indicator: Number of programs and policies identified, adapted, created and evaluated to promote healthy aging in Kentucky
Method: Overall Health Life Expectancy increases in KY
Timeline: Ongoing
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: Laugh and Learn Play Dates 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: Stories, Songs, and Stretches Survey
Timeline: July - June
Outcome: Increase number of children who are “kindergarten ready” in Todd 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
Audience: All ages
Project or Activity: Adapting Healthy Lifestyles
Content or Curriculum: Keys to Embracing Aging, Stand Up to Falling, Cook Together/Eat Together, Body Balance, Health Partners, Credit Education, Money Habitudes, Recovering Your Finances
Inputs: Partner with community resources related to programs/listed in FCS
Date: Year-round
Audience: All ages
Project or Activity: Caregiving
Content or Curriculum: AARP Prepare to Care, Alzheimer’s Association-10 Warning Signs and Understanding Alzheimer’s disease, Memory Banking, Kick Kentucky Cancer, RAAD/VDT, Master Health Volunteer, Faithful Families, Estate Planning, Parenting a Second Time Around
Inputs: Partner with community resources related to programs/listed in FCS
Date: Year-round
Audience: All ages
Project or Activity: Disease Prevention/Early Detection
Content or Curriculum: Alzheimer’s Association 10 Warning Signs/UAD, Stand Up to Falling, Dining with Diabetes, Fit Blue, Health Partners, Master Health Volunteer, Be More
Inputs: Partner with community resources related to programs/listed in FCS
Date: Year-round
Audience: All ages
Project or Activity: Aging workshops
Content or Curriculum: Aging awareness based on community need in collaboration with local community partners (food safety/nutrition, fall prevention, caregiving, healthy lifestyles, grandparenting, finding purpose/connection, etc.)
Inputs: Community partners related to theme
Date: Quarterly
Audience: Preschool aged children and their parent(s)
Project or Activity: Various
Content or Curriculum: Laugh and Learn Playdates
Inputs: FCS Agent, Library,
Date: Spring 2021
Audience: Kinship Caregivers
Project or Activity: Various
Content or Curriculum: Parenting a Second Time Around
Inputs: FCS Agent, Community Education
Date: Fall 2020
Author: Jill Harris
Major Program: Active Living and Health Promotions General
Research is starting to demonstrate that practicing mindfulness can bring improvements in both physical and psychological symptoms as well as positive changes in health, attitudes, and behaviors.In response to these findings, the Todd County Extension Agent for Family & Consumer Sciences taught the workshop Mindfulness & Meditation for the Todd County Extension Homemaker Association in November, 2019. Emphasis was placed on understanding the different types of mindfulness practices,
Author: Lee Ann McCuiston
Major Program: Communications and Expressive Arts
The Covid-19 pandemic presented a challenge for Extension programs all over the nation and Todd County Extension answererd the call by providing Educational and fun weekly grab and go packets to families. These packets were geared for the parent and child to work together and eat together at home which helped build this quality time and interaction where the parent was the teacher and the role model. Studies have shown links between quality parent time — such as reading to a ch
Author: Lee Ann McCuiston
Major Program: Leadership
When the COVID-19 pandemic shut down programming in March 2020 youth, families, and communities experienced long-term isolation and alteration of their typical lives related to in and out of school activities. Youth out-of-school time programs, such as 4-H, are essential ecological assets and their disruption during the pandemic may have a major impact on youth’s developmental pathways (Ettekal & Aganas, 2020). For many youth COVID-19 will be the defining issue of their lives
