Blog

Welcome to the Way to Grow blog! Here you’ll find parenting tips, early childhood resources, and stories from home visits across the Twin Cities. We believe parents are their child’s first and most important teacher, and our home visiting model is built around that: bringing tools, activities, and encouragement right into the home. Browse for book recommendations, everyday learning ideas, program updates, and family stories from across our community.

Words to Grow 150 150 Way to Grow

Words to Grow

This week, a group of our Family Educators (and a special little helper who had a free day from school due to the cold!) assembled word kits for families of third grade students.These kits are designed to help parents get their children ready for the MCA tests. This is just one of many ways that…

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Invest Now or Pay More Later: A Conversation about Early Childhood with Economist Dr. Art Rolnick 150 150 Way to Grow

Invest Now or Pay More Later: A Conversation about Early Childhood with Economist Dr. Art Rolnick

  Way to Grow Board Member Dr. Art Rolnick, the Co-Director of the Human Capital Research Collaborative at the Humphrey School of Public Affairs, University of Minnesota, recently joined Marti and Erin Erickson, co-hosts of Mom Enough, in their studio. As usual, Art spoke eloquently about the importance of investing in early learning programs. We’re…

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U of M Economist Publishes Study on Early Ed 150 150 Way to Grow

U of M Economist Publishes Study on Early Ed

Courtesy of University of Minnesota / MinnPost University of Minnesota professor Aaron Sojourner recently published a study in The Journal of Human Resources centered on the role that high quality pre-k programs can have in tackling the achievement gap. In an article published in MinnPost, Educator reporter Beth Hawkins wrote, “By age 3, children from…

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Success Story: Marina and Abi 150 150 Way to Grow

Success Story: Marina and Abi

Marina, a single mom to 3-year-old Abi, was desperately struggling to make ends meet. Marina heard about Way to Grow from a friend, and was eager to learn how to help her son. At 3 years old, Abi was only speaking in grunts and made-up words. He would often get frustrated and throw violent tantrums…

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Rep. Winkler Putting Forth Early Ed Bill 150 150 Way to Grow

Rep. Winkler Putting Forth Early Ed Bill

Today, Representative Ryan Winkler will announce a bill to continue Minnesota’s investment in early childhood education, close the achievement gap, and build on the work done in 2013’s ‘Education Session.’ The bill, authored by Representative Ryan Winkler, calls for increased funding for early learning scholarships, which research has proven addresses the achievement gap, and in…

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Farewell, Lily! 150 150 Way to Grow

Farewell, Lily!

Yesterday, we bid farewell to one of our wonderful Family Educators. Lily Romero recently graduated from MCTC with her RN degree and has already accepted a position at the HCMC clinic in Richfield. Lily, you will be missed. Richfield, you’re in good hands!

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12 Days of Growing: Day 12 150 150 Way to Grow

12 Days of Growing: Day 12

Day 12 – A Team of Twelve – Whether they’re cheering us from the sidelines or fighting on the frontline for our children and families, we are indebted to the team of individuals and organizations who help make Way to Grow one of our city’s strongest advocates for early learning. Our Team of Twelve includes…

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12 Days of Growing: Day 11 150 150 Way to Grow

12 Days of Growing: Day 11

Day 11 – Eleven Thousand Visits! That’s how many home visits our Family Educators and Resource Advocates conducted in 2013! Way to Grow’s home visits address all aspects of family life, health, and early education. Home visits produce positive results in developing early childhood literacy and preparing children for success in kindergarten and beyond. To…

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12 Days of Growing: Day 10 150 150 Way to Grow

12 Days of Growing: Day 10

Day 10 – 10 out of 10 – That’s the rating we’ve given Family Educator Marie Huey for her recent guest blog post for the Twin Cities chapter of Young Education Professionals. Marie wrote poignantly about the challenges of changing ingrained practices and mindsets when it comes to teaching a young child the literacy skills he…

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Twelve Days of Growing: Day 9 150 150 Way to Grow

Twelve Days of Growing: Day 9

Day 9 – 9 children – 9 out of 10 Way to Grow children entering kindergarten were up-to-date on recommended immunizations during 2013. Our commitment to health and wellness extends from prenatal checkups and new parent support groups to Cooking Matters and our Dream Tracks teen parenting program. With key community partnerships and connections to…

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Twelve Days of Growing: Day 8 150 150 Way to Grow

Twelve Days of Growing: Day 8

Day 8 – Great by Eight. Our Great by Eight program expanded our successful and statistically proven home-visiting model to include children from kindergarten (age 6) through 3rd grade (age 8). Building on the strong foundation of knowledge families receive in our early learning program and through intentional collaboration with all 34 elementary schools in…

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Twelve Days of Growing: Day 7 150 150 Way to Grow

Twelve Days of Growing: Day 7

Day 7 – 7 Different Languages – Did you know that Way to Grow’s Family Educators and Resource Advocates speak 7 different languages? This language-to-language, culture-to-culture approach is the benchmark of our Home Visiting model. It allows our educators to help parents teach the foundations of literacy in their own home. We also help our…

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