Letter From Abbi
Dear Friends of The Playing Field,
Childcare faces an uncertain future. Pandemic-era state funds end this month. Head Startâs federal budget for next year has no increase and no one knows what is planned for the future.
Watch and share this news story â about how funding cuts will impact vulnerable children and parents.
Our program uses Conscious DisciplineÂź, a method that emphasizes learning from every moment of upset or conflict. The principles of Conscious Discipline are helping us to navigate this challenging time.
The âPower of Attentionâ teaches, âWhat you focus on, you get more of.â For teachers or parents, this means that focusing on the negative child behavior only brings more of that behavior. However, this principle is true for adults too.
Dwelling on uncertainty will only cause us to lose the joy of our work. Studies on happiness indicate that the happiest people are those who are best at training their attention. While it is easy to focus on funding cuts, feelings of anxiousness, fear, or anger, we are choosing to keep our focus on our amazing School Family! We will certainly continue to advocate for child care funding but, we will not allow our focus to be taken away from the important work that is happening in our sites each day.
As we focus on the great things happening at The Playing Field, we see that every child in need of child care deserves access to the same high quality care. This motivates us to continue speaking out!
This newsletter is dedicated to our conscious choice to focus on what we want- access to high quality early care and education services for all children. Please join us in celebrating our children, families, staff, volunteers, and supporters and please, speak out for child care funding!
Many thanks,
Abbi
Celebrating Our Early Educators
These are just a few of the titles we could give our early educatorsâand even this list doesnât begin to capture all that they bring to their work each day.
Last month, Teacher Appreciation Week gave us the perfect opportunity to show our early educators how much they mean to us. Our community came together to honor our teachers with thoughtful handwritten notes, sweet treats, special lunches, and more. These small tokens of appreciation reflect the deep gratitude we feel for the enormous impact they have every day.
It means so much to our educators to know just how much they are appreciated. Beyond these special moments, our communityâs ongoing support and dedication are what truly nurture and sustain them each day. Your commitment to high-quality careâand to the professionals who provide itâensures that we can offer:
- Professional pay and benefits
- Low teacher-child ratios that support meaningful connection
- Ongoing coaching, collaboration, and a culture of care
At The Playing Field, we believe that when teachers are deeply supported, children thrive.
Thank you for being part of a community that honors the brilliance and value of early educatorsânot just during Teacher Appreciation Week, but all year long.
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Volunteer & Board Member Appreciation – Randy
Our community includes many generous individuals who share their time, talents, and treasure in support of our mission. Weâre especially grateful for the strength of this loyal community in times of growth, challenge, and changeâitâs what makes our work not only possible, but sustainable. This month, we are proud to celebrate our Board Treasurer, Randy, whose dedication shows up in both boardroom decisions and classroom moments.
Itâs rareâand we feel so fortunateâto have a Board Treasurer who brings both head and heart to the work. Randy understands the numbers and the people behind them. He offers sharp financial insight while never losing sight of the children, families, and educators at the center of our mission.
Whether heâs helping us steward our budget or stacking blocks with toddlers, Randy shows up fullyâwith deep care and a steadfast belief in the power of early childhood education. Weâre so thankful for Randyâs unwavering commitment, generosity, and heartâand for all the ways he helps build a stronger future for our children, our educators, and our mission.
Weâre Building the World We Imagine!
Construction of our Early Learning Lab on the East Side is on track, and it’s been incredible to see the new space take shape. Every step brings us closer to creating an environment designed to inspire, empower, and support the children, families, and educators we serve.
This momentum is fueled by a community that never fails to show up. Dean Health Plan by Medica challenged our community to match their generous $250,000 commitment to our campaignâand, as always, our community came through.
Thanks to your generosity, the match has been met! Weâre incredibly grateful and excited to celebrate this milestone together as we move forward toward opening day.
đ Know someone with young children who would love to be part of our School Family? We are now enrolling for Fall at our new East Side location! Help us spread the word and grow our community of care.
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Brat Fest
We want to celebrate everyone who came out to support The Playing Field at Brat Fest over Memorial Day weekend. The generosity of your time and enthusiasm for sharing our work and mission truly helped amplify our impact, and weâre so grateful to all who showed up. We appreciate all that you do to support our mission and work.
Check Out Our Billboards!
This spring, in collaboration with Adams Outdoor Advertising, we launched a billboard campaign to celebrate The Playing Field and the incredible community that makes our work possible.
Weâre incredibly grateful to Adams Outdoor Advertising for their generous donation of billboard space and creative designâan in-kind grant that has allowed us to amplify our message across Madison in a big, bold way.
If you see one around town, we hope it reminds you that youâre part of something powerful. Every child supported, every educator uplifted, every possibility expandedâthatâs the impact of a community that shows up.
Thank you for being a vital part of this work and for giving us so much to celebrate as we remember that hard work is good work!
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Every contributionâbig or smallâhelps us build a stronger foundation for children, families, and educators. If youâd like to support our School Family, you can do so here:
