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Join us for Sunday play at City Garden Waldorf School! Play and mingle with other NPN families in this beautiful space! Families will enjoy bread-making, puppet play, and open play. Plus you can talk with City Garden teachers about their program and Waldorf early childhood education. This playdate is designed especially for children who are two through five years old and their parents, but children of all ages and expecting parents are welcome. Learn more about City Garden Waldorf School and their parent-child classes that start Saturday, January 20th here. Read more about City Garden Waldorf School in this article in Block Club Chicago and this feature on WGN. City Garden Waldorf School is located at 920 W 19th St, Chicago, IL 60608. There is ample street parking on 19th Street. Enter the school through the garden located between 920 and 912 W. 19th Street.

This NPN Live at Lunch panel series is a 30 minute preschool panel discussion followed by a 15 minute Q&A about what to look for in a preschool. We hope that you will walk away from this discussion with three things: *The signs of an organized, safe, happy, and enriching preschool program * A better idea of what is most important to you when it comes to preschool * How to ask questions that will help you determine if a program is a good fit for your family

Our summer camp program is an extension of our top-rated and exceptionally reliable Kids’ Work Chicago children’s learning center. Located in Chicago’s North Center neighborhood, our program is available for your convenience all summer without interruption! For families that need a full day of care, we also offer high-quality full-day options. Offering two three-week sessions, our program is the complete camp experience your family is looking for! Session one: July 12–31 Session two: August 2–20 Full day: 8am–4:30pm / after care 4:30–6:30pm Summer learning can be fun and engaging when coordinated by high-quality camp staff. During their time here at Kids’ Work, your camper will be surrounded by a consistent group of creative, energetic, and loving educators! Our smaller than typical group sizes provide your camper with plenty of individualized attention, support, and interaction! Our program values each camper as an individual by celebrating all the interesting traits that make them unique. In our program, your camper will feel free to express themselves creatively through our many open-ended art and music activities. Camp at Kids’ Work offers weekly music with Ms. Elisa of Wee Groove, yoga sessions with Ms. Cassi, and dance classes with All About Dance! In addition to these more structured learning opportunities, your camper will also enjoy fun outdoor activities including walking trips, water play, sports and free play on our onsite secure playground! Your camper will enjoy freshly prepared meals and snacks each day from our catering company, Healthy Organic Kids. Our high-quality meal plans expose campers to a variety of tastes and textures helping them to develop a lifetime of healthy eating habits! See you at CAMP! NPN members receive a 10% discount off the 1st week of each full camp session reserved. Offer expires April 23, 2021. Go here for details.

General Admission gives you access to the expo, breakout sessions with Chicago parenting experts, refreshments, photo booth and info bag. Enter the event raffle for giveaways by bringing diapers or wipes to donate to Share our Spare. $20 each. When you register for the baby shower, you permit us to share your contact information with the organizers. Do you have questions for the organizers? Let us know. Thank you to our sponsor, Bubbles Academy

Join NPN and Dr. Shelley Upton with Chicago Psychotherapy PLLC as we talk through how and when to get your child evaluated for developmental differences for those children presenting as early as preschool years through those with lower support needs who are starting to present after they have begun their education journey. Dr Upton will also speak through her experience with IEP' and how an IEP evaluation and a clinical evaluation differ and how best to utilize them to support your child's needs. This will be a Live Webinar with an opportunity to ask questions. Dr. Upton specializes in the diagnosis of autism spectrum disorder, attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, learning disabilities, and other neurodevelopmental disabilities. She is skilled at conducting a variety of cognitive, neuropsychological, developmental, and adaptive measures with both typically developing and neuro-diverse patients (e.g., ASD, fetal alcohol spectrum disorders, attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder). Dr. Upton also has experience in the administration of various specialty evaluations such as special education eligibility evaluations and evaluations for the purposes of procuring accommodations for high stakes tests (e.g., the ACT and SAT). She has an extensive background in working with neurodiverse clients across the lifespan and their families. NPN MEMBERS ONLY EVENT - JOIN TODAY Test link color for parent membership page

Attorneys Cindy Campbell and Joanna Long work with many NPN families to buy and sell their homes, set up wills and trusts, probate, and collaborative family law and mediation. We want our clients to feel knowledgeable and comfortable throughout the process so that we can build relationships and continue to provide excellent service for our clients for years to come. The process is geared to be easy and convenient. We offer completely remote meetings where possible via telephone or Zoom. About our firm: We aim to make the process easy and convenient Flat fees = know the total cost upfront Night/weekend, in-person, phone and Zoom appointments available Don't have a babysitter? That's okay, kids are always welcome! We even have toys and snacks to keep them busy! Full remote signings available! Call 866-566-9494, email Assistant@clcounsel.com, or submit an inquiry through our website Clcounsel.com to set up your initial consult. NPN members receive 15% off of estate planning services through July 1, 2021. Must meet with the attorney for the initial consultation by July 1, 2021, for the promotional discount. Go here for details.

This NPN Live at Lunch panel series is a 30-minute preschool panel discussion followed by a 10-minute Q&A about applying to preschool. We hope that you will walk away from this discussion with two things: * An understanding of components of the application process and how to apply * Answers to common questions that parents have about this process

Innovative Vitality delivers highly personalized medical care. We specialize in longevity medicine, medical weight loss, and preventative primary care. Become a member and optimize your health today.

It’s a night to be supported, to ask questions and share resources, and to be with other parents who get what it’s like to deal with special challenges for their kids. Parents of kids with all types of developmental differences welcome (sensory processing disorder, autism, ADD/ADHD, PDD-NOS, mixed receptive-expressive language disorder, Down syndrome, physical disabilities, medical issues, etc.). Parents/family only, please (no therapists, students or business owners). The Zoom link will be included in your eticket. Do you live south of the Loop and want to bring NPN's Developmental Differences Parent Support Group to your area? Email Amy at amy@npnparents.org to discuss.

NPN Playdates are back! Join us for Sunday play at Kids Work Chicago Riverview! Their large indoor and outdoor play space will be open, crafts will be available, plus goodie bags with snacks for the kids! Parents come and relax and enjoy as your kids experience some fun activities! This event is for kids aged 2 - 5 years old. Spots are limited so register today! Kids Work Chicago Riverview is located at 3429 N. California Ave, near I-94 on California between Addison and Belmont. The parking lot in front of the building has plenty of spaces and there is also ample street parking in the neighborhood! All families in attendance will be entered into a raffle to win a gift certificate to Goldfish Swim School Roscoe Village.

Ice Skating Party at McFetridge Rink Bring your skates or rent them Cost: NPN Members: $5 per adult, 3 per child Non Members: $10 per adult, 3 per child

NPN's New Parents Group is your monthly opportunity to join in on a casual conversation centered around topics that matter to you. Unlike our monthly webinars that are more structured and have a presenter and topic - you get to lead the discussion or just observe and chime in as you see fit; think of it as our forum in real life! Amy from the NPN staff team will join you. If you are a new mom, new dad, new parent, new primary caregiver and you've been craving connection, we hope you join us. This month we are meeting in-person in the small meeting room at the Lincoln Park Branch, Chicago Public Library. Lincoln Park Branch, Chicago Public Library, 1150 W Fullerton Ave 9:30 AM - 10:30 AM Parking: There is a shared parking lot with two accessible parking spots is available on the east side of the building. Enter from Fullerton Avenue. RSVP today! You will receive an email confirmation immediately upon registration. This group is for NPN members only. Parents or primary caregivers only, please (no therapists, students or business owners).

This webinar is about the ups and downs of parenting a baby during a pandemic. You will walk away from this webinar with an understanding of your baby’s emotional states, how to connect with your baby, and what to do when things feel hard.

As centuries of racial injustice continue to be illuminated, parents likely have lots of questions about how to talk with their young children about race and racism, and how to raise an anti-racist child. To answer some of these questions, Dr. Angela Searcy, a child development expert from Erikson Institute, shared her insights. When do children begin to notice race? Dr. Searcy: Research confirms infants as young as 3 months prefer to look at faces similar to their own. By preschool, they begin to use information about race to make decisions about playmates. At what age should parents start talking to their children about race? Dr. Searcy: Start talking about race as soon as your baby begins to recognize faces. Babies that don’t have exposure to people from a variety of races have a hard time noticing facial features of people from races other than their own. Not talking about race directly and explicitly leaves your child unaware of how you feel about different races. It will also create uncertainty about what your child knows about race and any racial bias they may have unintentionally internalized about their own race or others. What are some helpful conversation prompts for tackling this topic? Dr. Searcy: Reading books that show a variety of races is a good way to start. Point out the different races in children’s books and ask your child questions. When it comes to topics of racial injustice, parents already know what words their child understands and what examples will resonate with them. So try something like: “This reminds me of your favorite superhero. How can we ensure people of all races have equal justice?” or, “Would your favorite character think that was fair?” [Related: How to become an anti-racist parent] What behaviors can I expect to see from my young child as they start noticing differences? Dr. Searcy: Noticing differences is an important part of learning. Children will start reacting to differences in infancy and talking about them as soon as they can speak. If they have a negative reaction, respond with positivity and words of acceptance like, “Our differences are what make us all special.” Then follow up to understand why they might be feeling that way. If you respond by telling them you are colorblind, it can be very confusing. It asks children to ignore salient parts of another person’s identity and sends a message that something is wrong with having color if it must be “unseen.” Imagine the message that sends to a child of color who must have parts of their identity ignored and unseen. What are some helpful resources or activities that I can use to teach my child about race? Dr. Searcy: A few of my favorite activities include: ● Use M&Ms to show children how different colors are still the same inside ● Make a knot with a string to demonstrate how it will take time and many people to untie the knot of racism ● Give your child books with characters with a variety of races and ethnicities and have them look in the mirror and compare characteristics As far as resources, I’ve listed many on my website. A couple of my favorites are: How can I have a Positive Racial Identity? I’m White! and Woke Kindergarten. Dr. Angela Searcy holds a M.S. degree in early childhood development, with a specialization in infant studies, from the Erikson Institute and a EdD in education. She is an author of the book Push Past It! A Positive Approach to Challenging Classroom Behaviors and nationally recognized speaker, and currently serves as an adjunct professor at Erikson teaching Culture.

New Year Party at Little Kickers Cost: Free for NPN members $5 for Non Members (per adult, no fee for children)