Support Areas

Family Engagement and Support

We are committed to supporting our families by connecting them to a variety of resources and services in our community.

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Family Partners

Family Partners work closely with families in each center-based program and our family child care system to provide support and resources that families may need.

Family Partners can assist your family in various ways, including finding and accessing community resources, connecting with special educational services, financial, housing/shelter, food, clothing, therapeutic referrals, and more.

If you have questions or need assistance navigating various support systems, please contact your Family Partner.

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Nurtury uses Ages & Stages Questionnaires® (ASQ) as a screening tool for children’s development. This screening is completed by/with parents and helps educators identify developmental needs for your child, including strengths and areas where they may need additional support or resources we can offer. 

  • ASQ assesses the following areas of development: communication, gross-motor, fine-motor, problem solving, and personal-social.
  • An Ages & Stages screening is done within 45-days of a child entering Nurtury, with a follow-up screening provided if areas of development indicate a concern; a repeat screening is to be completed annually.
  • ASQ is used in conjunction with our educators’ Teaching Strategies GOLD developmental assessments, which are completed for each child at 3 check-point periods throughout the year (4 for infants and diverse learners).

Teaching Strategies GOLD® (T.S. GOLD) is an online research-based assessment tool that Nurtury uses to track a child’s development and school readiness. T.S. GOLD can track a child’s development from birth all the way until third grade. It helps teachers plan individually for each child and for their whole class. Teachers provide ongoing documentation and observations of a child’s development using videos, photos, and work samples. 

A personalized assessment report for each child is shared with families during Family/Teacher Conferences. These assessment reports are provided three times a year for toddlers/preschoolers and four times a year for infants and diverse learners.

Family/Teacher Conferences are a chance for us to share, listen, and plan with you about your child’s development. We want to hear about the things you notice your child doing at home and talk about the skills your child is displaying at school.

  • During conferences, we will share photos, artwork, and stories about your child’s growth. We also use this opportunity to share and discuss your child’s T.S. GOLD assessment report. We will celebrate all your child’s abilities and plan next steps for continued development. We value your input and are excited to plan together!
  • These conferences are held three times a year for toddlers/preschoolers and four times a year for infants and diverse learners. We are very flexible with our scheduling and do our best to accommodate your schedule. Conferences with teachers are held during Nurtury’s hours of operation, so child care will of course be provided.

Education starts at birth. Since families are a child’s first teachers, we want to equip families with the tools to help boost their child’s development, so we proudly partner with The Basics Boston. They offer a text-messaging service called Basics Insight, which provides families with weekly resources to connect, grow, and learn with their infant, toddler, or preschooler.

Each week, Basics Insights sends two text messages: a developmentally-appropriate fact and an at-home activity connected to one of the five Basics Principles:

  • Maximize Love, Manage Stress
  • Talk, Sing, and Point,
  • Count, Group, and Compare
  • Explore Through Movement and Play
  • Read and Discuss Stories

We offer a subscription to Basics Insights as part of the enrollment process at Nurtury if families choose.

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Child Development

We partner with families on your child’s development to ensure they are prepared to enter kindergarten. Learn more about the variety of tools we use to do this.

Family Handbook

Find versions of Nurtury’s Family Handbook in both English and Spanish below:

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Program Partners

Events
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June 18, 2024

Nurtury Early Education Hosts Ribbon Cutting for Family Child Care (FCC) Incubator

Thank you to everyone who joined us this morning for the ribbon cutting of our new Family Child Care (FCC) Incubator in Mission Hill. This innovative…

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May 4, 2024

Serve with Liberty Partners with Nurtury Early Education

On Friday, Nurtury had volunteers from Liberty Mutual visit our early learning center in Cambridge to help bring our garden back to life as part of…

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March 26, 2024

Nurtury Early Educations Hosts Free Book Fairs

Nurtury's Family Partners and staff have been working hard to organize FREE book fairs this month for families at our Center-Based Programs. Last week, our Learning…

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March 14, 2024

Comedian DJ Pryor visits Nurtury Early Education

Comedian and early education advocate DJ Pryor decided to visit Nurtury's Horadan Way early learning center while in Boston for Neighborhood Villages' Professional Development Day, where…

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February 9th, 2024

Nurtury Early Education Receives Book Donations from Storytime Crafts

Nurtury recently partnered with Storytime Crafts, a local literacy nonprofit dedicated to collecting and distributing educational resources throughout communities, received a large donation of books and…

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August 30, 2023

Family Music Event at Harvard Street

On August 30th, our Harvard Street center hosted an end-of-the-year Family Music Event. Families participated in singing and moving to songs alongside their children.

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August 25, 2023

Moving-On Ceremonies

Throughout August, all of our Center-Based Programs invited families to attend their Moving-On ceremonies for children entering Kindergarten this fall.

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July 13, 2023

Common Start Family-Friendly Rally

On July 13th, Common Start Coalition invited kids and families all across Massachusetts to join a family-friendly rally at the State House in support of affordable,…

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June 25, 2023

UPK Moving Up Celebration

On Sunday, June 25th, Nurtury Staff attended the 2nd Annual UPK Moving Up Celebration at the Franklin Park. The event celebrates the children as graduates of…

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June 15, 2023

Hot Dog Night

Every Thursday night throughout the summer, the Mildred C. Hailey Tenant Task Force organizes community cookout events.

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June 06, 2023

Family Music Event (at Horadan Way)

On June 6th, Horadan Way invited families to watch their children sing and play instruments for their summer music performance. We had a great turnout from…

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April 28, 2023

Family Garden Get-Together

On Friday, April 28th, we invited families of Harvard Street to join us for a Family Garden Get-Together. We had every classroom represented, infants through preschool. …

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March 30, 2023

Light Unit in Classrooms

This past month, many classrooms engaged in a hands-on investigation of light using artificial and natural light sources.

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Support Inquiry

Contact our Family Support & Engagement Team

Our Family Partners are here to provide assistance to various community resources. Fill out the form below and we will reach out to you regarding any questions you have.

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