Children's Bill of Rights for San Luis Obispo County

• Background Info
• CBOR: The Rights
• Endorsements
• The Rights in Action

The Rights in Action

Parents and Caregivers can:

Build Positive Relationships and Self-Confidence by helping their children develop self-respect and showing them that they enjoy being with them

• Talk with their children about their day
• Acknowledge their accomplishments
• Stay calm when their children are upset so they feel safe

Foster a Love of Learning

• Help their child get a library card and start using it
• Read or look at books together for at least 15 minutes each day

Early Childhood Educators can:

Encourage parent involvement and support

• Hold parent meetings outside of school hours and provide child care during meetings to allow working parents to participate

Engage in activities that improve the quality of early learning environments, teacher practices, and curriculum

• Participate in local professional development and quality support programs

Schools (Pre-K-3) can:

Collaborate in the planning for childen's school success

• Promote and support expanded investments in high-quality early learning programs that prepare children and their parents for a successful transition to elementary school

Business Leaders can:

Advocate for their benefits of preschool and support employees with young children

• Adopt policies and practices to support working parents with young children such as part time schedules, telecommuting, lactation (breast feeding) support, paid sick time, and paid parental leave time.
• Support health & wellness, education, and other services for employee's children and families (e.g., provide workshops on flexible spending accounts, counseling, health services, flu shots for employees and families, and nutrition classes).

Support Early Childhood Education

• Meet with state and local officials about the positive long-term effects of high-quality early childhood care and education as a valuable return on investment, helping society, including businesses and the economy (e.g., reduced welfare use, increased incomes and more taxes generated)
• Adopt a preschool site through financial and in-kind support

Local government and service agency leaders can:

Advocate for policies representing the interests of young children

• Incorporate the values of the Children's Bill of Rights into their organization's Strategic Plan and Quality Improvement processes
• Create environments that support healthy children and families
• Encourage the development of community gardens and healthy food choices

State policy makers can:

Acknowledge the benefits of investing in quality early childhood development

• Support funding for statewide child care or preschool facilities
• Highlight an issue that affects children in public remarks or constituent newsletters

Last but not least, YOUTH can be advocates for utilizing the Rights in policy and decision-making and educating others about their importance.

All of the above link back to, impact, or affect the 12 rights by making children our community's highest priority.

If today's children of all races, ethnicities, and income levels are not adequately prepared, are not well educated, and their health needs are not addressed, they will not have the capacity to contribute productively to the future workforce.

Children's issues are everyone's issues and we see the Children's Bill of Rights for San Luis Obispo County as a lens whereby county residents can share a common vision of SUCCESS for all children and youth.