WESTLAKE, OH — If you have a child with mental health issues, disabilities, developmental delays, academic struggles, behavior problems or other concerns, finding summer programs can be challenging.
Connecting for Kids has introduced a new website to help local families easily find inclusive summer programming for those 0-12 years. The site, inclusivesummer.com, includes adapted summer camps, sports, arts and recreational opportunities as well as programs addressing academics, speech-language, motor, social and executive function skills, among others.
This website is searchable by child’s age, region or program length. It even has a feature where users type in their zip code and indicate how far they are willing to travel for a program with search results shown visually on a Google map. An advanced search option allows families to search on more than one criterion, for example, westside programs for preschoolers.
“Connecting for Kids receives a large volume of calls each spring from parents and caregivers looking for ways to not only keep their child occupied over the summer but to keep up skills heading into the new school year,” said Sarah Rintamaki, Executive Director of Connecting for Kids. “By creating this website, Connecting for Kids has introduced a user-friendly experience, giving families information matched to their needs and offering direct links to provider websites and contacts.”
All of the programs on the website take place in June, July or August. Connecting for Kids staff will continue to verify and add new programs that are available this summer. Providers can share their updates with an online form. Please note that the site only takes submissions that welcome children ages 0-12 years with disabilities or mental health concerns.
Since families are busy, a how to use this site page explains all of the different ways families can search the site to find the resources and information they need.
“Some parents are just so overwhelmed with a new diagnosis or life circumstance that they don’t even know where to begin,” said Rintamaki.
For those families, Connecting for Kids offers free Ask Us sessions where individuals can schedule a 30- minute one-on-one session with a Connecting for Kids Family Resource Specialist to discuss their unique situation and get personalized summer options. Reserve a time on the website, email info@connectingforkids.org or call/text us at 440-570-5908.
About Connecting for Kids
Connecting for Kids provides resources, support and community to families in Northeast Ohio who have concerns about their child. We support families who have children with mental health concerns, developmental delays and disabilities as well as those facing major life changes. We offer programs, Resource Fairs and a Family Resource Specialist (FRS) Program. Programs include support groups for adults, presentations by professionals as well as hands-on programs that caregivers attend with their child. The FRS program offers a CFK staff member who meets with families and assists them in navigating resources. All programs are offered
free to families.
