Macaroni Kid for all 3 counties!
calvert.macaronikid.com
charlesmd.macaronid.com

Have you discovered  Macaroni Kid? A website and weekly FREE e-newsletter,  is a valuable resource for finding kid and family-friendly events, activities, products, and businesses.

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National Parent Information Network
npin.org

As part of the ERIC clearinghouse on elementary and early childhood education, this site focuses on information for parents. You will find a lot of great resources, including a magazine, discussion list, conference events, state networks, an “ask-ERIC” section, and much more.

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Zero to Three
zerotothree.org

Zero to Three is a national non-profit charitable organization whose aim is to strengthen and support families, practitioners, and communities to promote the healthy development of babies and toddlers. Visit this website to find information and resources for both parents and professionals.

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National Resource Center for Health and Safety in Child Care
nrckids.org/

Some highlights of this website include a study on cost, quality and outcomes, state child care regulations, and national safety standards. An extensive links page with resources on everything from lead poisoning to playground safety is useful for both parents and child care providers.

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The American Library Association
ala.org/alsc/

This section, or index, of the larger ALA site, has great resources for both children and parents. For children and teens, there are pages that highlight good websites to visit and recommended reading and software. For parents, there is information on adult reference and media materials, a link to Booklist magazine, and much more.

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US Consumer Product Safety Commission
cpsc.gov
This site maintains product recalls for consumers. Check here to see if your yard sale purchases are safe, or find out how to return a recalled product.

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Maryland Family Network
marylandfamilynetwork.org

Maryland Family Network coordinates the Maryland Child Care Resource Network, LOCATE: Child Care (a free resource for families to find child care), coordinates the Family Support Centers, and distributes data annually on the capacity of child care providers in the state.

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Online Child Care Referrals
marylandfamilynetwork.org/programs-services/locate/

LOCATE Child Care Assist is an easy-to-use, software program that enables a parent or guardian to conduct self-guided searches for regulated child care program referrals in Maryland including family child care, child care centers, before and after school programs, summer camps, Head Start programs, nursery schools, part-day programs, and private kindergarten programs.  Parents enter an address close to where they want care and choose the type of child care they want. Based on the parent’s choices, a list of up to ten child care programs with short descriptions and contact phone numbers is displayed. This list can be printed out by the parent.  The listed programs are referrals only, and no recommendation is expressed or implied. A disclaimer statement appears on the program’s initial screen, as well as on the screen containing the referrals.

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Online Search for After-School Activities
apps.marylandfamilynetwork.org/mdcfc/search_ost/disclaimer.asp

The After-School Activities web application provides on-line access for parents and children who are searching for information about after-school activities and programs of all kinds. Currently, the After-School database contains information on over 2,200 after-school programs, including all regulated after-school programs in the state of Maryland. The web application is searchable by county and by school or town within counties. The database contains information on cost, hours of operation, location, program description and more. Only programs that are monitored or regulated are included in the database.

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LOCATE: Child Care
locate.marylandfamilynetwork.org/family/login

Maryland Family Network’s LOCATE: Child Care is a free, referral service with detailed information on all regulated child care in Maryland. Our trained referral specialists will help you identify care based on your personal preferences including program type, location, and cost.

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Ready at Five
readyatfive.org/