Research Project: Costs of a Child

Even Sims Have Flour Babies!

This Research Project is due on Monday, 12/11 -- the day that you are required to bring your fully decorated, dressed "baby" to school for the first time.  We will do our first "Well Baby Checkup" on that day, then discuss the findings from your research on the topics below.

Open Microsoft Word and begin compiling information:
(Include links to online price sources)

UP FRONT COST:

• Prenatal Care: Including tests, diagnostic ultrasounds, doctor charges for the nine months of pregnancy. (Call physicians office)
• Prenatal Vitamins: Check Walmart, Kmart, or a local pharmacy for prices.
• Hospital Charges: Labor/delivery and anesthesia charges. (Call hospital)
• Pediatrician Charges: Well/sick visits and all immunizations. (Call pediatrics or physicians office)
• Nursery / Equipment: Crib, high chair, stroller, infant car seat, booster car seat, diaper bag, bottles, pacifiers, toys, baby/child-proofing supplies, diaper rash cream, wipes, shampoo, etc.

DAILY COST:

• Disposable Diapers (Kmart, Walmart).  Compare the same sizes from both stores and make a note of how many diapers are in each package.  Calculate how much each diaper costs and find an average price per diaper.
• Figure out how many diapers per day a baby uses (BabyStory, KidsGrowth, Babblesoft) -- Newborn / 1-3 Months / 4-6 Months / 7-9 Months / 10-12 Months.  Using the cost per diaper (above), how much will it cost per day (for each section) to diaper a baby.
• Figure out approximately how much [in ounces] baby formula a baby should use per day (BabyCenter) for a 6 pound baby / a 10 pound baby / a 15 pound baby / a 20 pound baby / and a 24 pound baby.  Compare that to the estimates for a Newborn / 2 month / 4 month / 6 month baby (KidsHealth).  On average, how many ounces (approximately) does a baby need each day?
• To prepare formula, you will mix one ounce of powdered formula with two ounces of water (to make 3 ounces of formula).  You will need to divide the total formula needed per day by 3 so you know how much powdered formula you need to buy.  Check out Amazon.com and find a good price for baby formula -- you might want to figure out the price per ounce to find the best bargain.  How much does each ounce of powdered formula cost?  
• How much is "baby food" (peas, carrots, applesauce, etc.)?  When do babies typically begin eating baby food instead of just breast milk or formula?  How much do they typically eat [up to one year old] per day?  What about "baby cereal"?
• What is your DAILY cost of a baby so far?  Add average costs of diapers, formula, wipes, baby food, cereal, etc.

ANNUAL COST:

• Annual cost of formula.
• Annual cost of diapers.
• Annual cost of baby food, cereal, etc.
• Approximate annual cost of baby clothes, shoes, coats, etc.
• What was your "Up Front Cost" (above)?
• What was the total cost of having this child for one year?

OTHER COSTS:

• Imagine that you are a single parent and you decide to take three months off work to have the baby and get him/her started.  Now your savings account is about empty and it's time to return to work.  How much will it cost to have your child in daycare/babysitting each day?  Each week?  For the next 9 months (about 270 days)? 
• What other costs might be involved in having a baby for a year?

GETTING HELP:

• What is WIC?  Who qualifies?  How can they help?
• What other resources are available for parents who need help being parents? 

Download Handout Here (PDF)

Letter From a Local Mom

Last year when I was preparing for the "Pregnancy and Parenting" unit, I posted on FreeCycle that I was looking for items (onesies, etc.) for my classes.  I received an email from a young lady named Amber who got pregnant while in high school.

The letter is attached:

Hi,

My name is Amber, I grew up in Lake County to loving if somewhat scattered parents. I went to high school and played sports. I got good grades and decent scholarships for college. I was 18 when I found out I was pregnant. I had all of these dreams that my daughter would be perfect and beautiful and I could continue school and we would live happily ever after. My friends threw a baby shower it was wonderful, they were as excited as I was to meet the new baby. When she came it was on a Friday night. None of those friends were there. They came to visit in the days after with gifts for the baby and stories of the parties I had missed and wouldn't be going to anymore. When the baby was sick, it was just she and I. I held her while she cried for days on end with colic. I cried with her while we were to tired to keep going, but she was in too much pain to sleep. The doctor's appointments were my responsibility. I had to feed us both. I had to work and find a babysitter that I trusted. I worked a minimum wage job since my education was on hold, (I had to quit classes to have time to work.) When the money from that job went to pay the babysitter and left little more, I got another job. There were days that I dropped baby off at the sitters house at 8am worked from 9 until 4 at a restaurant then picked her up for an hour or two and went back to work at a bar from 6 until 2am. I slept for around 4-5 hours a night and rarely saw my baby girl. I can still remember hearing her cry when I had to drop her back off at the sitters. None of my friends were interested by then, a baby is really cute for a few days or even a few months, but then it is time to get back to life. I could never afford a sitter to go out, or try to date. (A young boy doesn't stick around just because he fathered a child) My parents helped where they could, but really it wasn't much and my mother was still pretty mad at me for getting pregnant and throwing away a chance at an education and career. While children are a blessing, they also deserve to have a good life and a minimum wage job or state assistance does not provide even a facade of a decent life. Let me share a few things with you:

Children do not love you unconditionally. Children are little egomaniacs that you must serve, teach, protect and love despite how angry they make you.  Waking up at two in the morning to a toddler who has just vomited grape kool-aid and hot dogs on your pillow is not an ideal way to start the morning.  Babysitters don't watch sick kids, so you just lost a shift you really really need to make money.  There is no such thing as sleeping in. 6 am is about as late as it gets in my house.
I am finishing my bachelors degree... at 33 years old. And it is still hard to find a sitter. 

You cannot go out every night, you cannot go for overnights in Tahoe, Vegas or even down the street without the little one in tow and cute enough, but no one wants to party with a child.
There is no money for new clothes or bags or snowboards or anything because diapers are expensive.

I am saying all of these things with a smile because we are in a good place right now where I can focus on my family and my children. I do have regrets about having children to early. Lots of them. Please, please get an education, travel the world, party, skydive, and sleep in as much as you can before you have children. Good Luck to you. 

If I Became a Teen Parent

Today you will be doing the first part of a worksheet called "If I Became a Teen Parent".  You will answer some questions about how your life would change if you received news that you were going to be a parent, and then you will take home the questions for a parent/guardian (or other significant adult in your life) to answer.  If you're brave enough, try telling a parent that you ARE having a baby and get a more realistic response.  :)

Some of you may already be on your own, may already have a baby, or have already lived this experience.  If you are willing, please share your experience.

Ultrasound Tech: Baby Gender

You recently realized you were going to be having a baby, and you've been doing your best to prepare yourself.  You've begun the process of doctors visits, buying prenatal vitamins, and getting exercise.  Now it's time for your ultrasound -- and finding out what the sex of the baby is.

I will be the "ultrasound tech" and I will run the check to determine what it is you're having.  I'll be using a computer program written to give you very similar odds should you experience an actual pregnancy.  There's approximately a 50/50 shot that you'll either have a boy or a girl.  But it's important to remember that approximately 1 in 30 pregnancies is twins -- and 1 in 720 pregnancies is triplets.

The "spinner" I use will determine whether you're having 1, 2 or 3 babies -- and what gender(s) the babies will be.  I will write the list down on the roll sheet and you can then begin preparing for the babies we will have -- our "due date" being 3/24.  You will be going into labor on 3/21 (when you bring your materials in) and preparing over the weekend and bring the babies to school on 3/24.

Beginning the Baby Project

Today we will be getting started with the Baby Project:

• Complete and turn in the Baby Costs project.
• Get your flour/sugar/masa/rice baby ready by making sure...

• it gets signed by Mr. Griffith.
• it has a face.
• it is dressed/protected.
• it is in a car seat with a restraint.
• Our first "well baby checkup" is today.
• You will be posting an entry on your Baby Blog Monday.

Remember some of these important items:

• If your baby becomes a distraction in other classes, you will lose points.
• If you receive reports of "endangerment", "abandonment", or "abuse" you may be assigned extra assignments -- mostly essays.
• If you need to leave your baby for any reason (work, sporting events, etc.) you need to secure child care at the rate of 50 cents per hour.
• If you drop, damage or break your baby -- come to me ASAP.

Good luck!

Extra Credit Assignment: Flour Baby Project

I just wanted to give you all a "heads-up" that the "Flour Baby" / "Sugar Baby" / "Maza Baby" project is coming up next week.  You will build "babies" that you will carry with you for the entire week as if it was your actual child.

All materials are due in class by MONDAY, December 6th.  If we are not here on Friday, you will need to bring them on Monday, 3/9 fully ready.  You will need to collect a few things by then:

• First and foremost, a 5-10 pound sack of sugar, flour, or maza (corn meal).  Checking in at a couple stores, I saw 5 lb. bags of sugar and flour for about $2.39.  If you care for your "baby" well enough, you can still use the flour or sugar when you are done with the project.

• Next you will need to bring a color picture to use as the "baby's" face.  You can find them in parenting magazines, advertisements, or on the Internet.  Try a Google Search (example) and print them on a decent color printer.  You can use some time today to look for these.

• You will also want to bring something to clothe the baby in.  I recommend a cheap "onesie" that you can pick up at a garage sale, a thrift shop, etc.  You may even know someone with a baby who has some old clothes they want to get rid of.  (Extra credit if you can bring extra's for your classmates)

• You will need a basket, car seat, stroller, sling, or other baby carrying device.  If you don't want to hold the baby all day during school, you will want something that you can sit quietly under [or along side] your desk.

• One diaper [unused].  We will go over the basics of diapering your "baby" in class.  If you are not familiar with the difficulty of disposable diapers, you may want to bring an extra.  (Extra credit if you bring extra's for your classmates)

Here are a couple examples from last year that I really liked -- the "parents" of these babies were a couple so their babies became "twins":

• Optional:  Items to decorate your "baby" such as doll arms/legs, pacifier, baby blanket, markers, construction paper, etc.  Here are a few examples of creative approaches to this project:

City Web Site Planning

We have been tasked with creating the new City of Jellico, Tennessee web site. (No, really).

• What should be on every city web site? 
• What do people want to see? 
• What should we avoid? 
• What things do YOU think are important that others may not have included on their town site?

CITY WEB SITES: To begin with, we will explore some web pages from other municipalities.

Take notes on things you want to have on our site on a page labeled "Jellico Web Site Ideas". Put a * next to items that are very important. If you see things you do NOT want to see on our web site, write those on the back of your page. If you have ideas for the page that we don't see on the other pages, write them down and underline them. Your opinions are important.

• Jellico: www.jellico.us
• Jacksboro: www.jacksboro.org
• LaFollette: www.lafollettetn.gov
• Williamsburg: www.williamsburgky.com
• Somerset: www.cityofsomerset.com
• Knoxville: www.knoxvilletn.gov
• Oneida: www.townofoneida.com
• Rocky Top: www.cityofrockytoptn.com
• Clinton: www.clintontn.net
• Oak Ridge: www.oakridgetn.gov
• London: www.londonky.com
• New Tazewell: www.newtazewell.org
• Harriman: www.cityofharriman.net

Although it is no longer online, this is what the City of Jellico's web site looked like.

Theme Ideas:

• Theme 1
• Theme 2
• Theme 3

What should be on the Jellico City web site?

• Calendar (Google Calendar)
• Weather
• Map
• Volunteer
• Government (Addresses / Phone Numbers)
• Post Office 
• City Council
• Minutes (From Town Meetings)
• Animal Control / Shelters?
• Library
• Contacts
• State Park
• Video Interviews?
• Explore the City Banner (Like Williamsburg)
• Jellico Culture / History
• Jellico High School

• Jellico Alumni

• Jellico Elementary
• Festivals
• Rentals (Stage, Park, etc.)
• Business / Store Rental
• Gas Prices?
• Local Attractions
• Shops
• Bucks Museum
• Restaurants
• Monuments
• Historical Markers
• Tacket Creek
• Nearby Schools / Colleges
• Shops / Businesses
• Hit Counter
• (Things we can do to fix the city itself)

Williamsburg City: Navigation

• Home
• Government
• Mayor’s Office
• Administrative Assistants
• Assistant City Clerk
• City Clerk
• City Council
• City Ordinance
• Comprehensive Plan
• Council Minutes
• Departments
• Boards/Commissions
• Fire Department
• Kentucky Splash Waterpark
• Main Street Program
• Maintenance
• Parks and Recreation
• Planning & Zoning
• Police Department
• Sanitation
• Tourism Commission
• Community
• Animal Control
• Apartment Rentals
• Bill Woods Park
• Briar Creek Park
• Area Businesses
• Churches
• City Park
• Clubs & Organizations
• Community Events
• Kentucky Splash Water Park
• Main Street Program
• Media
• Merry Jeffries Center
• Parks & Recreation
• Planning and Zoning Committee
• Variance Committee
• Historical
• History of University of the Cumberlands
• Historical Photos
• History of Whitley County
• History of Williamsburg City Government
• Religious History
• History of Williamsburg City School
• Historical Links
• Whitley County Historical & Genealogical
• Tourism
• Accommodations
• Area Attractions
• Area Map
• Convention Center
• Events
• Merry Jeffries Center
• Parks & Recreation
• Restaurants
• Tourism Commission
• Economic Development
• Applications & Forms
• Business Incentives
• City Maps
• City Utility Rates
• Demographics
• Existing Businesses
• New Business Information
• Quick Facts-Kentucky
• Southern Kentucky Chamber of Commerce
• Southeast Kentucky Regional Business Park
• Industrial Sites Available

More Info...