Posted on March 24, 2020
The COVID-19 pandemic has emphasized the importance of the numerous support programs funded using federal dollars – child care, libraries, hospitals and more. These funds are determined based on decennial Census data. Now, more than ever, it is imperative to motivate our communities to fill out their 2020 Census questionnaires. More than $45 billion in annual state funding depends on it.
Families and caregivers can use this time spent at home with their children to teach them about this monumental civic duty and emphasize that they, too, count in the Census. Child care providers can communicate these resources through email blasts and help promote an accurate count.
Filling out your Census is fast, easy and important, and can all be done from the comforts of your own home. Dedicate ten minutes of your time today to fill it out online, by mail or over the phone, then help motivate others to fill theirs out by sharing the tools below.
- Sesame Street toolkit, filled with videos and pamphlets of your favorite characters reminding you to fill out your Census forms and not to forget your children
- Nickelodeon toolkit. Join Spongebob and friends as they stress the importance of the Census in child-friendly language
- 2020 “Count Everyone!” Song. Whether you are tiny or tall, everyone counts! An engaging easy-to-follow sing-along, complete with lyrics and sheet music.
- Take a #CensusSelfie of everyone counted in your household and use our Census Facebook frame to tell others to fill out their Census questionnaires too.
- “We Count!”, a free Census ebook, available in 15 different languages
- “Todos Contamos!” video (below). A reading of “We Count!” en español by ACNJ’s own Miguelina Maldonado. Read along by visiting www.wecountkids.org/ebooks
