If your first stimulus check still hasn’t arrived, you have to take action by November 21^st  to claim your payment.

The IRS is still delivering stimulus checks from the first round of payments.  If you’re one of the millions of people who still hasn’t received your check, you’re probably wondering if you even qualify for one.

Answer the following questions:

• Did you file a 2019 federal tax return?
• Do you normally file taxes?
• Have you already received a stimulus check?
• Have you already registered for a stimulus check?

If you answered ‘no’ to all of the questions above, use the IRS’s Non-Filers Tool before 2 p.m. CST on November 21, 2020, to claim your payment.

If you don’t usually file a tax return and you have not received your stimulus check yet, the IRS may not have enough information to determine your eligibility. This includes people who receive the federal benefits listed below.

• Those receiving Social Security retirement, disability (SSDI), survivor benefits
• Supplemental Security Income (SSI) recipients
• Recipients of Veterans Affairs Compensation and Pension (C&P) benefits
• Individuals who receive Railroad Retirement (RRB) benefits

You can submit your information online using the Non-Filers Tool. But you have to do it by November 21^st.  Go to irs.gov and click on Non-Filers: Enter Payment Info Here.

Information you will need to provide

• Full name, current mailing address and an email address
• Date of birth and valid Social Security number
• Bank account number, type and routing number, if you have one
• Identity Protection Personal Identification Number (IP PIN) you received from the IRS earlier this year, if you have one
  • Taxpayers who have already been issued an Identity Protection PIN but lost it, must use the Get an IP PIN tool to retrieve their number
• Driver’s license or state-issued ID, if you have one
• For each qualifying child during 2019: name, Social Security number or Adoption Taxpayer Identification Number and their relationship to you or your spouse

What to expect

Follow these steps in order to provide your information:

• Create an account by providing your email address and phone number. You will also establish a user ID and password for your account.
• You will be directed to a screen where you will input your filing status (Single or Married filing jointly) and personal information.
• Note: Make sure you have a valid Social Security number for you and your spouse if you were married at the end of 2019, unless you are filing “Married Filing Jointly” with a 2019 member of the military. Make sure you have a valid Social Security number or Adoption Taxpayer Identification Number for each dependent you want to claim for the Economic Impact Payment.
• Check the “box” if someone can claim you as a dependent or your spouse as a dependent.
• Complete your bank information; otherwise the IRS will send you a check.
• You will be directed to another screen where you will enter personal information to verify yourself. Simply follow the instructions. You will need your driver’s license information or state-issued ID. If you don’t have one, leave it blank.

You will receive an email from Customer Service at Free File Fillable Forms, a trusted IRS partner, that either acknowledges you have successfully submitted your information, or that tells you there is a problem and how to correct it. Free File Fillable Forms will use the information to automatically complete a Form 1040 and transmit it to the IRS to compute and send you a payment.

An Important Reminder from IRS

Check your mail.  Some people may get their Economic Impact Payments on a prepaid debit card instead of a paper check, even if the IRS website shows they are receiving a check.  The debit card arrives in a plain envelope from Money Network Cardholder Services. The Visa name will appear on the front of the card. You will see MetaBank®, N.A. on the back of the card.  That’s the name of the bank that issued the card.  Information will be included with the card explaining that it is the Economic Impact Payment Card for the person identified as the recipient.

HCHRA has added two more websites to provide fun learning activities your child will enjoy.  Below is a list of tools you can use to help keep your child on track for success in school.  Be sure to check back next week to see what else is new.

ABCYa provides games that touch on all academic areas — from ABCs to holidays.  It was created by teachers, and is aligned to standards. It never collects personal data, and is FREE on PCs.
www.abcya.com

Education.com provides printable worksheets and online activities to help children learn letters, numbers, words, and fine motor skills.
https://www.education.com/worksheets/preschool

Seussville lets children enjoy interactive reading games and activities featuring classic Dr. Seuss books and characters. The site includes a character guide, videos, book catalogue, Seuss biography, and tips for parents.
www.seussville.com/play/

Starfall provides opportunities for young children to have fun while learning their ABCs and reading skills through positive reinforcement in a brightly colored environment full of activities, games, and songs.
www.starfall.com/h/index-kindergarten.php

The Health and Nutrition Preschool Activities website has health and nutrition activities and crafts for families to complete at home.
www.first-school.ws/THEME/nutrition.htm

Scholastic: Clifford the Big Red Dog is a fun-filled learning resource for beginning readers.  The site features interactive storybooks, games and bilingual stories.
www.scholastic.com/clifford

Parenting the Super Kid at Meal Times provide nutritional activities for parents and children and helps build on the practice of family-style meals at home.
www.superkidsnutrition.com/pr_parenting-kid-meals/

StoryPlace offers preschoolers a virtual library experience.  Children can participate in story-time, watch videos, and play games.  The bilingual site also provides early literacy information and a guide to children’s books for parents and caregivers.
www.storyplace.org/

myON is an online collection of thousands of fiction and nonfiction digital books that you can access from home or anywhere you have Internet access!  You can also download books for offline reading.  About 10% of the titles are available in Spanish, and the book reader allows children to choose different reading support tools like audio narration (where the content of the book is said aloud as the child reads along), text highlighting (to show what word is being read), and there’s also a dictionary for every book. myON also gives you the ability to practice the Star Early Literacy Assessment – the reading test for students to take on a computer.  Below is all of the information you need to get started.

Website Address: www.myON.com
School Name:  Hinds County Human Resource Agency
Username: headstart
Password:  read

The Healthy at Home Toolkit provides our families with free learning activities that are easy to implement and can meet the different learning needs of our Head Start children. This toolkit was created by Teaching Strategies, ReadyRosie and The Creative Curriculum – they are the very same tools our teachers use in the Head Start classroom everyday.

Click here to access the Healthy at Home Toolkit. If you have trouble accessing the link, go to healthyathome.readyrosie.com.

Although we can’t physically come together at this time, these tools will provide endless hours of great learning activities.

If you have questions or need assistance, call us at (601) 923-1822 and leave a message including your contact information.  Although we are working remotely, calls are being monitored and a staff person will respond within 24 hours (excluding holidays and weekends).

As announced last week, in compliance with government mandates to help protect children and families from the spread of COVID-19, all HCHRA Head Start centers will be closed for the remainder of the school year.  All other HCHRA staff will return on Monday, May 4, 2020, unless otherwise notified, and all other HCHRA offices will resume normal operations.

Based upon the guidelines issued by public health experts and governing authorities, work schedules and agency operations are subject to change. Updates will be posted here on our website every Thursday morning until further notice.

HCHRA staff will continue to work remotely to provide timely and professional service.  If you or someone you know has any concerns that need immediate attention, please dial 601-923-1822 and leave a message stating the nature of your call.  Be sure to include your contact information.  Calls are being monitored and a staff person will respond within 24 hours (excluding holidays and weekends).  You can also reach us by email at HelpDesk@hchra.org.

Let’s remain vigilant about hand washing, disinfecting and practicing social distancing to help protect those who are most vulnerable and get us all back to living normal lives as soon as possible.