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Home > Supporting & Preserving Families > Family Support Services > Early Childhood Programs
Early Childhood Programs
Early childhood programs aim to improve outcomes for young children and their families by offering a variety of support services such as child health and development assessments, early education and care, referral to community resources, and more. Use the following resources to learn more about selected home visitation programs, including State and local examples.
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National Quality Improvement Center on Early Childhood
Generates and disseminates robust evidence and new knowledge about program and systems strategies that contribute to child maltreatment prevention and optimal developmental outcomes for infants, young children, and their families.
National Early Childhood Technical Assistance Center
Strengthens service systems to ensure that children with disabilities (birth through 5 years) and their families receive and benefit from high quality, culturally appropriate, and family-centered supports and services.
National Child Care Information and Technical Assistance Center
Provides comprehensive child care information resources to key stakeholders in States, Territories, and Tribes, as well as early care and school-age professionals and the general public.
The Early Childhood Comprehensive Systems Initiative
Maternal and Child Health Bureau
Supports States and communities in their efforts to integrate early childhood service systems and offers links to State plans for building a comprehensive system for young children.
Project THRIVE
National Center for Children in Poverty
Promotes improved early childhood policies and practices by helping States strengthen and expand their early childhood systems. Resources include the virtual policy-sharing network and summaries of State early childhood activities.
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Advancing Child Abuse and Neglect Protective Factors: The Role of the Early Care and Education Infrastructure (PDF - 730 KB)
Center for the Study of Social Policy (2003)
Identifies a lack of infrastructure as a barrier to integrating support for protective characteristics into early childhood programs, and describes State projects to improve infrastructure, including recommendations for system development.
Building Circles, Breaking Cycles: Preventing Child Abuse and Neglect: The Early Childhood Educator's Role (PDF - 171 KB)
National Association for the Education of Young Children (2004)
Highlights six strategies for early childhood educators to use to reduce the risk of child abuse and neglect and strengthen families. Also see the discussion guide (PDF - 181 KB).
Center on the Developing Child
Harvard University
Generates, translates, and applies knowledge to enhance well-being and support positive life outcomes for children.
CWLA Standards of Excellence for Child Care, Development, and Education Services
Child Welfare League of America (2005)
View Abstract
Presents guidelines and best practices for early childhood programs in health, safety, and nutrition; environment; staffing; organization and administration; support systems; and social and mental health services.
The Early Childhood Atlas
Mississippi State University Early Childhood Institute & Center for Applied Research and Environmental Systems
Collects Federal, State, and nongovernmental datasets from studies of early childhood services and integrates the information into online mapmaking and reporting tools for public use. The goal of the atlas is to promote the quality and accessibility of early care and education.
Early Childhood Learning and Knowledge Center
Office of Head Start, Administration for Children and Families
Provides a Head Start directory as well as resources on child health and development, family and community partnerships, program design and management, professional development, and more.
Early Childhood Program Standards and Accreditation Criteria
National Association for the Education of Young Children
Presents accreditation criteria focusing on four areas: children, teaching staff, partnerships, and administration. The website includes steps and requirements for accreditation as well as information for programs, assessors, and facilitation projects.
Evidence-Based Practice in the Early Childhood Field
Buysse & Wesley (Eds.) (2006)
View Abstract
Discusses strategies, promising practices, and future directions for implementing evidence-based practice in the early childhood field. Includes a case study and possible analytic frameworks for understanding how sources of evidence inform the policymaking process.
Exemplary Early Childhood Programs
Center for the Study of Social Policy
Identifies 21 exemplary early care and education programs that support children and families.
First Reports Evaluating the Effectiveness of Strategies for Preventing Violence: Early Childhood Home Visitation: Findings From the Task Force on Community Preventive Services
Hahn, Bilukha, Crosby, Fullilove, & Liberman
Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, 52, 2003
Presents strong evidence for the effectiveness of early childhood home visitation for the prevention of child abuse and neglect. The report includes information that can help communities apply recommended interventions locally.
Impacts of Early Childhood Programs (PDF - 2040 KB)
Isaacs (2008)
Summarizes existing evidence on five early childhood interventions, finding that most have had positive effects on children's emotional and behavioral outcomes.
Invest in Kids Working Group
Partnership for America's Economic Success
Examines and documents the economic benefits of investments in young children and explores policies to finance expansion of such services.
Key Principles in Providing Integrated Behavioral Health Services for Young Children and Their Families: The Starting Early Starting Smart Experience (PDF - 4040 KB)
Starting Early Starting Smart Steering Committee (2001)
Describes a national, multi-site program that uses pediatric health care and early childhood educational settings to provide coordinated, easily accessible behavioral health services to families with young children in order to improve child and family outcomes.
Protecting the Youngest: The Role of Early Care and Education in Preventing and Responding to Child Maltreatment (PDF - 239 KB)
National Conference of State Legislatures (2007)
Discusses policy options for States to consider to support early care and education programs in protecting young children and preventing abuse and neglect.
The Role of Professional Child Care Providers in Preventing and Responding to Child Abuse and Neglect
This manual provides information on the roles and responsibilities of child care providers in preventing, recognizing, and reporting child abuse and neglect within and outside early childhood programs. It also presents an overview of prevention efforts, reporting laws, caring for maltreated children, and ways to support parents and professionals who work with families.
State Indicators for Early Childhood (PDF - 298 KB)
National Center for Children in Poverty (2008)
Reviews the characteristics of good indicators and proposes 36 indicators for States to use to monitor program performance and child outcomes related to early childhood systems.
Strengthening Families: A Guidebook for Early Childhood Programs (PDF - 2000 KB)
Center for the Study of Social Policy (2004)
Describes seven effective strategies that exemplary early childhood programs use to enhance functioning and nurture protective characteristics in families. Includes tips for implementing these strategies, examples of effective programs, and self-assessment forms.
Tracking Services for Infants, Toddlers, and Their Families: A Look at Federal Early Childhood Programs and the Roles of State and Local Governments (PDF - 137 KB)
ZERO TO THREE Policy Center (2007)
Summarizes the primary Federal programs now focused on very young children and the roles of Federal, State, and local governments in those programs. The program categories are: child care and early childhood education, child welfare, health and mental health, poverty, and professional development.
A Training Guide for the Early Childhood Services Community (PDF - 1120 KB)
Hepburn & Kaufmann (2005)
Trains early childhood staff on the importance of mental health consultation when working with young children and their families and describes the administrative process for implementing a consultation model within an early childhood setting.
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State and local examples
Increasing State Investments in Early Care and Education: Lessons Learned From Advocates and Best Practices (PDF - 1200 KB)
Voices for America's Children (2008)
Profiles efforts in 10 States to increase investments in early childhood and details the common advocacy strategies that proved most successful.
Model Program Strategies: County Early Care and Education Programs (PDF - 372 KB)
Chung (2003)
Highlights examples of county-based programs using innovative and collaborative strategies that have proven successful in meeting the needs of children from birth to age 5 and their families.
Up and Running: A Compendium of Multi-Site Early Childhood Initiatives (PDF - 227 KB)
Child and Family Policy Center (2004, 2nd ed.)
Provides brief descriptions and contact information for State early childhood initiatives, grouped into the following categories: comprehensive school readiness, early care and education, child health and physical well-being, family well-being and self-sufficiency, multi-state program replication efforts, and completed initiatives.
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