One of the important influences on a child's development is the quality of his or her early care and education experiences. It is estimated that more than 1 million children in the U.S. are cared for while their parents are at work by nonlicensed caregivers who are family, friends, or neighbors - and these caregivers can be difficult to reach…

Presents suggestions for early childhood teachers and caregivers to make the most of professional development opportunities. Recommends setting goals for training, determining one's learning style, identifying one's stage of professional development, and selecting the appropriate type of training. Presents specific guidelines for program-based…

This DVD (duration: 1 hour 53 seconds) features 30 video vignettes that show parents and children--aged birth to 3 years--interacting during everyday play and routines. These vignettes, some in English and some in Spanish, are designed to be tools for professionals to use both in direct work with families and for training other early child…

Noting that babysitting is a serious responsibility, this videotape provides information, guidelines, and practical advice to train and prepare teenagers for the job of babysitting. Though not intended to replace the advice of a professional babysitting course or first aid course instructor, or parent/guardian who can better guide teens on…

Details steps to make day care staff training well-targeted, creative, and useful. The steps are: identify training needs, select training topic and define the target audience, define training goals, select methods of presentation and activities, provide good training resources for future use, evaluate training, and infuse the training with…

This curriculum was first published in June 1998 to be used by qualified health and safety trainers to fulfill part of the learning needs and licensing requirements of child care providers (Health and Safety Code, Section 1596.866) in California. This second and updated edition of Module 2, Prevention of Injuries, covers the content of the…

Using an experiential learning approach, these guides for 4-H leaders and members detail a 6-session program, "Babysitting Beginnings," to teach sixth through twelfth graders the responsibilities and skills involved in babysitting. Participants develop a babysitting tool kit for future use with children and a babysitting portfolio, a…

This publication is intended to help ensure full and prompt implementation of the improvements in the Fostering Connections to Success and Increasing Adoptions Act for children being raised by grandparents and other relatives. It was prepared by 18 organizations, many of whom have been working individually and together for a number of years to…

The Child Care Bureau is reissuing the minimum standards as a "Health and Safety Guide" for Child Care and Development Fund (CCDF) Tribal Lead Agencies in conjunction with the 2005 Tribal Cluster Trainings, "Supporting the Physical, Social, and Emotional Wellness of Our Tribal Children." These voluntary guidelines represent the baseline from which…

Distinguishes between training and coaching, asserting that the latter focuses on the staff person as learner. Offers strategies for staff development: clarify when one is supervising versus coaching, identify issues before developing strategies, ask questions that spring from genuine curiosity, offer detailed descriptions of teacher actions,…

In order to successfully implement an early childhood career development system, it is necessary to coordinate funds and training opportunities from many different sources. This action pack is designed to help individuals involved in such statewide efforts learn how to navigate the financing system that currently supports training for early care…

This paper highlights research into the positive possibilities for children in school and life when they have access to high-quality care and education before entering public school. Three key components of early care and education are discussed in the paper. The first, quality in early care and education, addresses: (1) What is high quality and…

Focuses on recognizing key indicators for developing teamwork and collaboration among child care staff. Addresses communicating clearly, interacting respectfully, demonstrating trust, negotiating different perspectives, building on each other's strengths, and promoting reliability and responsibility. Identifies strategies to cultivate growth in…

This manual provides a reference source for use by sponsor organizations of the Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP) in training family child care providers. The manual begins with separate introductory sections for trainers and for providers. The trainer's section includes materials on: how adults learn, strengths and limitations of various…

This guide is a resource to help trainers and child care center directors implement a 13-module training program for caregivers serving children under 3 years of age. The first section of the guide describes what the trainer needs to know or do to implement the training program. The second section lists the steps in the training process for each…