Enhancing Mental Health & Social-Emotional Learning (SEL)
States and territories across the country are embracing new approaches and proven strategies to support infant–early childhood mental health (I-ECMH) and foster social-emotional learning (SEL) among young children. This page includes materials that define those approaches and strategies, examine various challenges and outcomes, and highlight examples from states working to enhance mental health and SEL across diverse communities and programs.
Resources
The following resources include episodes from the Early Childhood Policy Matters Podcast, a presentation on SEL and mental health, and two briefs on I-ECMH consultation.

Early Childhood Policy Matters Podcast
This podcast for early childhood professionals and strategic partners, uses research to inform policy and better serve children and their communities.
Early Childhood Policy Matters—An Introduction
This first episode shares the nuts and bolts of early childhood mental health and provides an overview of the later episodes in this series.
Getting Started with Mental Health Consultation
In this second episode, leaders in California and New York share about ways they have established mental health consultation in their states.
Implementing Mental Health Services and Supports
This third episode shares about the implementation of Arkansas’ early childhood mental health consultation system and the Pyramid Model.
Addressing Policy Challenges for Mental Health Practitioners
In this fourth episode, two early childhood mental health practitioners share about the common challenges and strategies of providers in this field.
A Successful Statewide Early Childhood Mental Health System
In this fifth episode, mental health specialists share how they incorporated early childhood mental health into their mixed-delivery systems and the benefits.
PDG B-5 TA Center 2020 Annual Meeting - Social-Emotional Health Strand Opening Session
Discussing considerations for administrators designing early childhood systems that support the social-emotional learning and mental health of young children.
This brief gives an overview of infant and early childhood mental health consultation (IECMHC) for policymakers and program leaders.
A brief about building sustainable early childhood mental health consultation (IECMHC) services for infants and toddlers across a mixed delivery system.
Additional Resources
The following are additional resources on mental health and SEL topics, including expulsion prevention, collaboration, screening and assessment, mental health consultation, and more.
Helping Young Children Who Have Experienced Trauma
This brief describes early childhood trauma and its effects and offers evidence-based strategies for early childhood education (ECE) programs and systems to help young children who have experienced trauma.
What Works for Reducing Problem Behaviors in Early Childhood
This brief that synthesizes findings from experimental evaluations of 50 programs to address problem behaviors in early childhood (birth to age five).
Preventing Expulsion From Preschool and Child Care
This web page focuses on preventing expulsion from preschool and childcare and includes articles and reports for policymakers that present data and policy guidance on this topic.
Effective Social and Emotional Learning Programs for Preschool and Elementary Schools
This guidebook helps educators select preschool and elementary social-emotional learning programs.
Guide to Schoolwide Social and Emotional Learning
This guidebook that contains tools leading school-based teams through a process for systemic social-emotional learning (SEL) implementation.
Social and Emotional Learning for Parents
This video informs parents about social and emotional learning (SEL) in schools and how to use the concepts in their own parenting practices.
Collaborating States Initiative Resources
This web page features tools to help states get started in developing standards, policies, programs, and communities of learning to support SEL implementation.
Preventing Suspensions and Expulsions in Early Childhood Settings
This guidebook features resources on supporting social-emotional development, reducing challenging behavior, and understanding cultural differences and implicit biases.f
Developmental Screening and Assessment Instruments
This report lists instruments for screening and assessing young children's social and emotional development.
This brief recommends a 14-step process for developing, implementing, and sustaining state policies and guidelines to support social and emotional learning (SEL).
District Recommendations for How States Can Support SEL
This brief summarizes conversations with district and state leaders resulting in seven recommendations facilitating evidence-based approaches to SEL in schools and districts.
Encouraging Social and Emotional Learning
This brief that offers recommendations for how state agencies can measure and promote SEL in accountability and continuous improvement plans.
The Mental Health Consultation Tool
This learning module, developed for use in Head Start programs, highlights the role of the infant and early childhood mental health consultant (IECMHC).
Center for Excellence for Infant & Early Childhood Mental Health Consultation
This web page features resources including an evaluation toolkit that guides conducting high-quality evaluations of Infant/Early Childhood Mental Health Consultation programs.
Helping Children Cope with Changes Resulting From COVID-19
This discussion guide lists recommendations to support children during COVID-19 times, particularly in terms of social emotional impacts.