Monitoring Family Child Care and In-homes Care Providers: A Guide for Tribal Lead Agencies

This guide outlines the many important skills, tools, and strategies needed by Tribal CCDF Lead Agency staff to implement a monitoring program and meet the variety of challenges they will encounter in their work. This training guide includes monitoring and enforcement policy guidelines, effective communication skills, how to conduct a monitoring visit, and tips on handling commonly found situations in the monitoring process. This guide is designed to assist Tribes in ensuring that Tribal child care family home and in-home care providers, including relative caregivers, are providing safe and healthy learning environments utilizing the flexibility that Tribes have in a way that is most effective for their community. Monitoring staff, inspectors and partners can use this guide to enhance their understanding of effective communication skills, how to conduct a monitoring visit, and tips on handling common situations in the monitoring process. This training guide will help prepare monitors and inspectors to:

• Better understand the anxiety that a provider may feel when the monitor or inspector is coming in to inspect the home and how to make the provider feel comfortable.
• Be prepared to conduct these inspections and use them as an opportunity to support your providers,
• Monitor child care home providers.