As they grow, children experience marked stages of development. The following resources provide more information about the development of infants and toddlers, preschool-age children, and school-age children. They also address the importance of early learning guidelines, developmental screening and assessment, language development, and supporting children with disabilities in early care and education programs.
This tool is designed to support state child care leaders and infant/toddler partners as they assess, prioritize, plan, implement, and evaluate state policies. This ultimately helps them strengthen the quality and ensure equity of child care services for infants, toddlers, and their families.
Creating a safe, welcoming space where children learn and thrive, and where families feel supported, is a hallmark of high-quality school-age child care. This tip sheet is designed to build the capacity of school-age child care providers in supporting equity and inclusion.
This series provides rationale and guidance for implementing trauma-responsive care in child care settings that serve infants, toddlers, and their families. It is based on the following understanding of trauma:
This series provides rationale and guidance for implementing relationship-based care in family child care homes and child care centers that serve infants, toddlers, and their families. The content is based on the understanding that relationships are essential for healthy development.
Small-Group Care is the practice in which primary caregivers provide care for infants and toddlers in discrete groups, creating an intimate setting for interactions, care routines, and exploration.
Inclusive care is the practice of actively including infants and toddlers with disabilities or delays in group care settings, with appropriate accommodation and support.
Social-Emotional Development is defined as “the developing capacity of the child from birth through 5 to form close and secure relationships; experience, regulate, and express emotions in socially and culturally appropriate ways; and explore the environment and learn—all in the context of fa
Continuity of Care is the practice in which primary caregivers and children stay together for as long as possible, preferably the first 3 years, creating opportunities for caregiver-child,caregiver-family, and child-child relationships to develop and deepen over time.
View COVID-19 resources for CCDF Lead Agencies, providers, and families. Learn about provider eligibility for the COVID-19 vaccination.
