PRISM Training Early Head Start

1. PRISM TrainingEarly Head Start January 25, 2006

2. Goals To review & provide clarification for the most frequently asked PRISM questions specific to infants & toddlers To provide information & resources that will be helpful in the monitoring of infant & toddler programs

3. Agenda EHS Top Ten List Questions/Clarifications Relevant Head Start Performance Standards Resources Q & A

4. 1) Screening & Assessment What is the difference between screening & assessment? What does it look like for infants & toddlers? How often?

5. Screening & Assessment 1304.20(b)(1-3) In collaboration with each child’s parent, within 45 calendar days of the child’s entry into the program Must perform or obtain linguistically & age appropriate screening procedures to identify concerns in: Developmental, sensory, behavioral, motor, language, social, cognitive, perceptual, & emotional skills Must obtain direct guidance from a mental health or child development professional on how to use the findings to address identified needs Must utilize multiple sources of information on all aspects of each child’s development & behavior 1304.3(a)(1) Assessment The ongoing procedures used by the appropriate qualified personnel throughout the period of the child’s eligibility to identify: Unique strengths, needs, & the appropriate service to meet those needs Resources, priorities & concerns of family. And the supports/services to enhance family’s capacity to child’s developmental needs

6. Ongoing Care 1304.20(d) Must implement ongoing procedures by which staff can identify any new or recurring medical, dental, or developmental concerns so that they may quickly make appropriate referrals. Procedures must include: Periodic observations & recordings of: Individual children’s developmental progress Changes in physical appearance Emotional & behavioral patterns Must include observations from parents & staff

7. Resources: Screening & Assessment EHS Tip Sheets: # 6 - What is the difference between screening & assessment? TA Papers: # 4 - Developmental Screening, Assessment, and Evaluation: Key Elements in Individualizing Curricula in EHS Programs # 7 - A Holistic Approach to Health & Safety

8. 2) Dental Screenings & Exams What is required for infants & toddlers? Who can provide it?

9. Dental 1304.20(a)(1)(ii) In collaboration with parents & quickly as possible, but no later than 90 days from child’s entry into program, must obtain from a health care professional a determination as to whether the child is up-to-date on a schedule of age appropriate preventative and primary health care which includes medical, dental, & mental health Must incorporate the requirements for a schedule of well child care utilized by the EPSTD program recommendations from local Health Services Advisory Committee 1304.20(c)(3)(i)&(ii) Dental follow-up treatment must include: Fluoride supplements and topical fluoride treatments in communities with a lack of adequate fluoride levels Other necessary preventive measures and further treatment as recommended by the dental profession . .

10. Dental 1304.20(d) Must implement ongoing procedures by which staff can identify any new or recurring dental concerns so staff may quickly make appropriate referrals. Procedures must include: Periodic observations & recordings…of changes in physical appearance…from staff and parents 1304.23(b)(3) Staff must promote effective dental hygiene among children in conjunction with meals

11. Resources: Dental EHS Tip Sheets: # 18 - Why does EHS address oral health care for infants & young children? TA Papers: # 7 - A Holistic Approach to Health & Safety

12. 3) Individualization & Curriculum What does this mean for infants & toddlers? On-demand schedules Following the child’s lead Written plans

13. Individualization 1304.23(b)(1)(vii) Meals and snacks are appropriately scheduled to ensure individual needs are met Infants & young toddlers who need it must be fed “on demand” to the extent possible or at appropriate intervals

14. 1304.3(a)(5) Curriculum: a written plan with Goals, Experiences, Roles, & Materials supported by  Sound child development principles & the HSPS 1304.21(b)(1)(i)(ii)&(iii) Child development & education approach for infants & toddlers must encourage: The development of secure relationships in out-of-home care settings by having limited numbers of consistent teachers over an extended period of time Trust and emotional security so that each child can explore the environment according to his/her developmental level Opportunities for each child to explore a variety of sensory and motor experiences with support and stimulation from teachers and family members 1304.21(b)(2)(i)&(ii) Must support social & emotional development through an environment that encourages: The development of self-awareness, autonomy, and self-expression The emerging communication skills in daily opportunities for infants and toddlers to interact freely with others and to express himself or herself freely

15. Resources: Individualization & Curriculum EHS Tip Sheets: # 10 - How can an EHS program have a written curriculum with lesson plans and still follow the baby’s lead as he/she creates her own curriculum? TA Papers: # 4 - Developmental Screening, Assessment, and Evaluation: Key Elements in Individualizing Curricula in EHS Programs # 6 - The Foundations for School Readiness: Fostering Developmental Competence in the Earliest Years

16. 4) Services for Expectant Families How are expectant families served in EHS? Enrollment of pregnant women Income eligibility for family Serving the child once born Can programs hold spaces until the child is born?

17. Head Start Act. Sec. 645 A(b)(1)(2)EHS programs shall: Provide, either directly or through referral early, continuous, intensive, and comprehensive child development and family support services that will enhance the physical, social, emotional, and intellectual development of participating children Ensure that the level of services provided to families responds to their needs and circumstances

18. Services for Expectant Families:  Family Partnerships  1304.40(c)(1)(i)(ii)&(iii) Must assist in accessing comprehensive prenatal & post-partum care, through referrals. Care must include: Early & continuing risk assessments Includes assessment of nutritional status, nutritional counseling & food assistance Health promotion & treatment On a schedule deemed appropriate by health provider as early in pregnancy as possible Mental health interventions & follow-up Including substance prevention & treatment services

19. Services for Expectant Families:  Family Partnerships   1304.40(c)(2)&(3) Must provide pregnant women and other family members, as appropriate, with PRENATAL EDUCATION on: FETAL DEVELOPMENT (including risks from smoking and alcohol) LABOR & DEVILERY POST-PARTUM RECOVERY (including maternal depression) Must provide information on the benefits of breast feeding to all pregnant and nursing mothers

20. Family Partnerships 1304.40(i)(6) Agencies serving infants & toddlers Must arrange for health staff to visit each newborn within two weeks after the infant’s birth to ensure the well being of the mother and the child

21. Resources: Services for Expectant Families Information Memorandum: Services to Pregnant Women Participating in Early Head Start ACYF-HS-IM-02-04 EHS Tip Sheets: # 15 - Should EHS programs enroll pregnant women/expectant families? TA Papers: # 3 - Giving Children the Earliest Head Start: Developing an Individualized Approach to High-Quality Services for Pregnant Women # 7 - A Holistic Approach to Health & Safety Program Strategies Papers: Transition Strategies: Continuity & Change in the Lives of Infants & Toddlers

22. 5) Environments & Materials What are some differences in environment & materials when serving infants & toddlers? Crib spacing Infant toddler playgrounds Supplying diapers & formula

23. Cribs & Cot Spacing 1304.22(e)(7) Must space cribs & cots at least three feet apart to avoid spreading contagious illness to allow easy access to each child

24. Playgrounds 1304.53(a)(1) &(2) Must provide a physical environment conducive to learning & reflective of developmental stage of children appropriate space for the conduct of all program activities 1304.53(a)(4) The indoor and outdoor space in Early Head Start centers in use by mobile infants and toddlers must be separated from general walkways and from areas in use by preschoolers

25. Appropriate materials for participation 1304.53(b)(1)(iii) Must provide and arrange sufficient equipment, toys, materials, furniture to meet the needs and facilitate the participation of children and adults Must be age appropriate, safe, supportive of the abilities and developmental level of each child served, with adaptations for children with disabilities 1305.9 Must not prescribe any fee schedule or otherwise provide for the charging of any fees for participation in the program 1304.23(b)(1)(i)&(iv) Must use funds from USDA Food & Consumer Services Child Nutritional Programs as the primary source of payment for meal service Each infant & toddler must receive food appropriate to nutritional needs, developmental readiness & feeding skill, as recommended by USDA

26. Resources: Environments & Materials EHS Tip Sheets: # 3 - Do programs need to provide formula during socializations? # 8 - Why are EHS programs responsible for providing diapers & formula? # 20 - How do infants & toddler sleeping arrangements meet the Head Start Performance Standards & incorporate best practices? Information Memorandum: Home-Based Services in Early Head Start ACYF-IM-HS-00-22

27. 6) Organizational Structure & Administration A) Governance How is EHS represented on Policy Council? Grantee v Delegate Proportionate representation

28. Governance 1304.50(a)(1) Policy Council: grantee level Policy Committee: delegate level Parent Committee: center or program level Guidance: each agency has only 1 policy group

29. Policy Council 1304.50(b)(2) At least 51% of the members must be the parents of currently enrolled children 1304.50 (b)(7) Parents of children currently enrolled in all program options must be proportionately represented on established policy groups

30. Resources: Governance EHS Tip Sheets: # 24 - What is the Head Start Governance Structure when the agency is: A grantee for EHS and a grantee for preschool Head Start? An EHS grantee and a delegate agency for preschool Head Start? A delegate for EHS and a delegate agency for preschool Head Start?

31. 6) Organizational Structure & AdministrationB) Infant/Toddler Management & Staff Expertise How are the Standards for Infant/Toddler expertise and best practice met in the following areas? Management Staffing Ratios & group size Credentialing: CDA & AA/BA Coursework requirements for infant/toddler

32. 1304.52(b)(1) Must ensure staff & consultants have the knowledge, skills, and experience they need to perform their assigned functions 1304.52(c) The EHS director must have demonstrated skills & abilities in a management capacity relevant to human services program management 1304.52 (d)(1) Must hire staff or consultants who meet the qualifications …to provide content area expertise and oversight on an ongoing or regularly scheduled basis

33. Credentials 1304.52(f) Within one year of hire, teachers of infants and toddlers must obtain a Child Development Associate (CDA) credential for Infant and Toddler OR an equivalent credential Head Start Act, as amended Oct. 27, 1998 Sec. 648A(a) At least 50% of all center-based teachers nationwide must have an: Associate Baccalaureate Advanced degree in early childhood education OR A degree in a related field to early childhood education with six or more courses in early childhood education and/or child development ACYF-PI-HS-00-01

34. Resources: Management & Staff Expertise TA Papers: # 8 - EHS & Head Start Partnerships: Building a Birth-To-Five Head Start Program # 2 - EHS Home-Based Program Option: Recruiting, Training & Retaining Qualified Staff Program Strategies Papers: Transition Strategies: Continuity & Change in Lives of Infants & Toddlers Staff Development Program Instructions: Funds to Improve HS/EHS Teacher Qualifications ACYF-PI-HS-00-01 Quality Improvement Funds to Increase the Number of Teachers with College Degrees ACYF-PI-HS-99-03 EHS Tip Sheets: # 13 - How does an EHS program establish an effective system for infant/toddler staff development? # 21 - What do we mean by continuity of care in out-of-home care settings?

35. 7) Community Partnerships How are grantees expected to meet Performance Standards when engaged in child care partnerships?

36. Community Child Care 1306.30(a) All Head Start grantees must provide comprehensive child development services, as defined in the Head Start Performance Standards 1304.41(a)(2)(viii) Must take affirmative steps to establish ongoing collaborative relationships with providers of child care services 1304.3 (a)(3)(i) Collaboration means planning & working with other agencies in order to improve, share & augment Services Staff Information Funds

37. Resources: Community Partnerships EHS Tip Sheets: # 12 - In what ways does the Administration for Children, Youth, and Families (ACYF) support EHS and Child Care partnerships? Guidance: Grantee Responsibility for Ensuring the Quality of Head Start Services in Community Partnerships

38. 8) ERSEAEligibility, Re-qualification, Transition, & Attendance What are the eligibility requirements when a child is going from EHS to Head Start? What are the eligibility requirements for additional children in an EHS family? What are the transition requirements? Can EHS children be served after their third birthday? How are center-based attendance requirements met in EHS?

39. Enrollment & Re-qualification 1305.7(c) Children who are enrolled in EHS remain income eligible while they are participating in the program When a child moves from a program serving infants and toddlers into a Head Start program serving children age three and older, the family income must be re-verified 1305.4(c) The family income must be verified by the program before determining that a child is eligible to participate in the program

40. Transition Planning 1304.41(C)(2) To ensure the most appropriate placement & services following participation in EHS, transition planning must be undertaken AT LEAST SIX MONTHS PRIOR to the child’s third birthday As appropriate, a child may remain in EHS, following the third birthday, for additional months until transitioning into HS or another program

41. Transition Planning 1304.41(c)(1)(i - iv) Must establish and maintain procedures that support successful transitions from previous childcare into Early Head Start or Head Start from Head Start into other settings by: Coordinating with other schools or agencies so records are transferred Outreach to encourage communication between programs and agencies to facilitate continuity of care Initiating meetings involving Head Start teachers, parents, etc to discuss the developmental progress & abilities of individual children Joint transition-related trainings for EHS, HS, and other agency’s child developmental staff

42. Attendance 1305.8 (a) & (b) When monthly average daily attendance rate falls below 85%, must analyze the causes of absenteeism Reasons for absences Number of absences that occur on consecutive days If absences are the result of illness or if they are well documented absences for other reasons, no special action is required

43. Resources: ERSEA Program Strategies Papers: Transition Strategies: Continuity & Change in Lives of Infants & Toddlers EHS Tip Sheets: # 5 - Does a child from an EHS program automatically qualify for Head Start at the age of three? #11 - Does the 85% monthly average daily attendance rate rule apply to EHS programs?

44. 9) Program Options How does EHS meet the intent of the law for full year services and flexibility in meeting the needs of the children & families? Multiple flexible options Home visiting Home-based program option: Socializations & newborns Number of home visits

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47. Home-Based Program Option 1306.33(a)(1) Provide 1 home visit per week per family (a minimum of 32 per year) lasting a minimum of 1 and ½ hours 1306.33(a)(2) Provide, at a minimum, two group socializations per month for each child (a minimum of 16 group socialization activities each year) ..

48. Resources: Program Options Information Memorandum: Home-Based Services in Early Head Start ACYF-IM-HS-00-22 Program Strategies Papers: Socializations for Infants & Toddlers in EHS Home-Based Option EHS Tip Sheets: # 4 - What is the working definition of full day? When are part-day slots allowable in an EHS program? #23 - As EHS programs design & adapt their program models based on the needs of the families they serve, how do they determine which program option(s) to offer, and the flexibility within those program options?

49. 10) Pre-Birth to Five Services In what ways can grantees integrate systems birth-to-five? Separate legislation, separate budgets Integrate annual grant applications, with separate budgets Shared staffing Priority for EHS children in Head Start, when same grantee Cannot meet over-income, in-kind, and/or 10% disability requirement by combining across programs

50. Integrate annual grant applications,  with separate budgets ACYF-IM-HS-00-12 ACF will make annual grant awards for 12-month periods to Head Start and EHS grantees on a 3-year grant application cycle Applicants must submit a full project description, a budget, and a budget narrative in the first year of each 3-year grant cycle Applicants shall submit an abbreviated project description, a budget and budget narrative in each of the subsequent 2 years Separate budgets must be completed for EHS grants and Head Start grants even if funds are to be awarded in a single grant document

51. Pre-Birth to Five Programming 1301.20 (b) The non-Federal share will not be required to exceed 20 percent of the total costs of the program 1305.4 (b)(1) At least 90% of the children enrolled in each Head Start program must be from low-income families

52. Enrollment Priority for EHS Children 1305.7(c) If one agency operates both an EHS & a Head Start program, and the parents wish to enroll their child who has been enrolled in the agency’s EHS program, the agency must ensure, whenever possible, that the child receives Head Start services until enrolled in school

53. Enrollment opportunity for children with disabilities 1305.6(c) At least 10% of the total number of enrollment opportunities in each grantee and each delegate agency during an enrollment year must be made available to children with disabilities in Section 130.2 (a) 1308.5(c)(4) The program has space to enroll more children, even though the program has made 10% of its enrollment opportunities available to children with disabilities

54. Resources: Pre-Birth to Five Services TA Papers: # 8 - EHS & Head Start Partnerships: Building a Birth-to-Five Head Start Program Program Strategies Papers: Transition Strategies: Continuity & Change in the Lives of Infants & Toddlers EHS Tip Sheets: # 19 - How do the requirements regarding enrollment of at least 10% children with disabilities apply for an agency that has both a Head Start and an EHS program with one award?

55. Resources: Web Access 

56. EHS Tip Sheets No. 1 How do we screen premature infants when there is no developmental screening tool that allows for a negative age? No. 2 Why do both staff members in an EHS classroom with 8 children need to be teacher qualified? No. 3 Do programs need to provide formula during socializations? No. 4 What is the working definition of full day? When are part-day slots allowable in an EHS program? No. 5 Does a child from an EHS program automatically qualify for HS at the age of 3? No. 6 What is the difference between screening and assessment? No. 7 What are the differences between a registered dietician (RD) and a nutritionist? No. 8 Why are EHS programs responsible for providing diapers and formula? No. 9 How do programs plan and implement developmentally appropriate environments that meet the intent of the Head Start Performance Standards for infants and toddlers? No. 10 How can an EHS program have a written curriculum with lesson plans and still follow the baby’s lead as he/she creates his/her own curriculum? No. 11 Does the 85% monthly average daily attendance rate rule apply to EHS programs? No. 12 In what ways does the Administration on Children, Youth, and Families (ACYF) support Early Head Start-Child Care partnerships?  No. 13 How does an Early Head Start program establish an effective system for infant toddler staff development?

57. EHS Tip Sheets No. 14 May EHS programs include non-EHS families in socialization and parent activities? No. 15 Should EHS programs enroll pregnant women/expectant families? No. 16 What are the guidelines for dividing a large space into separate infant/toddler classrooms? No. 17 How do EHS programs divide an infant/toddler classroom into separate learning areas? No. 18 Why does EHS address oral health care for infants and young children? No. 19 How do the requirements regarding enrollment of at least 10% of children with disabilities apply for an agency that has both a Head Start and an Early Head Start program with one grant award? No. 20 How do infant and toddler sleeping arrangements meet the Head Start Performance Standards and incorporate best practice? No. 21 What do we mean by continuity of care in out-of-home care settings? No. 22 What does Infant Mental Health (IMH) mean? And, how do EHS programs implement quality IMH services? No. 23 As Early Head Start programs design and adapt their program models based on the needs of the families they serve, how do they determine which program option(s) to offer, and the flexibility within those program options? No. 24 What is the Head Start governance structure when the agency is: a. A grantee for EHS and a grantee for preschool Head Start?b. An EHS grantee and a delegate agency for preschool Head Start?c. A delegate for EHS and a delegate agency for a preschool Head Start? No. 25 How do we support services for infants and toddlers in a birth-to-five program? www.headstartinfo.org/infocenter/ehs_tipsheet/

58. Technical Assistance Papers Early Head Start Program Implementation, Start Up Planning Early Head Start Home-Based Program Option: Recruiting, Training, and Retaining Qualified Staff Giving Children the Earliest Head Start: Developing an Individualize Approach to High-Quality Services for Pregnant Women Developmental Screening, Assessment, and Evaluation: Key Elements for Individualizing Curricula in Early Head Start Programs Linguistic Diversity and Early Literacy: Serving Culturally Diverse Families in Early Head Start The Foundations for School Readiness: Fostering Developmental Competence in the Earliest Years A Holistic Approach to Health and Safety Early Head Start & Head Start Partnerships: Building a Birth-to-Five Head Start Program

59. EHS Program Strategies Papers Staff Development Socializations for Infants and Toddlers in the Early Head Start Home-Based Program Option Responding to the Mental Health Needs of Infants, Toddlers and Families The Family Partnership Agreement Process Transition Strategies: Continuity and Change in the Lives of Infants and Toddlers