For Parents
7 Super Things Parents and Caregivers Can Do
- Talk often with your children from the day they are born.
- hug them, hold them and respond to their needs and interests
- Listen carefully as your children communicate with you.
- Read aloud to your children every day, even when they are babies. Play and sign with them often.
- Say “yes” and “I love you” as much as you say “no” and “don’t”.
- Ensure a safe, orderly ad predictable environment, wherever they are.
- Set limits on their behavior and discipline them calmly, not harshly.
Health and Nutrition
- Free On-Line Mandated Reporter Training
- Crib Safety Standards
- Child Care and Preschool Pandemic Influenza Planning Checklist
A pandemic is a global disease outbreak. A flu pandemic occurs when a new influenza virus emerges that people have little or no immunity to and for which there may be no vaccine. The disease spreads easily person-to-person and causes serious illness. It can sweep across the country and around the world very quickly. It is hard to predict when the next flu pandemic will occur or how bad it will be.
Child care and preschool programs can help protect the health of their staff and the children and families they serve. Interruptions in child care services during an influenza (flu) pandemic may cause conflicts for working parents that could result in high absenteeism in workplaces. Some of that absenteeism could be expected to affect personnel and workplaces that are critical to the emergency response system. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) offer this check list to help programs prepare for the effects of a flu pandemic. Many of these steps can also help in other types of emergencies.
SIDS and Other Sleep-Related Infant Deaths: Expansion of Recommendations for a Safe Infant Sleeping Environment
Nutrition and Health Resources for Parents and Providers
- Article: Autistic Kids Often Fussier Eaters, but Nutrition Ok
- Healthy Eating Made Easy
- National Resource Center for Health & Safety in Child Care and Early Education
Child Nutrition
- http://www.healthykidshealthyfuture.org/home/nutrition.html
- http://www.healthykidshealthyfuture.org/home/nutrition/beverages.html
- http://www.healthykidshealthyfuture.org/home/nutrition/meals.html
- http://www.healthykidshealthyfuture.org/home/nutrition/infantfeeding.html
Menus and Variety
- http://www.fns.usda.gov/tn/grow-it-try-it-it
- http://www.choosemyplate.gov/preschoolers/meal-and-snack-patterns-ideas.html
- http://www.choosemyplate.gov/health-nutrition-information-preschoolers/daily-food-plan-preschoolers.html
- http://www.healthykidshealthyfuture.org/home/nutrition/planning.html
Educational and Professional Development for Staff
- Interactive Training Modules – Let’s Move Child Care
- http://centerfornutrition.org/teach-kids-nutrition/
- Healthy Kids Challenge
- Let’s Move Faith and Communities
Educational Materials for Children
- http://www.fns.usda.gov/tn/grow-it-try-it-it
- http://www.choosemyplate.gov/preschoolers.html
- http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health/educational/wecan/
- http://www.fns.usda.gov/tn/dig-home-parent-booklet
Physical Activity
Resources in Spanish
National Resource Center for Health & Safety in Child Care and Early Education
Quality Checklist for finding Quality Child Care
Play, Talk, Sing
Play
Talk
- http://toosmall.org/TSTF_FamilyBk_English.pdf
- http://toosmall.org/TSTF_StoryBook_English.pdf
- http://toosmall.org/community/body/Tips-for-Infants-and-Toddlers-3.pdf