Search

This paper asserts that the more enriching the interactions and experiences that parents and child caregivers provide to very young children, the more chances they are providing for growing neural connections and pathways in the brain to support language, reasoning, and planning skills; mental health and emotional well-being; and motor development. The paper discusses 20 ways for child care professionals to ensure optimal development of children's growing brains. Examples are: (1) be sure that the baby's brain before birth has a healthy start; (2) provide rich language inputs; (3) play simple body games; (4) make a picture book sharing a daily intimate activity; (5) share joint attention; (6) use diapering time to build babies' emotional feelings of having a "lovable body"; (7) provide developmentally appropriate toys; (8) respond promptly to infant distress signals; (9) nurture baby confidence; and (10) perform daily infant massage. (EV)

Noting that children must receive nurturing, consistent care during the first 3 years of life in order to reach their full potential as curious, confident, and able life-long learners and contributing members of their families and communities, this guide presents a framework to assist Arkansas caregivers in providing such care for infants and toddlers. The guide is organized into two major sections. Section 1 describes the elements essential to quality care (relationships, physical and program environment, child health and safety, program experiences, and respect and celebration of diversity) and six intertwining strands of development that unite essential elements of quality programs: (1) self concept development; (2) emotional development; (3) social development; (4) language development; (5) physical development; and (6) cognitive development. For each developmental strand, the guide delineates ways caregivers support the child's development and provides examples of development in a particular area. Appended to Section 1 are principles of assessment for infants and toddlers and a discussion of the importance of professional development and training for caregivers of infants and toddlers. Section 2, the bulk of the document, expands upon the framework by presenting developmental benchmarks with suggested strategies and activities for use by caregivers as they plan for infants and toddlers in their care. For each strand, developmental benchmarks are identified, with examples provided for young infants, mobile infants, and toddlers. General and specific caregiver strategies to promote development in each strand are also presented. Completing the document is a 100-item bibliography of children's literature for infants and toddlers, suggestions for selecting books for infants and toddlers, and a glossary of relevant terms. (KB)

Distributed by the U.S. Departments of Agriculture, Education, and Health and Human Services, this Spanish-language pamphlet provides parents with information and advice about their infants in the tenth month of life. Following a brief description of developmental characteristics at this age, the pamphlet offers advice on a variety of topics, including: guarding against poisons, nursing breaks, fears and tears, teeth cleaning, learning through play, educational toys, child safety, and guidance and discipline. The pamphlet concludes with a list of relevant information resources for families. (HTH)

Distributed by the U.S. Departments of Agriculture, Education, and Health and Human Services, this Spanish-language pamphlet provides parents with information and advice about their infants in the ninth month of life. Following a brief description of developmental characteristics at this age, the pamphlet offers advice on a variety of topics, including: ways to keep baby safe, games for learning and skill-building, the nine-month checkup, early intervention and baby's developing skills, bathing the baby, bowel habit and sleeping patterns, feeding suggestions, protecting the baby's teeth, choking hazards, and nonparent infant care. The pamphlet concludes with a list of relevant information resources for families. (KB)

Distributed by the U.S. Departments of Agriculture, Education, and Health and Human Services, this pamphlet provides parents with information and advice about their infants in the eleventh month of life. Following a brief description of developmental characteristics at this age, the pamphlet offers advice on a variety of topics, including: preventing fires and burns, early intervention and baby's developing skills, handwashing after diaper changes, building skills through play, working with child-care providers, and avoiding second-hand smoke. The pamphlet concludes with a list of relevant information resources for families. (HTH)

Distributed by the U.S. Departments of Agriculture, Education, and Health and Human Services, this pamphlet provides parents with information and advice about their infants in the fourth month of life. Following a brief description of developmental characteristics at this age, the pamphlet offers information on topics including feeding, early dental care, doctor check-ups, the importance of fathers, games to play with babies, toy safety, communicating with an infant, and baby responses to facial expressions. The pamphlet also answers questions parents frequently ask, and offers guiding principles to help babies every day. A list of information resources for families concludes the pamphlet. (HTH)

Distributed by the U.S. Departments of Agriculture, Education, and Health and Human Services, this Spanish-language pamphlet provides parents with information and advice about their infants in the fourth month of life. Following a brief description of developmental characteristics at this age, the pamphlet offers information on topics including feeding, early dental care, doctor check-ups, the importance of fathers, games to play with babies, toy safety, communicating with an infant, and baby responses to facial expressions. The pamphlet also answers questions parents frequently ask, and offers guiding principles to help babies every day. A list of information resources for families concludes the pamphlet. (HTH)

Distributed by the U.S. Departments of Agriculture, Education, and Health and Human Services, this Spanish-language pamphlet provides parents with information and advice about their infants in the third month of life. The pamphlet provides information on communicating with the infant through body language, preparing for the 4-month checkup, recordkeeping, infant feeding, sleep patterns, ways to facilitate the infant's development, infant safety, pacifiers, and toys. Also included is a description of typical behavior for a 3-month-old and answers to commonly asked questions. The pamphlet then describes infant emotional development and suggests games to play, things to do, and ways to help the baby learn. Mothers' needs for exercise, relaxation, and social and emotional support are also discussed. The pamphlet concludes with a list of information resources. (HTH)

Distributed by the U.S. Departments of Agriculture, Education, and Health and Human Services, this pamphlet provides parents with information and advice about their infants in the eighth month of life. Following a brief description of developmental characteristics at this age, the pamphlet offers advice on a variety of topics, including: ways to keep baby safe, early intervention and baby's developing skills, reading to baby, teen parents, baby's brain, playing with an eight-month old, floor time, and questions parents ask. The pamphlet concludes with a list of relevant information resources for families. (HTH)

Distributed by the U.S. Departments of Agriculture, Education, and Health and Human Services, this pamphlet provides parents with information and advice about their infants in the seventh month of life. Following a brief description of developmental characteristics at this age, the pamphlet offers advice on a variety of topics, including: your baby's new independence, feeding, moving bath time to the "big tub," talking together to help spouses handle stress, fathers and babies, fun on the floor, early intervention and your baby's developing skills, and including the baby's siblings. The pamphlet concludes with a list of relevant information resources for families. (HTH)

Distributed by the U.S. Departments of Agriculture, Education, and Health and Human Services, this Spanish-language pamphlet provides parents with information and advice about their infants in the twelfth month of life. Following a brief description of developmental characteristics at this age, the pamphlet offers advice on a variety of topics, including: feeding, breastfeeding, health and safety, routines and rituals, developmental stages, questions parents ask, and parenting styles. The pamphlet concludes with a list of relevant information resources for families. (HTH)

Distributed by the U.S. Departments of Agriculture, Education, and Health and Human Services, this pamphlet provides parents with information and advice about their infants in the twelfth month of life. Following a brief description of developmental characteristics at this age, the pamphlet offers advice on a variety of topics, including: feeding, breastfeeding, health and safety, routines and rituals, developmental stages, questions parents ask, and parenting styles. The pamphlet concludes with a list of relevant information resources for families. (HTH)

Distributed by the U.S. Departments of Agriculture, Education, and Health and Human Services, this Spanish-languagepamphlet provides parents with information and advice about their infants in the eleventh month of life. Following a brief description of developmental characteristics at this age, the pamphlet offers advice on a variety of topics, including: preventing fires and burns, early intervention and baby's developing skills, handwashing after diaper changes, building skills through play, working with child-care providers, and avoiding second-hand smoke. The pamphlet concludes with a list of relevant information resources for families. (HTH)

Noting that 2002 was marked by substantial increases and then reductions in child care funding, this document updates the 2001 primer providing information on child care in New York City, including information on demographics and eligibility for subsidized child care, infant and toddler care, the universal pre-kindergarten initiative, and early childhood teacher salaries. Statistical information is presented in tabular and graphic formats in six sections: (1) demographics and eligibility for publicly subsidized child care; (2) administration for childrens services; (3) human resources administration; (4) infant and toddler care; (5) universal pre-kindergarten; and (6) early childhood teacher salaries. Among the major findings, the report notes that universal pre-kindergarten provided the only substantial increase in early education services in New York City in 2002. In fiscal year 2002, funding for child care for low-income families in New York City was increased by $71 million over fiscal year 2001, but was later cut and replaced with new federal and state funds. Child care for infants continues to be in critically short supply. Regulated child care is not affordable for many families. The Agency for Child Development continues to maintain a long waiting list for subsidized child care. Families receiving child care benefits from the Human Resources Administration continue to rely on informal child care. Teacher salary differentials continue to make it difficult to retain qualified teachers in early childhood programs. Masters level teachers, employed by the City in early childhood centers, earn 54 percent less than teachers employed in New York City public schools, after 10 years of services. (KB)

Distributed by the U.S. Departments of Agriculture, Education, and Health and Human Services, this pamphlet provides parents with information and advice about their infants in the ninth month of life. Following a brief description of developmental characteristics at this age, the pamphlet offers advice on a variety of topics, including: ways to keep baby safe, games for learning and skill-building, the 9-month checkup, early intervention and baby's developing skills, bathing the baby, bowel habit and sleeping patterns, feeding suggestions, protecting the baby's teeth, choking hazards, and nonparent infant care. The pamphlet concludes with a list of relevant information resources for families. (KB)

Distributed by the U.S. Departments of Agriculture, Education, and Health and Human Services, this pamphlet provides parents with information and advice about their infants in the fifth month of life. Following a brief description of developmental characteristics at this age, the pamphlet offers information on topics including infant medicines, avoiding baby bottle tooth decay, teething, playpens, sleep, brain development, and stimulating the baby with toys. The pamphlet also offers advice to parents on avoiding back strain while lifting a 5-month-old. A list of information resources for families concludes the pamphlet. (HTH)

Distributed by the U.S. Departments of Agriculture, Education, and Health and Human Services, this pamphlet provides parents with information and advice about their infants in the second month of life. The pamphlet outlines typical infant behavior at two months of age, the need for regular visits to a physician, health insurance, sleeping patterns, bowel habits, infant feeding, responding to infant distress, infant and crib safety, and dental health. Information on child development and "baby games" to communicate with the 2-month-old is also provided. The pamphlet then identifies special needs of single parents and single teenage parents, and lists resources for families. (KB)

Distributed by the U.S. Departments of Agriculture, Education, and Health and Human Services, this pamphlet provides parents with information and advice about their infants in the third month of life. The pamphlet provides information on communicating with the infant through body language, preparing for the 4-month checkup, recordkeeping, infant feeding, sleep patterns, ways to facilitate the infant's development, infant safety, pacifiers, and toys. Also included is a description of typical behavior for a 3-month-old and answers to commonly asked questions. The pamphlet then describes infant emotional development and suggests games to play, things to do, and ways to help the baby learn. Mothers' needs for exercise, relaxation, and social and emotional support are also discussed. The pamphlet concludes with a list of information resources. (KB)

This pamphlet, distributed by the U.S. Departments of Agriculture, Education, and Health and Human Services, is designed to provide parents with information and advice about their infants in the first month of life. The pamphlet provides information on ways the mother can take care of herself, the one-month checkup, early brain development, infant feeding, talking to the infant, child care selection, keeping a record of the infant's growth, and characteristics of the typical one-month-old. Guidelines are provided for parents to help their infant by encouraging exploration, being a teacher, communicating, ensuring the infant's safety, doing things repeatedly to facilitate learning, protecting the infant, and celebrating with their child. The pamphlet also discusses sleeping patterns, bowel habits, the use of baby powder, the infant's "people skills" and communication, ways to pamper the mother, and resource information for teenage parents. Information resources for families conclude the pamphlet. (KB)

This booklet offers guidance to parents in caring for their newborn babies. Advice is given on the following topics: (1) newborn health screening; (2) what a healthy newborn looks like; (3) newborn reflexes; (4) baby checkups; (5) fathers' role; (6) the baby blues; (7) sleeping position; (8) breast milk; (9) breast feeding; (10) bottle feeding; (11) checkups and shots; (12) what it's like to be a newborn; (13) changing diapers; (14) keeping a memory book; (15) installing car seats; (16) newborns' brains; (17) guiding babies every day; (18) babies' people skills; (19) learning to communicate; (20) why babies cry; (21) ways to soothe babies; (22) preparing the baby's bath; (23) bathing the baby; and (24) being gentle when bathing the baby. Information resources for families conclude the booklet. (EV)

Distributed by the U.S. Departments of Agriculture, Education, and Health and Human Services, this pamphlet provides parents with information and advice about their infants in the sixth month of life. Following a brief description of developmental characteristics at this age, the pamphlet offers advice on a variety of topics, including: finding a trustworthy doctor, introducing new foods, letting the infant fall asleep on his or her own, guiding the infant's activity, brain development at six months, games and floor time as play time, and child safety. The pamphlet concludes with a list of relevant information resources for families. (HTH)

Distributed by the U.S. Departments of Agriculture, Education, and Health and Human Services, this Spanish-language pamphlet provides parents with information and advice about their infants in the second month of life. The pamphlet outlines typical infant behavior at 2 months of age, the need for regular visits to a physician, health insurance, sleeping patterns, bowel habits, infant feeding, responding to infant distress, infant and crib safety, and dental health. Information on child development and "baby games" to communicate with the 2-month-old is also provided. The pamphlet then identifies special needs of single parents and single teenage parents, and lists resources for families. (HTH)

This booklet offers guidance to parents in caring for their newborn babies. Advice is given on the following topics: (1) newborn health screening; (2) what a healthy newborn looks like; (3) newborn reflexes; (4) baby checkups; (5) fathers' role; (6) the baby blues; (7) sleeping position; (8) breast milk; (9) breast feeding; (10) bottle feeding; (11) checkups and shots; (12) what it's like to be a newborn; (13) changing diapers; (14) keeping a memory book; (15) installing car seats; (16) newborns' brains; (17) guiding babies every day; (18) babies' people skills; (19) learning to communicate; (20) why babies cry; (21) ways to soothe babies; (22) preparing the baby's bath; (23) bathing the baby; and (24) being gentle when bathing the baby. Information resources for families conclude the booklet. (EV)

This pamphlet, distributed by the U.S. Departments of Agriculture, Education, and Health and Human Services, is designed to provide parents with information and advice about their infants in the first month of life. The pamphlet provides information on ways the mother can take care of herself, the one-month checkup, early brain development, infant feeding, talking to the infant, child care selection, keeping a record of the infant's growth, and characteristics of the typical one-month-old. Guidelines are provided for parents to help their infant by encouraging exploration, being a teacher, communicating, ensuring the infant's safety, doing things repeatedly to facilitate learning, protecting the infant, and celebrating with their child. The pamphlet also discusses sleeping patterns, bowel habits, the use of baby powder, the infant's "people skills" and communication, ways to pamper the mother, and resource information for teenage parents. Information resources for families conclude the pamphlet. (KB)

Distributed by the U.S. Departments of Agriculture, Education, and Health and Human Services, this Spanish-language pamphlet provides parents with information and advice about their infants in the eighth month of life. Following a brief description of developmental characteristics at this age, the pamphlet offers advice on a variety of topics, including: ways to keep baby safe, early intervention and baby's developing skills, reading to baby, teen parents, baby's brain, playing with an eight-month old, floor time, and questions parents ask. The pamphlet concludes with a list of relevant information resources for families. (HTH)

Distributed by the U.S. Departments of Agriculture, Education, and Health and Human Services, this pamphlet provides parents with information and advice about their infants in the tenth month of life. Following a brief description of developmental characteristics at this age, the pamphlet offers advice on a variety of topics, including: guarding against poisons, nursing breaks, fears and tears, teeth cleaning, learning through play, educational toys, child safety, and guidance and discipline. The pamphlet concludes with a list of relevant information resources for families. (HTH)

Distributed by the U.S. Departments of Agriculture, Education, and Health and Human Services, this Spanish-language pamphlet provides parents with information and advice about their infants in the seventh month of life. Following a brief description of developmental characteristics at this age, the pamphlet offers advice on a variety of topics, including: your baby's new independence, feeding, moving bath time to the "big tub," talking together to help spouses handle stress, fathers and babies, fun on the floor, early intervention and your baby's developing skills, and including the baby's siblings. The pamphlet concludes with a list of relevant information resources for families. (HTH)

Distributed by the U.S. Departments of Agriculture, Education, and Health and Human Services, this Spanish-language pamphlet provides parents with information and advice about their infants in the fifth month of life. Following a brief description of developmental characteristics at this age, the pamphlet offers information on topics including infant medicines, avoiding baby bottle tooth decay, teething, playpens, sleep, brain development, and stimulating the baby with toys. The pamphlet also offers advice to parents on avoiding back strain while lifting a 5-month-old. A list of information resources for families concludes the pamphlet. (HTH)

Distributed by the U.S. Departments of Agriculture, Education, and Health and Human Services, this Spanish-language pamphlet provides parents with information and advice about their infants in the sixth month of life. Following a brief description of developmental characteristics at this age, the pamphlet offers advice on a variety of topics, including: finding a trustworthy doctor, introducing new foods, letting the infant fall asleep on his or her own, guiding the infant's activity, brain development at six months, games and floor time as play time, and child safety. The pamphlet concludes with a list of relevant information resources for families. (HTH)

This document compiles several fact sheets, in multiple languages, for mothers and parent educators providing information and answering questions concerning breastfeeding infants. The fact sheets are published in English, French, and Spanish, and cover the following topics: (1) "Recommended Practices To Improve Infant Nutrition during the First Six Months"; (2) "Breastmilk: A Critical Source of Vitamin A for Infants and Young Children" (also in Portuguese); (3)"Guidelines for Appropriate Complementary Feeding of Breastfed Children 6-24 Months of Age"; (4) "Breastfeeding and HIV/AIDS"; (5) "Mother-to-Mother Support for Breastfeeding"; (6) "Lactational Amenorrhea Method (LAM)"; (7) "Frequently Asked Questions on: Breastfeeding and Maternal Nutrition"; and (8) "Exclusive Breastfeeding: The Only Water Source Young Infants Need" (also in Portuguese). (HTH)

This report presents data on U.S. births using information from the birth certificates of the 3.96 million births in 1999. Data are presented for maternal demographics (age, live-birth order, race, Hispanic origin, marital status, and educational attainment); maternal characteristics (medical risk factors, weight gain, tobacco use, and alcohol use); pregnant women's medical care utilization (prenatal care, obstetric procedures, labor and delivery complications, birth attendant, and delivery method); and infant characteristics (gestation, birthweight, Apgar score, abnormal conditions, congenital anomalies, and multiple births). Birth and fertility rates are presented by age, live-birth order, race, Hispanic origin, and marital status. Data by mother's state of residence, month and day of birth, sex ratio, and father's age are included. Trends in fertility patterns and maternal and infant characteristics are described. Birth and fertility rates changed little in 1999. Teenage birth rates fell slightly. Rates for women age 20-24 years declined slightly. Rates for women in their late 20s and 30s rose slightly. Number of births to unmarried women, birth rate, and percentage of births to unmarried women rose about 1 percent each. Improvements in prenatal care utilization continued. Percentage of low birthweight was 7.6 percent. Preterm births were 11.8 percent. (SM)

Emphasizing brain research, this guide is designed to help trainers teach caregivers to provide responsive care to infants/toddlers and to understand why responsive care is important. The training is targeted for anyone in a caregiving role, especially child care providers and home care providers. The guide is organized in three sections. Section 1 contains an overview of the training and guidelines for five lessons, designed to be presented in 1 or 2 days: (1) "Training Welcome and Overview" introduces the caregiver's role in providing important influences for brain development; (2) "What Is Responsive Care, and Why Should I Provide It?" focuses on critical windows for social attachments, responsive care, planned times and daily routines, the importance of assigning a primary caregiver for each child, hurdles and helps in providing responsive care, and highlights of brain development; (3) "How Can I Provide Responsive Care?" covers individual needs, scheduling, and applying responsive care to on-the-job situations; (4) "Does Our Caregiving Environment Promote Responsive Care?" focuses on the effect of the environment on children, and assessing the caregiving environment; and (5) "Training Conclusion" includes an activity to examine ways to take what was learned back to the job. The section overview includes information on trainer requirements, general materials needed, specific training tips, and making adjustments. Each lesson delineates steps for preparation and materials specific to the lesson, and includes a lesson overview as well as the entire script for the lesson. Section 2 contains participant materials, including resources and handouts. Section 3 contains transparencies for use in the training. (Contains 11 references.) (KB)