Noting that all parents want the best school experience for their children, this booklet, presented in both English and Spanish, offers parents specific strategies to provide their children a good foundation for beginning reading. The guide first answers the question, "How Can I Help My Child Be Ready To Read and Ready To Learn?" with emergent…

Chapin Hall Center for Children at the University of Chicago, in collaboration with Westat Associates, designed and implemented a comprehensive evaluation of the Early Childhood Initiative's (ECI) two home visitation programs: Welcome Home, a universal home visitation program that provides a single home visit to all first-time and teen parents,…

Many social processes are needed before a child is ready to speak, but many educational and therapeutic approaches to preverbal children do not address the social skills that are prerequisite to effective communication. This curriculum manual contains activities for educating parents and professional to help children develop the social skills…

A family counselor and mother of adopted children with Fetal Alcohol Syndrome/Effects (FAS/E) offers practical advice and information on dealing with FAS/E's lifelong effects on behavior and learning. The book begins by discussing the historical, medical, and social aspects of FAS/E, and details common behavioral characteristics associated with…

Noting that children are virtually born to learn, this videotape provides parents with insight into children's early learning capacity and ways that parents can facilitate that brain development. The first part of this videotape discusses the parents' role as a child's first teachers. General ways by which young children can learn are explored,…

A case study approach was used to examine the complexities of service utilization in early intervention with infants, toddlers, and young children with disabilities. Seventy-two families of children (ages birth to 4) participating in nine early intervention programs in three states (Colorado, North Carolina, and Pennsylvania) and their service…

The Parents as Teachers (PAT) program is increasingly turned to as an option in broadening parent education and family support program offerings. In order to provide evidence of PAT's effectiveness in general and with low-income families in particular, a public-private partnership was formed to conduct a multi-site evaluation in three communities.…

This final report describes the activities and outcomes of the California Deaf-Blind Services (CDBS) program, a regionally based, family focused technical assistance and training project designed to improve services to children with deaf-blindness. The project conducted the following activities: (1) provided technical assistance to families and…

Children's school experience is more positive and productive when they have a sense of personal well being and when they are grounded in stable caring relationships in their early lives. Developed for Head Start staff, administrators and program supervisors, this issue includes features, resources and articles. Some of the most current…

This report summarizes research on interventions intended to improve four key breastfeeding behaviors: early initiation of breastfeeding, feeding of colostrum to newborns, exclusive breastfeeding for the first 0-6 months, and continued breastfeeding through the second year and beyond. It clarifies what is known about improving these practices in…

"Zero to Three is a single focus bulletin of the National Center for Infants, Toddlers, and Families providing insight from multiple disciplines on the development of infants, toddlers, and their families. Noting that because the perinatal periodfrom the later stages of pregnancy through the first 6 months of the infants lifeis a period of…

This compilation includes a variety of perspectives and resources on providing appropriate and effective programs and services for young children with autism and their families. It is designed for use by state-level early intervention and early childhood special education staff, local service providers, training and technical assistance providers,…

This handbook provides information on autism to enable Colorado parents and educators to recognize early symptoms in young children and to provide for early intervention. Sections of the booklet address: (1) the importance of early intervention; (2) early indicators for screening children ages birth through 60 months, including difficulties in…

Training and education of infant and toddler caregivers is one important factor associated with the quality of child care they provide. In response to research showing that high-quality care supports positive development in young children, policymakers have established training and education requirements for licensed providers and launched…

Discusses symposium papers focused on the socioeconomic determinants of infant mortality, the relationship between fertility and child development, the effects of maternal employment on child welfare, the consequences of urban migration for children, and indigenous education in the developing world.(Author/RH)