Infant/Toddler Caregivers in Center-Based Programs

1.  Provide a summary of the legal requirements in your state regarding child abuse and neglect (including contact information for the appropriate agency), and also your program’s policy regarding your reaponsibility to report child abuse and neglect.

2.  Include the current certificate of completion of a certified pediatric first-aid training course (that includes treatment for blocked airway and providing rescue breathing for infants and young children). Certification must have been within the past three years.  

3.  Use the Internet, public library, or your program’s professional library to obtain the name and contact information for an agency that supplies information on nutrition for children and/or nutrition education for families (e.g., Cooperative Extension Service or Child Care Food Program).

4.  Provide a sample of your weekly plan that includes goals for children’s learning and development, brief description of planned learning experiences, and also accomodations for children with special needs (whether for children you currently serve or may serve in the future).

Competency Goal II

To advance physical and intellectual competence

5.  Select four songs, fingerplays, word games, or poems that you can use to promote phonological awareness. Describe strategies to promote phonological awareness among children whose home language is other than English.

6.  Describe 9 nine learning experiences that promote physical, cognitive, and creative development–three for young infants, three for mobile infants, and three for toddlers.   Describe the goals, materials, and teaching strategies used.

Competency Goal III

To support social and emotional development and to provide positive guidance

7.  Provide the titles, authors, publishers, copyright dates, and short summary of ten age-appropriate children’s books that you use to support development of children’s self-concept and self-esteem, and to help children deal with life’s challenges. These books may support development of cultural and linguistic group identity; gender identity; children with disabilities or special needs; separation, divorce, remarriage, or blended families; everyday activities and routines; and/or the cycle of life from human reproduction to death.

8. Use the Internet, public library, or your program’s professional library to obtain at least two resources designed to assist teachers in constructively dealing with children with challenging behaviors (such as aggressive behavior like hitting or biting, or shyness).

9. Provide the name and telephone number of an agency in the community where you work for making referrals to family counseling.

Competency Goal IV

To establish positive and productive relationships with families.

10.  Find out where to obtain resources, materials, and translation services for families whose home language is other than English. Provide the agency name and contact information. 

11.  Document your program’s policies that specify parents’ responsibilities and what the program does for parents. 

Competency Goal V

To ensure a well-run, purposeful program responsive to participant needs

12.  Provide three samples of record-keeping forms used in early chidhood programs. Include an accident report, emergency form, and a third form of your choice.

Competency Goal VI

To maintain a commitment to professionalism

13. Use the Internet, public library, or your program’s professional library to obtain the name, address, and phone number of your state’s agency that regulates child care centers and homes. These regulations are available electronically at the website of the National Resource Center for Health and Safety in Child Care (http://nrc.uchsc.edu/STATES/states.htm). Make a copy of the section(s) that describes qualification requirements for personnel (teachers, directors, and assistants). Describe two important requirements related to your job’s responsibilities.

14. Review the websites of two or three national early childhood associations (one with a local affiliate) to obtain information about membership, their resources, and how to order (if necessary, use the public library for Internet access).

Articles must help parents understand how babies and toddlers (birth to age 3) develop and learn. At least one article must relate to brain development.

16.  Locate an observation tool to use in recording information about children’s behaviors.  One copy should be blank; the other one should be filled out as a sample of your observation of an individual child.  (The child’s name should not be included.)

17. Obtain contact information for at least two agencies in the community that provide resources and services for children with disabilities (in most communities, the local school district provides these services).