Purpose: Few caregiver-implemented naturalistic language interventions (NLIs) are available for Spanish-speaking Latinos who have young children under 3 years with language delays, and there is a scarcity of studies that provide information about intervention development or social validity of interventions for this group. This study introduces…

Purpose: Few caregiver-implemented naturalistic language interventions (NLIs) are available for Spanish-speaking Latinos who have young children under 3 years with language delays, and there is a scarcity of studies that provide information about intervention development or social validity of interventions for this group. This study introduces…

Introduction: Anthony cautions that the training of teachers of students with visual impairments (i.e., blindness and low vision) and orientation and mobility (O&M) specialists covers a broad age range, which may result in limited curricular content essential for those who will work with very young children with visual impairments. The current…

This policy plan offers an approach to early childhood policies that get to the roots of racial equity. It describes how to promote social, economic, health, and educational equity by broadening the current early childhood public policy focus in Minnesota on early education and service programs to also include funding efforts that promote positive…

Children from birth to 3 years old with complex medical needs often experience psychological issues, but there are limited services and supports to meet their needs. To bridge this gap, the authors created the Pediatric Birth to Three Clinic and Early Childhood Mental Health Program at the University of Minnesota. They describe the toxic stress…

This article describes some of the remarkable accomplishments of the states that have participated in the Infant and Early Childhood Mental Health Financing Policy Project (IECMH-FPP). The purpose of the IECMH-FPP is to support states' advancement of IECMH assessment, diagnosis, and treatment policies that will contribute to the healthy…

A watershed of knowledge about how very young children learn and develop has been revealed through the science of child development. The science of child development has demonstrated that immediately from birth, babies need supportive relationships and responsive environments in order to build strong brain circuits and lay the foundations for both…

Minnesota provides supplemental state funding to existing federal Head Start and Early Head Start (EHS) grantees to increase their capacity to serve additional infants, toddlers, and pregnant women. The initiative was started in 1997 when the state legislature earmarked $1 million of the general state Head Start supplemental funds for children…

This hearing serves as a first in a set of hearings focusing on early learning. In his opening statement, Senator Tom Harkin, Chairman of the Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions, strongly encouraged members of this committee on both sides of the aisle to hold roundtables and have discussions on early learning in their local…

This resource was prepared in response to a request for information from a Race to the Top-Early Learning Challenge (RTT-ELC) State about which RTT-ELC States are using the Pyramid Model for Supporting Social Emotional Competence in Infants and Young Children. The State also requested information about other projects States have designed to…

The issue of early childhood trauma is becoming more prominent in early childhood policy discussions, driven by a growing recognition of the potentially devastating impacts of trauma and violence on infants, toddlers, and families. This article provides facts about the impacts of trauma and other adverse early experiences on child health and…

This paper presents a profile of Minnesota's Parent Aware prepared as part of the Child Care Quality Rating System (QRS) Assessment Study. The profile consists of several sections and their corresponding descriptions including: (1) Program Information; (2) Rating Details; (3) Quality Indicators for Center-Based Programs; (4) Indicators for Family…

Noting that Minnesota has developed many innovative services for parents and infants, but does not yet have an organized way to attend to infants' emotional development and mental health needs, this report details a study to ascertain the need for infant mental health services and examined the current level and types of services available. Data…

This final report describes Project Dakota, an early intervention demonstration project serving newborns to preschoolers with developmental delay or disability in Dakota County, Minnesota, from 1983 to 1986. The first chapter describes the project model (which focuses on increasing the effectiveness of parents in fostering the child's development)…

This booklet presents principles of Project DAKOTA, a demonstration project to provide services to infants and young children with disabilities via their families and community. Project goals are listed, including a focus on those needs considered essential by parents and the use of natural settings and resources for intervention. Guidelines are…