VA and National Website Links for Families

Additional Related Resources by Category

Challenging Behaviors

https://medicalxpress.com/news/2020-06-big-emotions-early-intervention-toddler.html

This article helps with understanding big emotions toddlers may have and how to reduce toddler tantrums.

Emergency Preparedness

https://www.zerotothree.org/resources/2980-natural-disaster-preparation-resources

Tips and suggestions to help parents prepare and care for infants and toddlers in the path of a natural disaster.

Guide to Choosing Safe and Healthy Child Care

https://nrckids.org/files/AParent'sGuideJuly2019.pdf

A parents’ guide to help make the right choice when looking for child care.

Health and Safety

https://www.preventblindness.org/your-babys-developing-sight

A guide to vision health for your newborn, infant, and toddler in English, Spanish, and Chinese.

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https://www.cpsc.gov/Safety-Education/Safety-Education-Centers/Window-Covering

Window covering cords information center

Nutrition

https://www.cdc.gov/nccdphp/dnpao/features/picky-eaters/index.html

Good nutrition is important for young children to help them grow healthy and strong. Follow these tips to help your picky eater try new foods.

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https://growthzonesitesprod.azureedge.net/wp-content/uploads/sites/2039/2021/01/CACFP-Milk-in-the-CACFP-EN-SP-cacfp.org_.pdf

Milk tip sheet

Safe Sleep

https://www.cdc.gov/reproductivehealth/features/baby-safe-sleep/index.html

Take these steps to help baby sleep safely and reduce the risk of sleep-related infant deaths, including sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS).

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https://www.nichq.org/resource/interactive-e-handout-safe-sleep-conversations

This interactive E-handout helps families and providers learn about safe sleep practices.

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https://www.childrenssafetynetwork.org/infographics/sudden-unexpected-infant-deaths-united-states

Sudden Unexpected Infant Death (SUID) refers to the sudden and unexpected death of an infant younger than one year of age. This infographic goes over the definition of SUID, the racial/ethnic differences in SUID rates, risk factors for SUID and provides resources on reducing SUID and promoting safe sleep.

Transportation Safety

https://www.safekids.org/ultimate-car-seat-guide/

Ultimate car seat guide that includes tips to keep children safe in cars.

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Additional Related Web Sites

The World Wide Web provides information on numerous topics of interest to both professionals and parents. The alphabetized list below is just a sample of Web sites related to the growth and development of young children:

211 Virginia
www.211virginia.org

2-1-1 is an easy to remember phone number connecting people with free information on available community services. When you dial 2-1-1, a trained professional listens to your situation and suggests sources of help using one of the largest databases of health and human services in Virginia.

American Academy of Pediatrics
www.aap.org

This site offers child health information to both parents and professionals. The publications section is particularly helpful to obtain the latest policies and publications regarding children’s health and safety.

Beginning Together
cainclusion.org/bt/

Beginning Together was created in collaboration with the California Department of Education, Child Development Division (CDD) and WestEd, Center for Child and Family Studies as an inclusion support to the Program for Infant/Toddler Care (PITC).

The purpose of Beginning Together is to ensure that children with special needs are incorporated, and appropriate inclusive practices are promoted, in the training and technical assistance provided by the existing cadre of CDE/WestEd certified trainers in the PITC. This is accomplished through a “training of trainers” institute, regional outreach activities, revision/development of written materials, support to institute graduates, and support of inclusive practices in other PITC activities, such as the demonstration programs.

Birth to Five: Watch Me Thrive
www.acf.hhs.gov/ecd/child-health-development/watch-me-thrive

This resource encourages healthy child development, universal development and behavioral screening for children, and support for the families and providers who care for them.

Breastfeeding Friendly Early Care Recognition
https://vachildcare.com/child-care-providers/virginia-breastfeeding-friendly-early-care-recognition/

Are you looking for a child care program that has the Virginia Breastfeeding Friendly Early Care Recognition? Visit this site to see participating child care programs.

Bright Futures 
www.brightfutures.org

Current and emerging preventative and health promotion of infants, children, and families. This site features guidelines for health supervisors; a section for developmental issues and strengths in the infancy period; and related publications.

Building Babies’ Brains Through Play: Mini Parenting Master Class – Center on the Developing Child Harvard University
https://developingchild.harvard.edu/resources/building-babies-brains-through-play-mini-parenting-master-class/
Did you know that the most important interactions you have with a child can happen through play? By engaging in playful serve and return with a child, you can literally help build stronger connections in the brain. Strong neural connections are the foundation for all of a child’s future learning, behavior, and health. In this Mini Parenting Master Class from UNICEF, Center on the Developing Child Director Jack P. Shonkoff, M.D., explains the importance of serve and return interactions like play—and how easy they are to do, especially through practice!

CDC’s Essentials for Parenting Toddlers and Preschoolers Toolkit
www.cdc.gov/parents/essentials/
Essentials for Parenting Toddlers and Preschoolers is a free, online resource developed by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Designed for parents of toddlers and preschoolers, Essentials for Parenting addresses common parenting challenges, like tantrums and whining.

Center for Early Childhood Mental Health Consultation
http://ecmhc.org/index.html
The Center for Early Childhood Mental Health Consultation was created through a grant from the Office of Head Start. For mental health consultants, Head Start program administrators, Head Start staff, training/technical assistance providers, and families, this website has a variety of resources related to stress management and relaxation for both parents and caregivers.

Center for Parent Information and Resources
www.parentcenterhub.org

The Center for Parent Information and Resources (CPIR) serves as a central resource of information and products to the community of Parent Training Information (PTI) Centers and the Community Parent Resource Centers (CPRCs), so that they can focus their efforts on serving families of children with disabilities.

Child Care and Early Education Research Connections 
www.childcareresearch.org

An effective tool for policymakers and researchers that facilitates access to current research and findings, datasets, statistics, instruments, and other analytic tools related to child care and early childhood education.

Child Care Bureau
www.acf.dhhs.gov/programs/ccb/

Information on the Child Care and Development Block Grant, links to other Administration on Children and Families sites and other information within the Department of Health and Human Services, with links to other related child care sites.

Child Care VA Child Growth & Development
www.doe.virginia.gov/cc/parents/index.html?pageID=8

Virginia Department of Education Child Care Guidance for Parents lists topics which may be helpful for parents.  Topics include child care assistance, health form for school or child care and instructions, and tax credits for parents.

CIVITAS 
http://childtrauma.org/

The CIVITAS Child Trauma Programs at Baylor College of Medicine are attacking child maltreatment in several areas. The Family Information section has information on the effects of traumatic events on children and what you can do to fight child abuse. The site also contains some articles in Spanish.

Council for Exceptional Children
www.cec.sped.org

This professional organization is dedicated to improving educational outcomes for individuals with disabilities and the gifted. The Web site offers resources for people working with and advocating for students with special needs.

Department of Health and Human Services – Temporary Assistance for Needy Families
www.acf.hhs.gov

An invaluable resource for the latest news on Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF). You can obtain essential documents regarding child support, child care funds to states, Medicaid resources, and the Welfare Reform Implementation Informational Package. Some of these documents are available in Spanish.

Early Head Start National Resource Center
www.eclkc.ohs.acf.hhs.gov/hslc/tta-system/ehsnrc

This site contains a database of all the Early Head Start program sites as well as valuable tips and strategies for trainers and many full text documents on a range of infant/toddler related topics.

EduArt 4 Kids
http://eduart4kids.com/art-projects-for-toddlers/

This website offers various art activities as well as information about child-friendly art in the Art for Kids and blog section.

Emergency Preparedness
https://www.childcareaware.org/our-issues/crisis-and-disaster-resources/

Ensuring the safety of children in care settings is the most important job of early childhood professionals. This resource, which is available in English and Spanish, can be a helpful tool for families to use as they evaluate and/or communicate with their child’s program about emergency preparedness. Early childhood programs may also find that the publication is a good starting point for self-evaluation of their emergency plans and processes.

Every Child by Two: The Carter/Bumpers Campaign for Early Immunization
www.ecbt.org

This Web site offers resources and information on early immunization. The new 1997 immunization schedule is posted. A program of the American Nurses Foundation, the campaign offers an Immunization Partners Conference and community action activities.

Family Education
fun.familyeducation.com/childrens-art-activities/crafts/33376.html

This site is a resource for arts and crafts activity ideas for toddlers.

First Things First
firstthingsfirst.org/Parent-Kit

Free Information and Resources for New Parents

First Things First recently created a digital Parent Kit to help new parents support the healthy development of their infants, toddlers, and preschoolers. The virtual resource provides information on child development, health and safety, how to choose high-quality child care, family well-being, and school readiness.

For Our Babies
forourbabies.org/

For Our Babies is a national movement promoting healthy development in U.S. children from conception to age 3. They advocate for the types of environments, experiences, and relationships that infants and toddlers need in order to thrive.

HealthyChildren.org
healthychildren.org

HealthyChildren.org is the only parenting Web site backed by 64,000 pediatricians committed to the attainment of optimal physical, mental, and social health and well-being for all infants, children, adolescents, and young adults.

Homefiredrill.org
www.homefiredrill.org

Prevention 1st created Homefiredrill.org to encourage all households to maintain a working smoke alarm, create an exit plan, and above all practice your home fire drill twice a year.

While regular fire drills are required at schools and many workplaces, less than 20% of U.S. households have created and practiced a home fire escape plan. Unfortunately, more than 80% of fire fatalities happen at home. A practiced fire escape plan could save many lives.

Kids Health
www.kidshealth.org
This website has information about health, behavior, and development from prenatal stages through the childhood years.

Parents’ Action for Children
www.parentsaction.org

This site provides information regarding key issues in child development, parenting questions, expert advice, resources, and a community action campaign.

The National Parenting Center – TNPC
www.tnpc.com

This site offers parenting resources and advice from experts in the field of child development. Professionals may find useful advice and helpful tips to share with parents.

NAEYC for Families
www.families.naeyc.org

This site offers reseach-based tips from NAEYC and ideas on children’s learning and development families can trust—and much, much more!  Be sure to check out two of our favorite posts: 10 Ways Babies Learn When We Sing To Them and Top 10 No Cost Toys for Infants, Toddlers, and Preschoolers.

National Resource Center for Health and Safety in Child Care
nrckids.org/

This site has many links to related sites pertaining to child care, child health, special needs, and parenting. You can also find each states child care licensing regulations and the National Guidelines for Out of Home Care Programs – Health and Safety Performance Standards.

Nemours Foundation/Kidshealth
www.kidshealth.org

Developed by pediatric medical specialists, this site offers information on child health to children, parents, and medical professionals. The parenting section offers information about specific illnesses and parent support groups.

Resources for Infant Educarers
www.rie.org

Resources for Infant Educarers (RIE) teaches a unique philosophy and methodology in caring for infants. The teachings of Magda Gerber, incorporating respect, quality time, patience and observation are offered in the form of training classes, books and videos. The site is a resource for parents and professional infant/toddler care teachers.

Safe Sleep
healthychildren.org/English/healthy-living/sleep/Pages/default.aspx

This brochure, A Parents’ Guide to Safe Sleep, is designed to help parents reduce the risk of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (in English and Spanish).

Tummy Time
www.healthychildren.org/English/ages-stages/baby/sleep/Pages/The-Importance-of-Tummy-Time.aspx

Back to Sleep, Tummy to Play, from the American Academy of Pediatrics, answers questions about the importance of safe play and sleep (in English and Spanish).