The
Ohio Department of Job and Family Services, Bureau
of Child Care and Development in partnership
with Ohio Child Care Resource and Referral Association
introduced First Steps, Ohio’s Infant and
Toddler Initiative in April of 2004. First Steps
is funded through the Child Care and Development
Block Grant.
Infant and Toddler
specialists are available through each
of the 12 regional child care
resource and referral agencies to provide coaching,
mentoring, and training to caregivers.
First Steps promotes the school readiness
of infants and toddlers by strengthening the
knowledge and practices of caregivers. We focus
on the importance of responsive relationships,
optimal environments and intentional experiences
through coaching and caregiving supports.
First Steps recruit’s centers and family
child care homes that are committed to improving
the quality of infant and toddler care in Ohio.
Participants take part in all or a few of the
following activities:
Participate
in environmental rating scale observation
(pre and post).
Receive
on-site visit to review ITERS/FDCRS
summary reports.
Monthly
on-site coaching and mentoring
visits.
Direct
link to HCCO/Help Me Grow assessments
and services.
Access
to lending library materials.
Participate
in training based on the Program
for Infant and Toddler Caregivers.
Ohio
Infant & Toddler Guidelines
Ohio’s Infant and Toddler Guidelines will broaden our knowledge
of how young children progress through three distinct ages of infancy
and where they stand developmentally. This understanding will strengthen
our ability to provide responsive, reciprocal and respectful care. The
research is crystal clear, early experiences last a lifetime.
The guidelines
will serve as a starting point for
getting to know individual infants
as well as an ongoing point of reference
as each child grows and learns. The
guidelines are designed to be utilized
for three broad yet critically important
constituencies: parents, providers
and policy makers. The guidelines are
not meant to be an exhaustive listing
of developmental examples but rather
a list of essentials, those developmental
milestones that you may see.
