Child Care; Early Learning Guidelines; Parent & Family Involvement; Parent Education; Professional Development; Professional Development
Status:
Active
Year Started:
1999
Administered By:
Department of Health and Human Services/ Division of Child Care and Early Childhood Education
Description:
The Arkansas Framework for Infant and Toddler Care is a guide to the design and implementation of local early childhood programs caring for children of infant and toddler ages. Funded by the Division of Child Care and Early Childhood Education, Arkansas Department of Human Services, the Framework was developed by a panel of infant and toddler specialists.
The Framework was developed in 1999-2000 and the strategies and activities were developed in 2001-2002. The framework, strategies and activities were developed as a guide for caregivers of infants and toddlers, but were also intended to guide and inform parents who choose to remain at home with their infants and toddlers. It was developed to align with the Arkansas Early Childhood Education Framework and the Arkansas Department of Education Frameworks for Kindergarten.
The Arkansas Framework for Infant Toddler Care encompasses Elements of Quality and Developmental Strands. These weave together to provide framework for quality infant toddler care, regardless of setting. The Framework document includes Benchmarks for assessing children's development as well as strategies and activities for providing quality care. A professional development series (eight hours) is available to learn more about the Framework for Infant Toddler Care and how to use the Framework to support quality . A highlight of this opportunity is a focus on assessment--using the Benchmarks to begin to assess infants and toddlers, and then using the information for further planning for individual children.