Texas ITSN members will have opportunities to dive deep into national resources that drive many of the infant-toddler professional development initiatives. Understanding national resources of the early childhood system allows specialists to stay “plugged in” to what’s happening in infant-toddler programs.
Explore the tabs below and see which national organizations are making an impact in infant-toddler care.
All Our KinBrilliant Bilingual Infant and ToddlersCenter on the Developing Child Harvard University Childcare Technical Assistance Network Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library Early Childhood Investigations Early Learning Nation Healthy ChildrenInstitute for Learning & Brain Sciences (I-LABS)Infant & Toddler Forum CICNational Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC)National Child Traumatic Stress Network (NCTSN)Office of Head Start: ECLKC ProgramsPathwaysPrenatal-to-3 Policy Impact CenterSave the ChildrenVirtual Lab SchoolZero to Three
All Our Kin
All Our Kin is a national nonprofit organization that trains, supports, and sustains family child care providers. Their mission to transform the nation’s child care system results in a triple win: child care providers succeed as business owners; working parents find stable, high-quality care for their children; and children gain an educational foundation that lays the groundwork for achievement.
Learn more by clicking the button below and viewing the website.
Brilliant Bilingual Infant and Toddlers
Do you ever wonder how a tiny human can learn not only one but two or more languages? In this BabyTalks webinar, learn about infants’ and toddlers’ amazing capacity to learn multiple languages. Explore research findings about how children learn language. Discover how learning multiple languages influences that process and the cognitive benefits of bilingualism. Explore strategies and resources that support children who are dual language learners from birth to 3 years.
Learn more by clicking the button below and viewing the website.
Center on the Developing Child Harvard University
The Center on the Developing Child’s diverse activities align around building an R&D (research and development) platform for science-based innovation and transforming the policy and practice landscape that supports and even demands change. We do this because society pays a huge price when children do not reach their potential, because half a century of policies and programs have not produced breakthrough outcomes, and because dramatic advances in science are ready to be used to achieve a promising future for every child.
Learn more by clicking the button below and viewing the website.
Childcare Technical Assistance Network
The Child Care Technical Assistance Network (CCTAN) and its partners promote excellence through high-quality, practical resources and approaches. They are designed to build early childhood program capacity and promote consistent practices across communities, states, territories, and Tribes. These centers combine the knowledge and skills from Head Start, child care, and health partners across the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS).
Learn more by clicking the button below and viewing the website.
Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library
Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library is a book gifting program that mails free, high-quality books to children from birth to age five, regardless of their family’s income. After launching in 1995, the program grew quickly. First, books were only distributed to children living in Sevier County, Tennessee, where Dolly grew up. It became such a success that in 2000, a national replication effort was underway. By 2003, Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library had mailed one million books. It would prove to be the first of many millions of books sent to children worldwide. Today
Learn more by clicking the button below and viewing the website.
Early Childhood Investigations Webinars
Early Childhood Investigations is a ongoing series of conference-quality free webinars for early childhood educators. The series is produced by Fran S. Simon, M.Ed., Chief Engagement Officer of Engagement Strategies, LLC. These engaging webinars are presented by many of the thought-leaders and experts in the field of early care and education. The webinars explore critical topics that offer new ideas and insights to early childhood professionals, especially administrators.
Their goal is to offer professional development opportunities that transcend the obstacles of distance, time, and money by offering conference-quality early childhood webinars.
Learn more by clicking the button below and viewing the website.
Early Learning Nation
EarlyLearningNation.com is an independent magazine devoted to early learning — covering policy, building community, and reporting on challenges and successes in early learning, the science of the developing brain, and more.
Learn more by clicking the button below and viewing the website.
Healthy Children
HealthyChildren.org is the only parenting website backed by 67,000 pediatricians committed to attaining optimal physical, mental, and social health and well-being for all infants, children, adolescents, and young adults.
Whether you’re looking for general information related to child health or more specific guidance on parenting issues, you’ve come to the right place. You’ll find information regarding the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP), including many programs and activities, our policies and guidelines, our publications and other child health resources, and much more. Best of all, you can rest assured that the information comes from the nation’s leading child health experts and that we have scientific research supporting our recommendations.
Learn more by clicking the button below and viewing the website.
Institute for Learning & Brain Sciences (I-LABS)
The Institute for Learning & Brain Sciences (I-LABS) is an interdisciplinary center dedicated to discovering the fundamental principles of human learning, with a special emphasis on early learning and brain development. I-LABS seeks to explore essential questions about human learning. I-LABS research initiatives advance our basic understanding of how, when, and why early learning occurs, with the goal of enhancing the lives of all children.
Learn more by clicking the button below and viewing the website.
Infant & Toddler Forum CIC
The Infant & Toddler Forum CIC is a not-for-profit organization established over fifteen years ago and committed to giving every child the healthiest start in life. They are a group of leading experts in pediatrics, neonatology, health visiting, dietetics, and child psychology specializing in early years nutrition and development.
Back in 2004, when the Infant & Toddler Forum was first established, the importance of the early years was not understood, and the educational needs of professionals and parents were dramatically underserved. With childhood obesity continuing to be the health crisis of our time and the ever-emerging evidence around its impact on the health of future generations, our work has never been more important. Early life is a critical window of opportunity to shape healthy behaviors for the benefit of today’s and tomorrow’s children, and we need to act now.
Learn more by clicking the button below and viewing the website.
National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC)
NAEYC promotes high-quality early learning for all children, birth through age 8, by connecting practice, policy, and research. They advance a diverse, dynamic early childhood profession and support all who care for, educate, and work on behalf of young children.
Their core values are defined in the NAEYC Code of Ethical Conduct and are deeply rooted in the early childhood profession. In addition, we seek to be a high–performing, inclusive organization that is enriched by and continually grows from our commitment to diversity, as embodied by our core beliefs.
Learn more by clicking the button below and viewing the website.
National Child Traumatic Stress Network (NCTSN)
The National Child Traumatic Stress Network (NCTSN) was created by Congress in 2000 as part of the Children’s Health Act to raise the standard of care and increase access to services for children and families who experience or witness traumatic events. This unique network of frontline providers, family members, researchers, and national partners is committed to changing the course of children’s lives by improving their care and moving scientific gains quickly into practice across the U.S. The NCTSN is administered by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) and coordinated by the UCLA-Duke University National Center for Child Traumatic Stress (NCCTS).
To accomplish the NCTSN mission, grantees and Affiliates work to:
- Provide clinical services
- Develop and disseminate new interventions and resource materials
- Offer education and training programs
- Collaborate with established systems of care
- Engage in data collection and evaluation
- Inform public policy and awareness efforts
Learn more by clicking the button below and viewing the website.
Office of Head Start: Early Childhood Learning and Knowledge Center (ECLKC) Programs
Head Start programs prepare America’s most vulnerable young children to succeed in school and in life beyond school. To achieve this, Head Start programs deliver services to children and families in core areas of early learning, health, and family well-being while engaging parents as partners every step of the way.
Head Start encompasses Head Start preschool programs, which primarily serve 3- and 4-year-old children, and Early Head Start programs for infants, toddlers, and pregnant women. Head Start services are delivered nationwide through 1,600 agencies that tailor the federal program to the local needs of families in their service area.
Learn more clicking the button below and viewing the website.
Pathways
Pathways provides free, trusted resources so that every parent is fully empowered to support their child’s development and take advantage of their child’s neuroplasticity at the earliest age.
Learn more by clicking the button below and viewing the website.
Prenatal-to-3 Policy Impact Center
The Prenatal-to-3 Policy Impact Center empowers states with rigorous evidence to implement effective and equitable policies that ensure all children thrive from the start. Based in Vanderbilt University‘s Peabody College and led by Dr. Cynthia Osborne, Professor of Early Childhood Education and Policy, our team of researchers and nonpartisan policy experts work directly with state leaders to achieve their goals for child and parent wellbeing–as well as the health, safety, and prosperity of communities.
Learn more by clicking the button below and viewing the website.
Save the Children
Save the Children believes every child deserves a future. They work in the United States and around the world to give children a healthy start in life, the opportunity to learn and protection from harm. When crisis strikes and children are most vulnerable, they respond. They do whatever it takes for children – every day and in times of crisis – transforming their lives and the future.
Learn more by clicking the button below and viewing the website.
Virtual Lab School
The Virtual Lab School’s Infant & Toddler track is intended for early childhood professionals serving children ages 6 weeks through 3 years in center-based programs. This track offers training and professional development resources, including written narratives, videos, skill-building activities, and classroom tools. The Infant & Toddler track consists of courses that mirror the core Child Development Associate (CDA) competencies, a course on preventing child abuse, and one on recognizing and reporting child abuse.
Learn more by clicking the button below and viewing the website.
Zero to Three
Zero to Three’s mission is to ensure that all babies and toddlers have a strong start in life. They envision a society that has the knowledge and will to support all infants and toddlers in reaching their full potential.
During the first three years of life, emotionally nourishing relationships lay the foundation for lifelong health and well-being. By supporting the caring adults who touch the lives of infants and toddlers, we hope to maximize our long-term impact in ensuring all infants and toddlers have a bright future.
Learn more by clicking the button below and viewing the website.