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Quality Counts: Family Engagement print

Child care programs should offer a variety of ways to involve you, the parent or caretaker, in your child's development and learning. You should feel welcome and enjoy easy access to information about your child's progress and about the program.

Quality Counts encourages programs to reach out to families in many ways, e.g. newsletters, postings on bulletin boards for parents to see drop-off and pick-up times, open house or holiday events, parent information classes, and regular opportunities to meet with teachers.

High quality early care and education programs also strive to identify and respond to any concerns about a child's development, including offering regular developmental screening for all children and helping parents seek additional help if needed.

The Star level for Family Engagement is determined by applying the following criteria:

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A Family handbook is provided   At least 3 methods of communication are used to share child and program information with families   At least 2 family activities are provided each year   -Families are invited to scheduled family-teacher conferences to review child's progress and needs, and to set goals twice/year
-Activities are provided for children and families to assist with transition to new settings within the child care program and/or to kindergarten		   Families have the opportunity to evaluate the provider in writing annually
-Resources are available to communicate with families in the family's primary language
-Developmental screening and referral process is in place for 90% of all children, and results are shared with staff and families
-Activity suggestions are developed with staff and families for children identified with possible delays