Early childhood programs keep children safe when their facilities, materials, and equipment are hazard-free and all staff use safety practices such as active supervision. Find resources to help staff and families reduce the number and severity of childhood injuries everywhere that children learn and grow. Discover tips for use at home, in cars and buses, on the playground, and in all early childhood settings.
Listen to the fourth webinar in the five-part Head Start Forward series for important health and safety considerations, guidance, and support programs can use as they work toward full enrollment and fully in-person comprehensive services.
Hazard mapping is a process that Head Start programs can use after an injury occurs. It helps to: 1) identify location(s) for high risk of injury; 2) pinpoint systems and services that need to be strengthened; 3) develop a corrective action plan; and 4) incorporate safety and injury prevention into ongoing monitoring activities. Hazard mapping is employed effectively in emergency preparedness planning related to natural disasters. It also is used to isolate locations of disease outbreaks and determine where prevention efforts are most needed.
Infants depend on their caregivers for food, warmth, and care, and for meeting such basic needs as eating, diapering, sleeping, and bonding. But all babies are unique. Some infants may settle easily and be capable of quickly soothing themselves.
Mobile infants are developing more control of their head, torso, arms, and legs, and are beginning to coordinate those movements. They sleep less and are more active during the day, eager to engage in everything around them.
The toddler years are a time when children are building skills in all areas. They remember what they learn and share it with others. They understand things more deeply, make choices, and engage with others in new ways. The changes in their physical, cognitive, and social-emotional development help them to build new skills that prepare them for school and later learning.
Infants depend on their families for food, warmth, and care, and for meeting such basic needs as eating, diapering, sleeping, bonding, and safety. But all babies are unique. Some infants may settle easily and be capable of quickly soothing themselves.
Dr. Rachel Moon, an expert on Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS), presents the updated 2016 American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) Task Force recommendations that relate to safe sleep practices in early childhood education (ECE) programs.
Safety and Injury Prevention for Young Children Is:
Mold is an environmental trigger for allergy and asthma. Learn about the removal of fungal growth, remediation protocols, and the effectiveness of various cleaning strategies.
By the time they are preschool-aged, children are more independent in their play and their ability to meet their own needs. They focus on learning rules and routines to know what is safe and appropriate. Their constant dialogue with peers and caregivers helps them to form specific ideas about what is safe and why.