Family Well-Being
The recipient will demonstrate how the program provides resources that support family well-being, either within the program or through community partnerships. 1302.50(b)(3)
Possible Questions:
What services does your organization offer that families benefit from?
What economic mobility resources does the program provide to help families with pathways out of poverty?
The recipient will describe any enhancements the program has maintained to its approach to providing family services and fostering family engagement in a virtual environment.
Possible Questions:
Can you describe the tools and approaches you are using in the pandemic to support parent participation virtually?
What were the strengths, challenges?
Does the recipient ensure children are up to date on a schedule of age-appropriate medical and oral health care (Early and Periodic Screening, Diagnostic and Treatment [EPSDT])? 1302.42(b)(1)(i)
Describe the steps taken to ensure that children are up to date on their health and oral health care.
The recipient will demonstrate how education staff provide services for children with disabilities, including making referrals and coordinating evaluations. 1302.61(a)
Possible Questions:
Do you know which children in your classroom are on an IEP/IFSP or have an outstanding referral for evaluation?
Tell me about the process for screening children; how do you decide if a child should be referred for evaluation by early intervention or special education?
How do you use the IEP/IFSP to guide your work with children?
If a child has known or suspected special needs, how do you work with the family to support the child at home and at school?
The recipient will demonstrate how the program supports family goal-setting and tracks family strengths, needs, and progress toward goals. 1302.52(c)(3)
Possible Questions:
Can you describe the family goal-setting process?
Where do you track family goals and progress towards those goals?
How do you handle it if a family is resistant or does not want to set goals?
The recipient will describe its family engagement strategies and how they are designed to foster parental confidence, including opportunities to connect with other parents. 1302.51(a)
Possible Questions:
What kinds of opportunities exists for parents to be involved in the program? In the classroom? In parent leadership and engagement activities?
How does the program help parents build social bonds with other parents?
The recipient will describe how the program helps parents support the learning and development of their children. 1302.50(b)(1)
The recipient will describe how the program shares information with parents about their child’s development and the types of information the recipient gathers from parents about their child’s development. 1302.34(b)(2)
Possible Questions:
What type of information does the program provide families about children’s health and development?
If families raise concerns about their child’s mental health/social-emotional health/behavioral health, how does the program respond to those concerns?
How does the program support families who have medically “high risk” children? For example, children with chronic health conditions or life-threatening conditions.
How frequently are you contacting families? Are your contacts documented? If so, where?
Do you have any children on your caseload with poor attendance because of health concerns? How is the program working to address this?
Does the recipient ensure ongoing care and extended follow-up care? 1302.42(c)-(d)
How does the program ensure ongoing care and extended follow up?
The recipient will demonstrate how the program supports staff in effectively implementing curricula, monitoring curriculum implementation, and ensuring fidelity. 1302.32(a)(2)
Possible Questions:
Tell me about the curriculum that you are using. How do you use it to support planning and individualization?
What tools do you have available to help with implementing curriculum?
Does the recipient provide health and mental health resources (including health insurance or referrals for parental depression, domestic violence, substance misuse, etc.)? 1302.45(b)(5)
Describe the steps the program takes to ensure that families have the health and mental health resources that they need as well as any resources for parental depression, domestic violence, substance misuse, etc. needed.
The recipient will describe how the program offers parents the opportunity to practice parenting skills, build on their knowledge, and participate in a parenting curriculum. 1302.51(b)
Possible Questions:
How do you support parents with understanding their child’s development?
Do you offer a parenting curriculum? Are parents participating? Are there barriers to participation?
Does the program make opportunities available for parents to share their knowledge with staff or other families?
What kinds of parent/child events does the program sponsor?
The recipient will describe how the program supports families in their transition into and out of the Head Start program. 1302.71(b)(2)
Possible Questions:
When does the transition process begin for children leaving EHS?
When does the transition process begin for children who are exiting Head Start and entering kindergarten?
Describe how you collaborate with parents to support the child’s transition to kindergarten.
What kinds of activities does your program offer to help parents ready their children for kindergarten?
Do you provide any tools/resources for families to use over the summer months with their children?
Does the recipient ensure that each child has an ongoing source of continuous health care? 1302.42(a)(1
What steps does the program take to ensure that the child/pregnant participant has an ongoing source of continuous health care?
The recipient will demonstrate how the home-based program services promote secure parent-child relationships and help parents provide high-quality early learning experiences. 45 CFR §1302.35(a)
Possible Questions:
What are some of the strategies you use to build trust with families?
What does a successful home visit look like? How do your home visits help families build secure parent-child relationships?
How do you use the curriculum to support parents as teachers?
How do you use the home environment to support children’s early learning experiences?
The recipient will describe the program’s approach to addressing food insecurities (including barriers and partnerships).
The recipient will demonstrate how the program provides resources that support family well-being, either within the program or through community partnerships.
Possible Questions:
What services does your organization offer that families benefit from?
The recipient will describe how the program supports parents in promoting the social and emotional development of their child. 1302.46(b)(1)
Possible Questions:
How are concerns about children’s mental health/social-emotional health/behavioral health identified?
Once a concern is identified, what resources exist to help staff respond to the concern?
If families raise concerns about their child’s mental health/social-emotional health/behavioral health, how does the program respond to those concerns?
Do you have a mental health consultant available to staff? Are you able to contact the consultant if you have concerns? Describe that process to me. Do you think there is enough support for mental health services?
The recipient will describe how the program prepares parents to advocate for their child. 1302.71(b)(1)
Possible Questions:
Can you provide an example of a time you supported a parent with advocating for their child’s needs?
Do parents have an opportunity to share their child’s strengths and needs with the program?
When? Where is this documented?
Does the recipient educate, support, and collaborate with parents to share information about a child’s health and well-being? 1302.41(a
How does the program educate, support, and collaborate with parents to share information about the child's health and well-being?
The recipient will describe how the program provides prenatal and postnatal education, supports parents during pregnancy, and works to reduce stress and maternal depression. 1302.81
The recipient will describe how the program connects women to comprehensive services and conducting newborn visits. 1302.80
Possible Questions:
Are you serving any pregnant women? Can you describe how you connect pregnant women to health (physical health, oral health, mental health) services in the community?
When do you first visit with the prenatal mother?
Who is conducting the 2-week health home visit? What takes place at that visit?
The recipient will describe the program’s most impactful community partnership and demonstrate how that partnership has positively influenced the community they serve.
Possible Questions:
Who are some of your most valued community partners? Why?
The recipient will describe how the program supports parents of children with disabilities. 1302.62(b)
Possible Questions:
Do you have children with IEPs or IFSPs on your caseload?
How are you supporting parents of children with disabilities when it comes to understanding their child’s IEP goals?
How does the program support parents in their relationship with the public schools or early intervention?
What kinds of supports or accommodations have been made to ensure children with disabilities can participate fully in the classroom? Do you collaborate with parents to identify strategies to help children be successful at home?
The recipient will describe how they use the mental health consultant(s) to support children, staff, and families in meeting mental health and social and emotional needs. 1302.45(b)(3)
What steps does the program take to support children, staff and families in meeting health and social and emotional needs?
The recipient will demonstrate how the home-based program services provide developmentally appropriate, child-focused learning experiences that promote parents’ abilities to support their children’s development and align intentionally to school readiness goals and the ELOF (home visits and socializations). 1302.35(c) and (e)(2)
Possible Questions:
Is your program offering socializations? (Where, how often, how are the topic selected?)
Do you engage families in lesson planning?
Are you using an ongoing assessment system? How do parents provide input on their child’s development?
How does your work with families support the program’s school readiness goals?