How Everything Fits Together, or Can: The Early Childhood Comprehensive System

This handy, dandy visual portrays  the collaboration and partnerships the comprise on overall comprehensive system to ensure that children are healthy and ready to learn in early childhood.

Early Childhood Comprehensive Systems grants help states and communities to build and integrate early childhood service systems that better meet the needs of children and families. Since 2003, 49 States, the District of Columbia, Guam, the Republic of Palau and the commonwealths of Puerto Rico and the Mariana Islands have participated in the program. 

b.hrsa.gov/programs/earlychildhood/comprehensivesystems/

Here is our Washington State Plan.

On Middle School Is Too Late: Developmental and social risk factors show up in early childhood

More on the importance of early identification of mental and behavioral health problems comes from a study cited in on an article on the Washington Post website. -gw

• Over 70 percent of students diagnosed with mental illness and behavioral health problems by middle school exhibited warning signs by second grade. 

• Almost 25 percent exhibited red flags during pre-kindergarten years, including developmental and health issues, adverse social factors and exposure to trauma. 

• Twenty-five percent of the children studied had documented traumatic experiences in their records. 

Yet it is not until middle school that mental and behavioral health problems are identified, according to educational records of children referred to the Center for Children’s Advocacy, a Connecticut nonprofit that provides legal support for abused and neglected children.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/answer-sheet/wp/2013/09/19/study-impact-of-unaddressed-mental-health-issues-on-students-is-severe/

On Back to Basics: Infant mental health defined

OK, what's infant mental health again? Here is  the definition of infant mental health developed by ZERO TO THREE’s Infant Mental Health Task Force.

"Infant mental health" is defined as the healthy social and emotional development of a child from birth to 3 years; and a growing field of research and practice devoted to the: 

Promotion of healthy social and emotional development;
Prevention of mental health problems; and
Treatment of the mental health problems of very young children in the context of their families.

http://www.zerotothree.org/child-development/early-childhood-mental-health/

Zero To Three's Early Childhood Mental Health page is a great place to start finding resources for both parents and professionals. -gw