This article includes practical, supportive behavior strategies for children on the autism spectrum. While written for parents, many of the strategies can be adapted for the classroom setting and can even help children without autism who have challenging behaviors. Program staff can begin practicing these strategies to support inclusive classrooms.
Head Start’s Early Childhood Learning & Knowledge Center (ECLKC) offers strategies practitioners can create a relationship-based culture supporting family engagement. Practitioners will further build their knowledge in making successful, collaborative program staff and family partnerships.
The Circle Infant and Toddler Curriculum provides everything your program needs to implement positive and engaging learning environments and experiences that support children’s individual needs, interests, and abilities while building a joy for learning.
The Circle Pre-K Curriculum supports the cognitive, social, and emotional development of pre-K children. Professional development resources such as video tutorials, lesson plan templates, and the teacher’s manual act as curriculum planning supports for weekly planning and instruction. This research-based curriculum and its resources are freely available to early learning programs through CLI Engage.
Here is an exemplary written policy outlining how a program supports families and children who may need additional accommodations. Program leaders can include similar policies in the program’s family handbook as evidence of programmatic processes and classroom accommodations for families and children to include home language, differing abilities, and/or cultural backgrounds. This sample is available in English and Spanish.
Early identification can significantly impact the life of a young child with a developmental delay or disorder. Act Early Texas! offers parents and early childhood professionals valuable information to pinpoint areas where a child’s development may differ from their peers, ensuring timely intervention.
PBS Kids for Parents has a variety of crafts, experiments, and learning activities for families to do at home with their children. Families can filter this free activity collection by age, topics, and their child’s favorite PBS television show.
Here is a template of an annual feedback survey for families to complete. Program leaders can use a similar survey—hard copy or electronic—to provide families with the opportunity to provide structured feedback on the program, staffing, and classrooms. Download will start automatically.
Authentic assessment practices involve observing children’s engagement in everyday activities. Use the assessment information to identify classroom activities and teacher-child interactions that promote a child’s engagement in the activities, maximize the child’s learning opportunities, and promote child participation and learning in classroom activities.
PennState Extension provides practitioners with steps and suggestions to support breastfeeding parents. In addition to including written policies in the family handbook and providing a designated breastfeeding area, program leaders can provide this resource in the parent resource library or electronically to support the breastfeeding parent and the overall health and safety of children.