Neighborhood News

California’s efforts to improve social and emotional outcomes for all Early Start infants and toddlers are well underway. To support Early Start professionals, the California Interagency Coordinating Council on Early Intervention (ICC), in partnership with the California Department of Developmental Services (DDS), has published Guidelines for Evidence-Based Infant-Toddler Social and Emotional Assessment and Surveillance for Early Start in California. This resource provides recommendations and guidance to early intervention professionals on social and emotional assessment of infants and toddlers receiving Early Start services. 

The Guidelines include:

• principles of family-centered care during the assessment process,
• steps for conducting an infant-family social and emotional developmental assessment, and
• recommended standardized assessment tools.

The Guidelines are based on federal and state statutes, as well as a review of evidence-based literature and published best practice guideli

California’s State Systemic Improvement Plan (SSIP) has led to an increased focus statewide on the social and emotional development of infants and toddlers receiving early intervention services. This includes screening and assessment of social and emotional development in order to ensure that children with social-emotional challenges are identified, and that their progress in this area is accurately measured.

Developmental Screening and Assessment Instruments with an Emphasis on Social and Emotional Development for Young Children Ages Birth through Five is a helpful resource for parents and Early Start professionals. Compiled in 2008 by Sharon Ringwalt at the National Early Childhood Technical Assistance Center (NECTAC), this publication features over 30 instruments for screening and assessing social and emotional development in young children. The information for each instrument includes a description, the age range for which the instrument was validated, the time to administer, the s

NEW in the Neighborhood - a brand new resource for local programs implementing the State Systemic Improvement Plan (SSIP)! The Resource Guide to Initiatives and Programs to Support Social-Emotional Development in Infants and Toddlers presents three primary resources that local implementers can access to improve social-emotional development of the infants and toddlers served by Early Start in their regions. For each program or initiative, the Resource Guide describes the program and how it relates to social-emotional development, shares ways to access the trainings and materials, highlights the possible impact to infants and toddlers, and describes the possible costs of implementing the program. This Resource Guide is a helpful asset for any SSIP implementation team.

Find it in the Neighborhood under SSIP Resources, or download below!

This resource was developed by the Department of Developmental Services (DDS) and the California Interagency Coordinating Council (ICC), in partnershi

Welcome to our first ever Ask the Expert special feature! This month, we chatted with Kelly Young (below, left) and Robin Larson (below, right) about the statewide "Take a Minute" campaign, and the importance of social-emotional development. Both Kelly and Robin are highly involved in the Early Start community - Kelly is the parent of a child who received Early Start services, as well as the Executive Director of the WarmLine Family Resource Center, and Robin is the Intake Supervisor at Far Northern Regional Center. Take a look at what they had to say below!

Why is taking a minute for social-emotional development so important? 

Robin: Social-emotional development is the foundation for all other development. Children develop naturally by making early attachments to their parents or caregivers and observing and imitating their behavior. If there is some interruption in this natural connection, children have more difficulty maximizing their pers

Learning more about social and emotional development just got easier! In addition to the regular schedule of Foundations and Skill Base courses, Early Start Online will also offer Skill Base: Facilitating Social and Emotional Development as an open access course. This means that early intervention personnel can access the same great content as the facilitated Skill Base course, at their own pace and on their own timeline, without assignments or facilitation.

How is this different than the Early Start Online facilitated Skill Base course? The open access course features the same essential content as the traditional Early Start Online course, without participant and facilitator support, networking and interaction. This is a self-guided course that you can take at your own pace. There are no assignments or timelines. And there are no discussion forums, facilitation, reminders or reflective communications. It is strictly content! While you are on your own in completing the course, Early S

Are you a provider of early intervention services? This resource is for you!

As part of the "Take a Minute" campaign in support of the California State Systemic Improvement Plan (SSIP) to improve social-emotional outcomes for Early Start infants and toddlers, the Department of Developmental Services and WestEd's Center for Prevention & Early Intervention have developed a two-page "checklist" of best practices in promoting social-emotional development when working with families in Early Start. The checklist features eight (8) tips on how you can support the parent-child relationship, which is key to social-emotional growth. You can download and print the checklist and keep it with you, or view it digitally on your smartphone or tablet.

This checklist is a great addition to any provider's toolkit, and it supports the wonderful work you are already doing with Early Start children and their families! Take a minute and check out this new resource!

Click here to download this resource di

The Department of Developmental Services and the WestEd Center for Prevention & Early Intervention are excited to announce the release of the latest parent resources related to the California State Systemic Improvement Plan (SSIP). The "Take a Minute - Relationships Matter!" flyer and video provide parents of infants and toddlers with developmental disabilities important information about how to develop strong relationships with their children, to improve their child's social and emotional development. The video and flyer are available to anyone in the Early Start community to watch and download. Take a minute to support the social and emotional development of the infant or toddler in YOUR life!

"Take a Minute: Relationships Matter!" video (7:28):

"Take a Minute - Relationships Matter!" Flyer:

These resources are related to one or more competencies in the ICC-Recommended Early Start Personnel Manual (ESPM). To find out more, visit these resources in the Neighborhood here and he