An Introduction to Early Head Start — and How It Can Help Your Family
A child’s earliest experiences mold and shape the developing brain, laying the foundation for overall well-being and long-term success. At One Place, we provide several early education programs that support children through their first 2,000 days—including Early Head Start, a national program designed specifically for pregnant women and children under the age of 3.
What’s Early Head Start?
Early Head Start partners directly with pregnant women and families for the first three years of their child’s life. Through one-on-one sessions with a dedicated educator, Early Head Start provides individualized child development and family support services—all specifically tailored to meet each family’s unique needs.
Through positive, nurturing caregiving services, Early Head Start seeks to promote the physical, cognitive, and social-emotional development of infants and toddlers. We prioritize social-emotional education so children will gain the skills they need for future learning and growth. Early Head Start also partners closely with parents seeking support to meet their own personal parenting goals, continue their education, achieve financial or housing stability, and much more.
The Benefits of Early Head Start
The first 2,000 days of a child’s life are undeniably important—and many studies find that participation in Early Head Start has a long-term impact on a child’s success. Children who receive quality early learning and care are 25 percent more likely to graduate high school, 4x more likely to have completed a bachelor’s degree or higher, and earn up to 25 percent more in wages as an adult.
A national evaluation conducted with the Early Head Start Research Consortium also found that at the end of the program, children performed significantly better on a wide range of cognitive, language, and social-emotional development measures. Parents also scored significantly higher on many aspects of parenting behavior and progress toward self-sufficiency.
Two years after the end of the program, the positive impacts of Early Head Start remained for children’s social-emotional development and the overall well-being of the parents. Researchers found that children who were part of Early Head Start programs tended to have the best overall outcomes at the start of school.
Who is Eligible?
Early Head Start is a federally-funded program available to pregnant mothers, infants, and toddlers up to the age of three. Eligibility is based on income at or below the poverty level, however, families in other situations—such as homelessness, children in foster care, or if you receive Supplemental Security Income (SSI), Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) or Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF)—are also eligible.
What Programs are Available?
One Place currently offers two program options: Home-Based and Child Care Partnership.
Child Care Partnership:
Our Child Care Partnership Program is available for children from the age of 6 weeks to 3 years old and takes place at a 5-star child care center from Monday through Friday. These programs are kept intentionally small in order to provide each child with adequate attention and care. Teachers are assigned to work with no more than 4 children, and classrooms are limited to a maximum of 9 children. Teachers receive ongoing supervision and coaching to support implementation of curriculum and responsive caregiving, and broad-scale parent engagement activities.
The EHS-CCP combines the strengths of child care and Early Head Start programs providing comprehensive family-centered services in high-quality early learning environments that adhere to the research-based Head Start Program Performance Standards. Integrating the comprehensive services and resources of EHS into traditional child care settings creates new opportunities to improve outcomes for infants, toddlers, and their families.
Through planned learning, activities, and play, children become better prepared to enter kindergarten with heightened social-emotional skills.
Home-Based:
Our home-based program offers in-home services to pregnant women. Services are scheduled to meet the needs of the family. Participants are assigned a Home Visitor who will support expectant families in accessing ongoing healthcare and comprehensive services to include nutritional counseling, food assistance, oral health care, mental health services, substance abuse prevention and treatment, and housing assistance.
Each month, expectant families enrolled in our home-based program receive prenatal information and educational services that address fetal development, the importance of nutrition, risks of alcohol and drug use, and labor and delivery education. Following the birth of the child, enrolled families receive a newborn visit and postpartum recovery information, as well as education regarding parental depression, breastfeeding, infant care, and safe sleep practices.
Our Home Visitors are knowledgeable, experienced professionals who are ready to answer questions about prenatal care, fetal development, safety, nutrition, family dynamics, and much more.
Learn More
If you’re a parent or caregiver in Onslow County interested in Early Head Start programs, click here to learn more about our Early Head Start programs. Any questions? Reach out to us directly at caron.schienle@oneplaceonslow.