On Demand courses

This lesson gives ideas for providing nutritional snacks for children in care. Learn how snack time can be more than just a time to fill empty stomachs. It's a chance to sample healthy foods and learn new concepts such as measuring, counting, the scientific process, food safety, and more! (2 hours)

A positive classroom climate, grounded in social-emotional learning (SEL) practices, supports an affirming and equitable environment that nurtures children's growth and development. Strong teacher-child relationships grounded in SEL practices contribute to and promote a safe, belonging, inclusive, and identity-affirming community for children. Educators who strengthen their SEL skills and understanding are better able to support a positive classroom climate and community.

Social-emotional learning offers a platform for growing equitable educational communities with children and families. ECE professionals who value diversity, inclusion, elevated voice, and who enhance their own practice build more equitable classroom cultures. Through a continuous process of meaningful self-reflection and engagement, ECE professionals support a foundation for equitable practice related to access of opportunity, resources, and enhanced relationships with children and families. (4 hours)

This course, for directors, presents best practices and processes involved in crafting equitable program policy from a social-emotional learning (SEL) foundation. Building strong policy and practice starts with developing relationships and teamwork, actively listening to others, and growing one’s knowledge. Educators, families, and community partners are integral voices in the development of policy and practice grounded in equity. (2 hours)

Take the next step and implement your IPM program to improve the health and safety of children and staff. Learn practical ways to turn your written IPM policy into action. Explore using IPM training to educate staff and parents, how to hire a pest management professional who uses IPM, and begin developing IPM action plans for common pests that could enter your facility. (2 hours)

Asthma, allergies, and other health concerns can arise from poor indoor air quality. Pests and the pesticides used to manage them can lower air quality. Using an integrated pest management (IPM) program can reduce both the amount of pests and the pesticides used, improving indoor air quality and health. Explore the basics of IPM and common elements of a successful IPM program for a child care facility. Use the content, videos, and activities to begin developing an IPM policy for your facility. (2 hours)

STEAM—Science, Technology, Engineering, the Arts, and Math are all important components of a quality preschool program. Providers will learn best practice strategies for implementing these early investigative and expressive experiences in order to make preschool exciting and to prepare children for elementary school tasks. View practical examples from preschool practitioners. This lesson includes many programming tips and curriculum ideas. (2 hours)

Normal stress is considered a natural part of healthy development and is even needed to learn how to cope with adversity and build resiliency. Severe stress, on the other hand, can be harmful to the well-being of both adults and young children. By recognizing stress and stress types, practices can be built to reduce stress and effectively plan for stress-related problems. Discover optimistic ways to think and to plan for stress to add strength and empowerment, as opposed to fear and worry. (2 hours)

Suicide is the second leading cause of death in the United States for children ages 10-14 and the third leading cause of death for youth ages 15-24 (NIMH, 2023). The staff in charge of groups of children can be a lifeline to help ease their suffering and prevent death by suicide. This course helps out-of-school time (OST) professionals learn how to observe youth who are in distress, listen and respond sensitively and appropriately, and refer them to a professional counselor (if necessary) to prevent self-harm and suicide. Tools and strategies are included to help apply these skills to create a welcoming and inclusive community in after school settings. (2 hours)

Supervision of children, keeping them safe and healthy, is one of the most important aspects of child care. Family child care providers will learn ways to apply and follow regulations for supervision of children, including both indoor and outdoor supervision. (2 hours)

Esta lección se centra en los cuatro puntos críticos de la supervisión de calidad – ver, oir, dirigir, y evaluar. (1 hora)

Esta lección se centra en las formas de mantener una cuenta exacta de los niños en su grupo. (1 hora)

Providing appropriate supervision for the children in care is an essential part of a child care practitioner’s job. Quality supervision insures the safety of all children and supports early learning. Learn how to enhance your supervision skills and incorporate appropriate supervision practices. This lesson focuses on ways to maintain an accurate count of the children in your group. (1 hour)

Esta lección se centra en la transición de los niños de manera segura de un lugar a otro. (1 hora)

Providing appropriate supervision for the children in child care is an essential part of a child care practitioner’s job. Quality supervision insures the safety of all children and supports early learning. Learn how to enhance your supervision skills and incorporate appropriate supervision practices. This lesson focuses on transitioning children safely from one place to another. (1 hour)

Providing appropriate supervision for the children in child care is an essential part of a child care practitioner’s job. Quality supervision insures the safety of all children and supports early learning. Learn how to enhance your supervision skills and incorporate appropriate supervision practices. This lesson focuses on meeting the additional supervision needs for outdoor play. (1 hour)

Esta lección se centra en determinar dónde los cuidadores posicionarse para ofrecerles supervisión de la calidad a los niños. (1 hora)

Providing appropriate supervision for the children in care is an essential part of a child care practitioner’s job. Quality supervision insures the safety of all children and supports early learning. Learn how to enhance your supervision skills and incorporate appropriate supervision practices. This lesson focuses on determining where to position yourself for quality supervision of children. (1 hour)

Esta lección se centra en definir y mantener el personal adecuado: la proporción de personal a niños para tener una supervisión de calidad. (1 hora)

Providing appropriate supervision for the children in care is an essential part of a child care practitioner’s job. Quality supervision insures the safety of all children and supports early learning. Learn how to enhance your supervision skills and incorporate appropriate supervision practices. This lesson focuses on defining and maintaining appropriate staff:child ratios for quality supervision. (1 hour)

Esta lección se centra en satisfacer las necesidades adicionales de supervisión en el área exterior de juego. (1 hora)

Providing appropriate supervision for the children in care is an essential part of a child care practitioner’s job. Quality supervision insures the safety of all children and supports early learning. Learn how to enhance your supervision skills and incorporate appropriate supervision practices. This lesson focuses on developing team practices that support quality supervision. (1 hour)

Esta lección se centra en el desarrollo de las prácticas del equipo de cuidado que apoyan la supervisión de calidad. (1 hora)

Providing appropriate supervision for the children in care is an essential part of a child care practitioner’s job. Quality supervision insures the safety of all children and supports early learning. Learn how to enhance your supervision skills and incorporate appropriate supervision practices. This lesson focuses on the four critical points that define quality supervision – see, hear, direct, assess. (1 hour)

Work, family, activities – life is full and it is challenging to balance all of that with choices that lead to good health. This lesson examines ways child care providers can support these efforts and offers practical ideas for ways to encourage families to make healthier choices now to increase the potential for good health in the future. (2 hours)

This course provides background information on food insecurity in America and food assistance resources available for people who are struggling. Throughout this course, you will have an opportunity to create a personalized resource guide for your community and consider small, actionable solutions that you can implement on your own or with a team. (2 hours)

Historically marginalized youth are severely underrepresented within the science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields. In this course, we will describe factors that contribute to the STEM diversity gap; provide guidance for out-of-school time professionals and STEM educators working with historically marginalized youth; and provide resources to engage and connect historically marginalized youth to STEM opportunities.

To foster an inclusive environment, youth development professionals must have knowledge of and practice sensitivity toward youth who identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer/questioning (LGBTQ). In this module, participants will learn about diversity in gender identity, gender expression, biological sex, and sexual orientation. They will identify risks that LGBTQ youth face, and they will learn appropriate communication skills and proven ways to support LGBTQ youth. (3 hours)

As infants grow into toddlers, transitioning to self-feeding is a new skill to be learned. This course explores ways to incorporate strategies to be responsive and supportive during this transition. This course discusses the specific nutritional needs of young toddlers, how to guide and support them in self-feeding, and strategies for success when working with multiple children and feeding stages within a group. (2 hours)

Learn information about the science behind and benefits of child vaccines to more fully engage with families as they make decisions regarding their children’s health. Fine tune family partnership skills. Explore strategies to meet health recordkeeping expectations. Strengthen efforts to inform and equip families to advocate for their child’s healthcare. (2 hours)

The care and management of Type 1 diabetes in young children falls squarely on the adults who care for them. As children grow and mature, they are gradually able to learn how to manage their diabetes for themselves. This course examines the realistic expectations for the transfer of responsibility for care and how educators and others can support children and youth as they grow more independent in managing their diabetes. (2 hours)

Child care providers have an important role in helping children learn from dramatic play. They help children’s learning in two ways: by how they set up the dramatic play area and by the way they talk with children about their play. Learn why dramatic play is important to a child’s social and emotional development and how providers can encourage and expand on dramatic play in their child care program. (2 hours)

This module on how to reduce screen time is one of seven in the Taking Steps to Healthy Success series that shows how ECE programs can support optimal health for young children, their families, and care providers. Explore best practices for screen time, identify improvement areas for your program, create action steps to improve your program, and identify ways to engage families and staff to reduce screen time. (2 hours)

This module on Active Play is one of seven in the Taking Steps to Healthy Success series that shows how ECE programs can support optimal health for young children, their families, and care providers. Explore best practices for active play, identify improvement areas for your program, create action steps to improve your program, and identify ways to engage families and staff in supporting active play. (2 hours)

This module on staff wellness is one of seven in the Taking Steps to Healthy Success series that shows how early care and education (ECE) providers can support optimal health for staff, young children, and their families. Explore best practices for staff wellness, learn strategies to overcome challenges, engage staff and families in wellness activities, and create a wellness action plan. (2 hours)

This module on breastfeeding support is one of seven in the Taking Steps to Healthy Success series that shows how ECE programs can support optimal health for young children, their families, and care providers. Explore how to support breastfeeding mothers and babies, learn best practices for infant feeding and how to identify and implement improvement areas, create action steps to improve your program, and distinguish ways to engage families and staff in supporting breastfeeding moms and babies. (2 hours)

This module on Healthy Eating is one of seven in the Taking Steps to Healthy Success series that shows how ECE program policies and practices can support optimal health for young children, their families, and care providers. Examine best practices for nurturing healthy eaters. Explore how to apply ideas, identify areas of improvement, and create action steps to improve your program’s practices and policies as you identify ways to engage families and staff in nurturing healthy eaters. (2 hours)

The Taking Steps to Healthy Success series prepares early care and education (ECE) providers who serve children ages birth to five years to support children’s health by preventing obesity, and children’s readiness to learn by including adequate nutrition and physical activity. (2 hours)

This module on Family-Style Dining is one of seven in the Taking Steps to Healthy Success series that shows how ECE programs can support optimal health for young children, their families, and care providers. Explore elements of family-style dining, identify improvement areas for your program, and create action steps to improve your program and policies as you identify ways to engage families and staff to adopt family-style dining. (2 hours)

Instead of just handing down decisions, this working course invites people to think and practice communicating about common early care and education (ECE) and out-of-school time (OST) health protocols. It provides practical tools like handbook statements, staff meeting practice scenarios, and family fact sheets that programs can personalize to their own situations to improve confidence in and compliance with health protocols. Learners will be empowered to communicate the “why” and implement practices with families in culturally responsive ways. (2 hours)

This lesson takes a developmental look at facilitating children’s play from infants through preschoolers. Learn whether an adult should step in and play with the children or step back and observe children playing. Play problems (exclusion, lack of sharing) seem to be important areas of concern for many child care practitioners and the lesson will focus on how practitioners can handle these problems with young children. (2 hours)

The real goal of circle time is far more than teaching children to sit and listen — it is to help children join together and form a community. Learn what makes circle and group times successful. This lesson offers tips and ideas for gathering children together and keeping them involved. (2 hours)

One of the most important responsibilities in child care is keeping children safe and well supervised while on playground equipment. Learn how to do this, keep costs down, and provide great activities for outdoor play. (2 hours)

This lesson focuses on how children’s brains develop and demonstrates why it is important to invest in the early years. The information presented in this lesson was developed at the Center on the Developing Child at Harvard University and Ready Nation, a business partnership for early childhood and economic success, and is used with permission. (2 hours)

Aprenda maneras de lograr que los niños sean más solidarios en sus comportamientos para crear una comunidad en el aula en la cual los niños se apoyan entre sí. Aprenda a utilizar juegos no competitivos para fomentar la aceptación de todos los niños. Aprenda a identificar las fortalezas y las debilidades, tanto las suyas como las de los niños en su programa, y cómo poner los puntos fuertes de todos a un buen uso para crear un sentido de aceptación y de comunidad. (2 horas)

Children’s toilet skill development begins with adults who understand and recognize the signs that tell them children are ready to learn to use the toilet. Supporting children’s development to learn to use the toilet involves the child, family, and early care and education (ECE) professional working together to guide the child in a sensitive and responsive way. (2 hours)

One of the biggest challenges facing afterschool/school-age practitioners is how to effectively keep youth engaged and supported in a group setting. One or two youth who aren't following the rules or don't want to participate in an activity can change your plans for the afternoon. Learn about positive guidance and how to use it as an important tool for making sure that all youth can benefit from your program. (2 hours)

Children experience multiple transitions in child care—not just moving from one activity to another, but also moving from one classroom, program, or group to another. They move from home to child care, from infant care to toddler care, from preschool to kindergarten, or they may leave a program. Learn how professionals and programs, in collaborations with families and other providers, can use evidence-informed strategies to ensure quality, responsive transition services. (2 hours)

A child experiences many transitions while in child care – not just moving from one activity to another, but also moving into and out of groups and programs. This lesson looks at the different transitions a child may experience such as enrolling in a new child care program, moving to a new room in an existing child care program or leaving a program. Learn how practitioners can support children during these transitions. (1 hour)

Although the number of young children who live in poverty decreased slightly in 2014, research shows that one in five children under the age of five lives in poverty and one in nine lives in extreme poverty. Awareness of issues related to poverty and use of effective communication strategies are essential for early care and education professionals to be able to build relationships with families and connect them to the supports they need. This module focuses on understanding poverty and practical strategies that can improve communication with families living in poverty. (2 hours)

Toddlers are at a very special time of life. Their minds, bodies, and emotions go through many changes from the ages of 12 to 36 months. Toddlers understand the world in a very different way than adults and older children do. When you know what to expect and what not to expect of the toddlers in your care, it can help you become a better child care practitioner. (2 hours)

How do art projects differ from crafts? Learn about the art process, how to provide a variety of sensory experiences for children, and how art is more about “doing” than the finished project. Discover how early childhood professionals get ideas for art experiences and how they foster the creative process in children. (2 hours)

Working with wood helps children improve or develop many skills, including math skills, large and small motor skills, and planning skills. This lesson helps child care practitioners discover ways to help children learn about tools, including what they do, how to use them, and safe tool use. (2 hours)

Today some people are hesitant to get immunizations for themselves or their children. This train-the-trainer course equips people to facilitate the "Strategies for Building Child Vaccine Confidence" workshop. In this workshop, trusted professionals from the community—early childhood education administrators, community educators, family engagement staff, and even local health system outreach workers—help others to comfortably discuss the benefits of and barriers to child vaccines. This all-in-one course provides a workshop facilitation guide, the learning activity materials, and a wealth of printable/downloadable fact sheets—everything a person would need to lead a community discussion. Workshop participants can then take the resources and brainstormed solutions back to their own programs and families and continue the good work of supporting families as they navigate child vaccination decisions and strengthen child health outcomes. (2 hours)

Keeping children healthy and safe should be the top priority for all child care providers. This lesson addresses the key areas of hand washing, the use of sanitizers, and the safety of indoor and outdoor play equipment. Learn the latest research-based information and best ways to keep the children in your care healthy and safe. (2 hours)