How do we effectively communicate about infant-toddler issues in a way that does not focus initially on problems, but still motivates the public and policymakers to enact policy change? The answer: telling solutions stories. Solutions stories begin with an effective solution or intervention and then follow with a definition of the problem. This kind of story shows that we know how to fix problems, and that no problem is too severe that we, as a nation, cannot work together to solve it. This new article in the framing series is about solutions storytelling, which has the potential to change the way people reason about infant-toddler development and how they can support it. Download and read this new framing article now!

Download August's Advocacy Developmental Milestone Calendar

Did you know that Social Security affects infants and toddlers as well as older Americans? In fact, young children and older adults have a lot more in common than you think. Your advocacy challenge this month is to bridge the generations. Too often in politics older adults and young children are competing for the same resources, but by partnering together we can promote the well-being of both young and old. Download August's Advocacy Developmental Milestone Calendar now!

Federal Policy Update

The appropriations process finally began, with some positive early news for young children. On July 15, the House Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education, which sets funding levels for most children's programs, approved an $866 million increase for Head Start/Early Head Start and a $700 million increase for the Child Care and Development Block Grant in FY 2011. These increases, provided even as Congress seeks to reduce overall spending levels, will go a long way toward continuing the additional funds provided through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act last year. It is very early in the appropriations process – which probably will not be completed until after the November elections – but the House efforts to maintain increases for these programs is an encouraging sign for infants and toddlers. Members need to continue hearing from advocates about the importance of maintaining these investments in young children.

In another step forward for children, the House Education and Labor Committee approved the Improving Nutrition for America's Children Act (H.R. 5504), which includes the Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP). The bill would improve CACFP, which is important for meeting the nutritional needs of infants and toddlers in child care, by simplifying program requirements and enhancing the nutritional quality of food served in early childhood settings. It also would establish pilots that enable child care programs to provide an additional meal or snack for children who are in care for much of the day. The bill still needs to have mandatory funding attached before it can move to the House floor for a vote. Again, voices from the field need to be heard so that this important legislation can be completed this year.

Family, friend and neighbor (FFN) caregivers provide care to a significant portion of children from low-income families in Maine. While Maine has been a leader in advancing quality in child care, they had not previously organized planning around this segment of early care and education. In 2007, they launched a strategic planning process to better understand FFN care in Maine, and to develop a plan to effectively support and include FFN caregivers in their early care and education system. The plan was released in July, 2009, and pilot projects will be funded and evaluated. The planning strategy and initial outcomes described are significant. The process is one that could be replicated in other states, and Maine's efforts provide an opportunity to build an evidence base for how the quality of FFN care might be enhanced, FFN caregivers supported, and outcomes for children improved.

Read the full state policy update now!

Podcast on Quality Rating and Improvement Systems
On July 12th, the New America Foundation held the latest in their series of Early Education Initiative podcasts, States Share Information on Quality Rating and Improvement Systems. The podcast features a discussion with Gerrit Westervelt from the Build Initiative, regarding what can be found on the QRIS National Learning Network web site, the evolution of QRIS systems, and the research underway related to QRIS and measuring the quality of infant learning programs.

Guide on Applying for Home Visiting Grants
Child Trends has published Home Visiting Application Process: A Guide for Planning State Needs Assessments, a resource to help states apply for federal home visiting grants. This brief is a guide outlining what needs to be done to complete the grant application process. The guide provides useful information for those applying, including a timeline of the process and advice on conducting needs assessments, identifying high risk populations, and selecting and measuring benchmarks.

Report on Federal Spending on Children
The Urban Institute recently published a report, Kids' Share 2010: Report on Federal Expenditures on Children through 2009, which looks at trends in federal spending and tax expenditures related to children. The fourth annual report finds that children are still not a budget priority, even with the boost to spending on parents and families from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. In fact, in 2009 children's spending accounted for less than one-tenth of federal spending.

State Case Studies of Infant and Early Childhood Mental Health Systems
A new report from the Commonwealth Fund looks at mental health systems of care for children aged birth to age 5 in four states: CO, IN, MA and RI. The study provides state profiles, examples of major initiatives, and descriptions of exemplary practices that illustrate ways in which states can improve services and policies. It underscores the value of developing a national vision of infant and early childhood mental health systems of care, in which child and family needs are identified and treated as early as possible.