The Expanding Quality in Infant/Toddler Care (EQ) initiative works with the Early Childhood Councils, Infant and Toddler Specialists and Expanding Quality in Infant Toddler Care (EQIT) trainers.
The primary goal of the EQ initiatives is to increase the quality and availability of responsive care for infants and toddlers throughout Colorado by:
- Strengthening the skills and knowledge base of early childhood professionals working with infants and toddlers;
- Building capacity and promoting systemic change to foster increased quality and availability of care and services;
- Supporting leadership and collaboration at the community level; and
- Facilitating professional development for infant toddler professionals, particularly those who are teaching or coaching infant toddler teachers.
The EQ initiative provides training, technical assistance, and support for three primary components:
- EQIT Core Curriculum and EQIT RELATE coaching,
- Assessment for Infants and Toddlers, and
- Brazelton Touchpoints.
EQ also provides ongoing professional development to all EQ instructors and coaches. There are approximately 120 active EQ instructors throughout the state. With extensive professional development opportunities provided by the EQ initiative, and a variety of experiences in working with infants, toddlers, providers, and families, EQ instructors are well positioned to support the needs of infants and toddlers throughout their community.
The main component of the initiative is a 48-hour training course for child care providers, Expanding Quality in Infant Toddler Care (EQIT). For the 2018-2019 period, over 30 Early Childhood Councils offered the EQIT course to their local communities.
The EQIT Curriculum is designed for individuals who currently work with, or plan to work with, infants and toddlers and have an interest in improving their knowledge and skills. It is particularly appropriate for child care providers looking for an in-depth, hands-on course focused on work with infants and toddlers in group care and who may not have taken many early education college courses. Once enrolled in the course, individuals are encouraged to take advantage of on-site coaching in order to deepen the skills learned in the course. Successful completion of the EQIT course meets the infant toddler training requirements specific to early childhood teachers, center directors, and specialized family child care licenses in the state.
Updated July 2019
