Demystifying the world of child welfare, this book shows early childhood practitioners how to successfully navigate this complex system and collaborate with a wide range of other professionals to meet young children's needs. Readers will
- discover what new brain research says about the importance of effective early intervention and consistent caregiving in the earliest years of life
- see how the current system works by tracing several children's journeys through child welfare and juvenile court
- help fulfill the promise of new laws related to child welfare, health care, and early intervention and education
- understand the juvenile court's powerful potential to influence young children's healthy development
- help improve access to coordinated, consistent health care for young children in the child welfare system
- work to make early intervention screening universal and services readily available to young children and families
- make the most of early childhood education as a portal to school readiness, social-emotional development, and overall well-being
To help them make a real difference in the lives of young children, readers will get in-depth, real-life case examples that illustrate strong collaborations among the child welfare, legal, health care, early intervention, and early childhood education systems. They'll see how other professionals are working together to fully address children's needs, and they'll have detailed models they can use to forge their own effective partnerships with professionals from other systems.
Essential reading for a broad range of early childhood professionals and decision-makers, this book will help readers reverse the odds for young children in the child welfare system—and set the stage for lifelong physical, developmental and emotional health.