Act Early Network News, Winter 2021 Issue

Winter 2021 Issue

This quarter's Act Early Network Webinar featured the National Institute for Children's Health Quality (NICHQ) alongside four states representing the Early Childhood Comprehensive Systems Collaborative Improvement and Innovation Network (ECCS CoIIN). ECCS CoIIN is a multi-year initiative to improve early childhood systems in twelve states to increase age-appropriate developmental skills among 3-year-old children and reduce developmental disparities. Watch the archived webinar to learn more!

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In Fall 2020, 43 State and Territorial Response Teams and their identified key informants who lead early childhood programs, organizations, or systems (i.e. Part C, WIC, Home Visiting) conducted a rapid needs assessment as part of the Act Early Response to COVID-19 project. This needs assessment aimed to 1) measure engagement in each of the four steps of early identification and 2) understand the emerging strengths, needs, barriers, and opportunities related to the four steps of early identification of developmental delays and disabilities among children birth to age five during the COVID-19 pandemic, across early childhood systems and programs.

Findings from the rapid needs assessment are being used to inform Response Teams' work plans and to support work plan activity implementation to ensure a tailored and comprehensive approach for state and territory efforts related to the early identification of children with developmental delays and disabilities during the COVID-19 pandemic. Continue reading about the Act Early Response to COVID-19!

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Act Early Ambassadors were busy at the virtual Division for Early Childhood (DEC) Conference in January! Ambassadors presented four sessions to share their expertise about partnering with families, aligning "Learn the Signs. Act Early." (LTSAE) materials with the DEC Recommended Practices, and incorporating LTSAE into Child Find efforts and Child Welfare systems.

The virtual format provided an opportunity for families, providers, administrators, and higher education faculty from across the country to learn more about the LTSAE resources and how they can be used in early childhood systems. Real-life examples were shared by Ambassadors (from New Jersey, Minnesota, Nevada, Virginia, Delaware, Utah, Connecticut, and Idaho). Session participants were able to ask questions about the use of specific LTSAE resources, accessing translated materials, and ways to customize LTSAE materials for use in states and localities. Learn more about the DEC and check out the recordings if you registered for the event!

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Act Early Ohio has leveraged social media platforms of Ohio caregivers to share material and information about the CDC's "Learn the Signs. Act Early." campaign. Caregivers experienced in developmental monitoring were interviewed and selected to become our Act Early Ohio Social Media Influencers. Through the various recruitment methods, they have connected with caregivers to increase the reach across all 5 regions in Ohio.The influencers create posts using the Act Early materials and share Act Early Ohio posts.

The aim is to have the influencers share on their personal platforms so their already established network of friends and family may be more comfortable and willing to use the tools. During the holiday season, influencer's coordinated with staff at The Cincinnati Zoo, and Santa's reading of "Amazing Me: It's Busy Being 3!" was published on the Act Early Ohio Facebook page where it had over 42,000 views! By having the influencers share and post to reach those within their own communities, we can encourage caregiver engagement in developmental monitoring!

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The Act Early COVID-19 Response Teams are working to bolster the 4 steps of early identification of developmental delays and disabilities and to improve resiliency among families with young children during COVID-19 response and mitigation efforts. As one strategy to achieve these goals, the New Jersey team leads, Deepa Srinivasavaradan (Act Early Ambassador) and Caroline Coffield (NJLEND/UCEDD) along with Stephanie Michael (NJLEND Trainee), authored an article, Building Resilience: Resources to Help Families Grow from Challenging Times, featured in the 2021 Guide of Exceptional Parent magazine. This article, disseminated to a national audience of parents of children with disabilities, describes each protective factor of the Strengthening Families approach and provides resources to support for building resilience through crisis and change from sources including "Learn the Signs. Act Early." materials, Zero to Three strategies and materials, and resources from the Early Childhood Technical Assistance (ECTA) Center.

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In an effort to support the resiliency of Idaho's young children and their families as they navigate the COVID-19 pandemic, Act Early Idaho (an Act Early/COVID-19 Response Team) has developed an easy-to-use electronic toolkit for families. The toolkit's collection of resources are organized into five sections, each focused on a protective factor within the Strengthening Families framework: parental resilience, social connections, knowledge of parenting and child development, concrete support in times of need, and social-emotional competence of children. 

A brief description of each resource is provided within the toolkit helping families easily identify resources specific to their needs. Resources within the toolkit provide a range of information on topics such as state-specific access to a variety of social services, tools for monitoring children's development, and considerations for the social and emotional needs of children during a pandemic.

Development of the toolkit was conducted in collaboration with a variety of Act Early Idaho partners, including the Idaho Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics. Learn more about the toolkit that will continue to be updated as new resources are identified.

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Come and Train on the Rapid Interactive Screening Test for Autism in Toddlers, on March 11th and learn about the NEW Telehealth RITA-T measure. Rapid Interactive Screening Test for Autism in Toddlers (RITA-T) is a Level 2 screening measure that can be administered to young children identified at risk for ASD. It can be used alone or following a Level 1 screening measure such as the MCHAT-R (Modified Checklist for Autism in Toddlers - Revised). This measure has been validated and has shown that it does improve early detection of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and access! It is also language and culture-independent! Check out the newly published information about working with Early Intervention programs and improving wait time.

This training also has CME Accreditation! Learn more about the RITA-T and REGISTER for the MARCH 11 Training today!

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Despite the challenges we have all faced during COVID-19, Stat Public Health Autism Resource Center's (SPHARC) Community of Learners have persevered and made excellent progress in their work. The grantees have been busy establishing virtual learning communities, providing training to health care providers to build their capacity to screen, diagnose, and treat children with/at risk for ASD/DD, and implementing innovative family navigation models unique to the communities they serve. To learn more about each grantee's work, check out their state profiles on the SPHARC webpage.

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Registration is now live for the virtual International Pediatric Feeding Disorder Conference that will go live on April 28th-April 30th 2021 and be offered on demand until May 31st , 2021! Attendees will receive 2 days of evidence-based education for the evaluation and treatment of children with pediatric feeding disorder. Join this conference for intermediate and advanced-level sessions from more than 30 internationally renowned feeding experts. Attendees are also presented with some of the industry's latest research during the IPFDC lightning session and gain valuable tools to earlier identify children with PFD.

This year, attendees have the opportunity to participate in a pre-conference, a virtual 5K, and a night of Dueling Pianos. This virtual event promises to provide a comprehensive educational program, interaction and networking with those in the feeding community, and some much needed fun. Register today!

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The 2021 World Forum Virtual Tours will depart April 5-16th, 2021. This is a once-in-a-lifetime, firsthand look behind the scenes into the work and daily lives of members of the World Forum Community across the globe. Visit environments where children live and learn, expand your early
childhood network, and celebrate a wide variety of cultures Guaranteed to provide an experience of extraordinary connections with remarkable, compassionate people, and their inspiring stories.

Learn more about featured countries, registration rates, specific event details, and frequently asked questions.

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Would you like to share important Act Early updates or innovative practices from your state, program or organization?

Submit your updates for the next Act Early Network News (Spring 2021) by emailing Danielle Webber ([email protected]).