Child

1. Taking Steps to Healthy Success:The healthy environments that you create support healthy children!

2. Health and Human Services The Social Ecological Model1, 2 federal and state budgets Department of Education economy schools and colleges healthcare providers CCR&R legislation QRIS Society mental health services child care licensing health department Community ECE Program Policies unemployment rate pre-service and professional development opportunities ECE Program Environment workplace supports, benefits and leave ECE Program Staff CACFP WIC central kitchens Family Child grocery stores food and beverage industry food service vendors religious institutions urban planning community gardens parks media culture

3. Create a Healthy EatingEnvironment 3 • Enjoy being together at meal time. It is a great time to engage babies and children. You are a powerful role model! • Offer only healthy choices: fruits and/or vegetables at every meal, whole grains, lean protein and fried foods served less than once a month. • Offer age-appropriate portion sizes and corresponding serving utensils. • Respond to hunger and feeding cues so children recognize them. • Infants • Support breastfeeding moms with access to a private space to feed or pump. • Gently encourage new foods, in collaboration with family, around 6 months • Toddlers and preschoolers • Encourage growing independence by eating family style • Provide opportunities to learn about healthy food through books, classroom activities, snack-making, gardening, etc.

4. Environments to Promote Physical Activity4 • Infants: • Place infants on the floor where they can explore for daily tummy time. • Plan simple, safe, engaging activities both indoors and outdoors. • Do not use confining devices like exersaucers and swings. • Toddlers and preschoolers: • Fun, structured developmentally appropriate physical activity throughout the day • Supervised, unstructured daily active play, indoors and outdoors • What else can you do to help kids grow up healthy and active? • Offer planned indoor and outdoor physical activity every day! • Model enjoyment of physical activity by joining the children in their play. • Encourage children to make active choices; limit sedentary choices. • Provide safe space and appropriate equipment. • Respond to signs of boredom, frustration or fatigue. • Eliminate or limit the use of screen time early care and education programs. Never use screen time with infants or toddlers under 2 years. • Share information with families on fun physical activities and limiting screen time.

5. Bringing It All Back “Home” • Throughout the ECELC, we will be using the Social Ecological Model to help us transform our programs to impact the health and well being of our children with a ripple effect into their homes. • We will use the model to think about: • Sustainable change: Family engagement is key! • Our complex ECE environments • Our practices and policies • During your sessions today, you will find lots of ideas improving your programs and classrooms. • Later we will be working on action plans…so try to remember or write down the ideas you want to bring back to your program.

6. References and Resources • Bronfenbrenner, U. The Ecology of Human Development. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press; 1979. • Centers for Disease Control (CDC). The Social-Ecological Model: A Framework for Prevention. Retrieved April 11, 2013 from http://www.cdc.gov/violenceprevention/overview/social-ecologicalmodel.html • Nemours Health and Prevention Services. Best Practices for Healthy Eating: A Guide to Help Children Grow Up Healthy. Newark, Delaware: Nemours Foundation; 2013. • Nemours Health and Prevention Services. Best Practices for Physical Activity: A Guide to Help Children Grow Up Healthy. Newark, Delaware: Nemours Foundation; 2013.