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What We Do

Head Start is a federal program that promotes the school readiness of children ages birth to 5 for low-income families by enhancing their cognitive, social, and emotional development.

Head Start programs provide a learning environment that supports children’s growth in:

  • Language & literacy

  • Cognition & general knowledge

  • Physical development & health

  • Social & emotional development, and

  • Approaches to learning.

Head Start programs provide comprehensive services to enrolled children and their families, which include health, nutrition, social, and other services determined to be necessary by family needs assessments, in addition to education and cognitive development services. Head Start services are designed to be responsive to each child and family’s ethnic, cultural, and linguistic heritage.

Head Start emphasizes the role of parents as their child’s first and most important teacher. Head Start programs build relationships with families that support:

  • Family well-being and positive parent-child relationships

  • Families as learners and lifelong educators

  • Family engagement in transitions

  • Family connections to peers and community, and

  • Families as advocates and leaders.

Educational Program

The educational program provides activities for children that facilitate physical, cognitive, social and emotional development. The program is developmentally, culturally and linguistically appropriated and is designed to enable children to develop to his/her fullest potential.

A Developmental and a Social/Emotional Screening is completed for each child enrolled in a Head Start Program, by their 45th day of enrollment.  These screenings provide a snapshot of the child’s physical, language, social, cognitive, and emotional development, and is used to determine if further screenings or referrals are needed.  Further referrals to outside agencies take place with the parent’s consent.  Developmental Screenings are administered to children on an as needed basis.

A Developmental Assessment is also completed for each child enrolled in a Head Start program, three times per season.  Based on the Assessment, a School Readiness Plan, including 3 School Readiness Goals, is completed, for each child and updated twice per season.  Parents and Teachers work together to develop age appropriate goals to help each child succeed.  Home visits and Center Conferences occur to strengthen the connection between home and school.

Teachers develop weekly Activity Plans that include each child’s individualized needs, as well as their interests.  If a child has an active Individualized Education Plan (IEP), the goals and objectives from the IEP are also addressed.

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