Family Partnerships Framework
The WYECPLC will be using three documents to guide and ground the learning and teaching on family engagement in early childhood settings.
Key Indicators.pdfThe National Center on Parent, Family, and Community Engagement
RBC's to Support Family Engagement.pdfThe National Center on Parent, Family, and Community Engagement
NAEYC Professional Standards and Competencies for ECEs.pdfThe National Association for the Education of Young Children
Below you will find all three documents sorted into three areas: Educator Competencies, Family Connections, and Supporting and Empowering Families. The Educator Competencies are divided out into dispositions, knowledge, and practice. Dispositions competencies focus on educators becoming self-aware, being reflective practitioners, and understanding the value of our relationships with families. Knowledge Competencies include increasing our family-specific knowledge, how to gain that family-specific knowledge, and learn what culturally-responsive practice is and looks like. They come to understand that teaching is developmentally appropriate when their practice is culturally relevant and responsive to individual family context. The Practice Competencies are evidence of the dispositional change and knowledge gain from the other competencies. Educators who understand and value families, see the need for reflective practice, know about their families, and have strategies for responding to them are eager to then change and improve their practice. The Practice Competencies highlight what educators can be doing to ensure positive relationships, communicate and collaborate effectively with families.
Educator Competencies
Dispositions
KI6. Fostering Respect, Flexibility, and Openness to Change**
RBC2: Self-Aware and Culturally Responsive Relationships: Respects and responds to the cultures, languages, values, and family structures of each family
1b: Understand and value each child as an individual with unique developmental variations, experiences, strengths, interests, abilities, challenges, approaches to learning, and with the capacity to make choices.
2a: Know about, understand, and value the diversity of families.
4a: Understand and demonstrate positive, caring, supportive relationships and interactions as the foundation of early childhood educators’ work with young children.
6d: Engage in continuous, collaborative learning to inform practice.
6e: Develop and sustain the habit of reflective and intentional practice in their daily work with young children and as members of the early childhood profession.
Knowledge
KI1. Ensuring Providers’ Knowledge of Child and Family Development and Family Engagement Practices
KI2. Ensuring Providers’ Family-Specific Knowledge
RBC2: Self-Aware and Culturally Responsive Relationships: Respects and responds to the cultures, languages, values, and family structures of each family
1c: Understand the ways that child development and the learning process occur in multiple contexts, including family, culture, language, community, and early learning setting, as well as in a larger societal context that includes structural inequities
1d: Use this multidimensional knowledge—that is, knowledge about the developmental period of early childhood, about individual children, and about development and learning in cultural contexts—to make evidence-based decisions that support each child.
2a: Know about, understand, and value the diversity of families.
3c: Use screening and assessment tools in ways that are ethically grounded and developmentally, ability, culturally, and linguistically appropriate in order to document developmental progress and promote positive outcomes for each child.
4b: Understand and use teaching skills that are responsive to the learning trajectories of young children and to the needs of each child, recognizing that differentiating instruction, incorporating play as a core teaching practice, and supporting the development of executive function skills are critical for young children.
4c: Use a broad repertoire of developmentally appropriate, culturally and linguistically relevant, anti-bias, evidence-based teaching skills and strategies that reflect the principles of universal design for learning.
Practice
KI3. Fostering Positive, Two-Way Communication
KI4. Creating Program Environments That Encourage Family Engagement**
RBC1: Positive Goal-Oriented Relationships: Engages in mutually respectful, positive, goal-oriented partnerships with families to promote positive child and family outcomes
RBC2: Self-Aware and Culturally Responsive Relationships: Respects and responds to the cultures, languages, values, and family structures of each family
1d: Use this multidimensional knowledge—that is, knowledge about the developmental period of early childhood, about individual children, and about development and learning in cultural contexts—to make evidence-based decisions that support each child.
2b: Collaborate as partners with families in young children’s development and learning through respectful, reciprocal relationships and engagement.
3c: Use screening and assessment tools in ways that are ethically grounded and developmentally, ability, culturally, and linguistically appropriate in order to document developmental progress and promote positive outcomes for each child.
3d: Build assessment partnerships with families and professional colleagues.
4a: Understand and demonstrate positive, caring, supportive relationships and interactions as the foundation of early childhood educators’ work with young children.
4b: Understand and use teaching skills that are responsive to the learning trajectories of young children and to the needs of each child, recognizing that differentiating instruction, incorporating play as a core teaching practice, and supporting the development of executive function skills are critical for young children.
4c: Use a broad repertoire of developmentally appropriate, culturally and linguistically relevant, anti-bias, evidence-based teaching skills and strategies that reflect the principles of universal design for learning.
6c: Use professional communication skills, including technology-mediated strategies, to effectively support young children’s learning and development and to work with families and colleagues.
Family Connections
KI5. Providing Peer-to-Peer Activities and Other Social Networking Opportunities
KI8. Advocating for Families and Making Connections to Supports and Resources
RBC5: Family Connections to Peers and Community: Works with families to strengthen their support networks and connections with other parents and community members who can address families’ strengths, interests, and challenges
RBC6: Family Access to Community Resources: Supports families’ use of community resources to make progress toward positive child and family outcomes
RBC8: Coordinated, integrated, and Comprehensive Services: Works with other professionals and agencies to support coordinated, integrated, and comprehensive services for families across the organization, community, and system
2c: Use community resources to support young children’s learning and development and to support families, and build partnerships between early learning settings, schools, and community organizations and agencies.
Supporting and Empowering Families
KI7. Promoting Parents’ Sense of Competence
KI8. Advocating for Families and Making Connections to Supports and Resources
RBC7: Leadership and Advocacy: Works alongside parents to build on their strengths as advocates for their families and as leaders in the program and community
RBC8: Coordinated, integrated, and Comprehensive Services: Works with other professionals and agencies to support coordinated, integrated, and comprehensive services for families across the organization, community, and system
6a: Identify and involve themselves with the early childhood field and serve as informed advocates for young children, families, and the profession.
6c: Use professional communication skills, including technology-mediated strategies, to effectively support young children’s learning and development and to work with families and colleagues.
For resources to support you in your work with educators, programs, or leaders please see pages listed in the top menu.
Potential Learning Goals
Educators will use ongoing, two-way communication with families. (P)
Educators will represent the families and children in their spaces. (P)
Educators will provide opportunities for families to connect and create networks with other families. (P)
Leaders and teachers will create an environment that fosters two-way communication and family engagement. (P)
Educators will develop strategies to communicate with families and colleagues. (P)
Educators understand the importance of representing every family, their values, and culture. (KDP)
Educators will engage in self-reflection to build cultural responsiveness. (P)
Educators will become aware of their own culture and how it affects others. (D)
Educators will increase their understanding of children as individuals and unique humans. (DK)
Educators will have knowledge of early childhood systems in order to advocate for children and families. (K)
Educators will learn several strategies to engage in family partnerships. (K)
Educators will have a knowledge base of resources in the community for families. (K)
Educators will become aware of resources offered by their families and community. (K)
Educators will understand and share family engagement practices. (K)
Educators will create an inviting space where families feel comfortable engaging with the program. (P)
Educators will plan learning experiences directly related to the needs of each child and the group. (KP)
Teachers will develop a deeper understanding of how culture and family engagement impact the child's development and learning. (K)
Educators will understand the culture, language, and values in family structures. (DK)
Educators will understand what positive, supportive, and care relationships look like. (D)
Educators will value the diversity of their families. (D)
Educators will see the value in collaborative learning. (D)
Leaders will value family partnerships within their program and community. (D)
Educators will discover strategies to empower families. (KD)
Leaders will create culturally responsive relationships with teachers and families within their program. (D)
Leaders/teachers will cultivate self-awareness of their own historical background which will foster openness to various cultures and communities. (D)
Educators will partner with families to collaborate, create goals, and positive outcomes. (PD)
Educators will advocate for children and families
Educators will learn the value of reflective practices and gain strategies to implement in their daily work. (DP)