School Readiness
Children who enroll in school without the foundational literacy and learning skills necessary will fall behind their peers, often leading to other negative outcomes in life. Much can be done in the pre-kindergarten years, or even the months before birth to influence a child's readiness for school. The programs summarized below are all designed to help prepare children for school. Click on the name of each program to learn more about it.
Child Care Licensing »
Child Care Licensing inspects all licensed child care facilities at least twice per year and all licensed family child care homes at least once per year. In addition, all facilities are re-licensed annually pending their compliance with the Pinellas County licensing standards.
Child Care Outreach »
Child Care Outreach places children from birth to six years old with disabilities into inclusion settings at preschool and child care centers. The rationale for this model is based on evidence that children with disabilities placed in typical environments have better outcomes.
Child Care Quality Improvement »
Child Care Quality Improvement provides formal education and professional development for early childhood caregivers which, in turn, helps better prepare children to begin school ready to succeed.
Community Contracts »
Community Contracts are a gorup of five programs overseen by Coordinated Childcare that target specific subgroups of children. The programs are Head Start’s Early Head Start, RClub’s Pinellas Village Child Care and Exceptional Student Scholarship programs, Community Pride’s Gateway Homeless Project, and United Methodist's Children of the World Preschool.
Discovery Learning Center and Homebound »
Discovery Learning Center and Homebound enhances the development and fosters the independence of infants, toddlers and young children who are developmentally delayed or are physically challenged. The Discovery Learning Center consists of a preschool program where children receive special instruction and therapies, both individually and within the classroom setting. The Homebound Program provides early intervention services and therapies within the child's home or in the community childcare center.
Early Childhood Consultation Services »
Early Childhood Consultation Services provides consultation, training and prevention services to parents and caregivers of children ages 0-5 who are experiencing emotional behavioral difficulties. Activities include hands-on, in-home parenting skills training; child-specific and program-specific consultation to area preschools; and training workshops for parents, caretakers professionals and the general public.
HIPPY »
LIEF and Child Care Scholarships »
LIEF ensures that low income and special needs families have the support of childcare services while they work to acquire new skills, and assures that their children, age 0-5 years old, are developmentally on target and educationally ready to begin school.
Quality Counts »
Five Star Quality Improvement provides a validated childcare rating system which is easily understood by both consumers and providers in order to improve the overall quality of childcare in Pinellas County.
Special Services »
Special Services promotes the healthy development of children and families, as well as high quality childcare by eliminating negative behaviors that interfere with the child’s development and placement, and providing specialized services training and placement for preschool children who were prenatally exposed to drugs and/or alcohol
Therapeutic Preschool »
Therapeutic Preschool provides early intervention services to pre-school children who are exhibiting emotional or behavioral problems. The secondary goals are to help parents achieve an understanding of their role in their child's development and to help teachers acquire the skills and techniques needed to promote positive behavioral management in their classroom. Services are provided to ten therapeutic preschool classrooms located in ten Pinellas County elementary schools.
