Educator & Provider Resources
Below, peruse a mix of resources for your own professional growth and to help you support the families and children that you work with.


Advocacy
Curriculum
If you are seeking engaging lessons and curriculum to use in your classroom or program, these sites offer a wide variety of resources.
- The Collaboration’s Garden Growers: A Lesson for Every Season
- Farm to Preschool
- Early Childhood and Parenting (ECAP) Collaborative
- Illinois Early Learning Project (Illinois Projects in Practice)
- Illinois Early Learning Tip Sheets
- Illinois Early Learning Standards and Guidelines
- Illinois Early Learning Project
- Center on the Social Emotional Foundations for Early Learning: Resources for Teachers
Developmental Screening + Milestone Monitoring
Developmental Screening
The Collaboration provides support to pediatric and family practice physicians and early childhood education and child care professionals to conduct developmental screenings of all children in their care. The Collaboration provides training and technical assistance to conduct two screenings twice per year:
- The Ages and Stages Questionnaire, Third Edition (ASQ-3)
- Ages and Stages Questionnaire: Social-Emotional (ASQ:SE-2)
If you would like to get involved in the Developmental Screening Project, email health@collab4kids.org.
Developmental Milestones
Developmental milestones help us celebrate and monitor children’s growth and development. Some resources to support you in monitoring children’s development are below:
Professional Development & Training Opportunities
- Collaboration’s Annual Early Childhood Symposium
- Illinois Action for Children: Course Catalogue
- Illinois STARNET Training Calendar
- Gateways to Opportunity iLearning Online Training
- Illinois Training Calendar (click “search” if you don’t know what to filter for)
- Town Square: Where Family Child Care Professionals Learn, Share and Thrive (in Partnership with Erikson Institute)
- Early Childhood Investigations is a ongoing series of conference-quality free webinars for early childhood educators.
- Educa Thought Leader Early Childhood Webinars
- edWeb is a free social network and professional learning community
- The Center to Mobilize Early Childhood Knowledge, The Connect Modules
- PK-3 Teach Lead Grow – Learning Modules
Research
Center on the Developing Child at Harvard University
Early Childhood and Parenting (ECAP) Collaborative
Early Childhood Technical Assistance Center
Technical Assistance Center on Social Emotional Intervention for Young Children (TACSEI)
Investing in Early Childhood by Professor James Heckman (video)
Sensory Processing
Informational Documents and Articles about Sensory Processing
- Uncovering the Biological Basis for Sensory Processing Disorders
- Sensory Processing Issues Explained
- The Debate Over Sensory Processing
- What is Sensory Defensiveness? [PDF]
- What Is Sensory Processing Disorder? [PDF]
- The Effects of Infant and Maternal Sensory Processing on Infant Fussing, Crying, and Sleep [PDF]
- The Development of Sensory Over-responsivity From Infancy to Elementary School [PDF]
- References for Sensory Processing [PDF]
Books on Sensory Processing
- Sensory Integration and the Child
- Too Loud, Too Bright, Too Fast, Too Tight
- The Out-of-Sync Child
- Sensational Kids
- Understanding Your Child’s Sensory Signals
Online Resource Centers for Sensory Processing Disorder
Supporting Children with Disabilities and Developmental Delays
Early intervention is a term used to describe the services and supports that are available to babies and young children with developmental delays and disabilities and their families.
Early childhood special education refers to services for children, three through five years of age with developmental delays or disabilities and their families. Serves are provided through local school districts and special education cooperatives.
- An overview of Early Intervention and Special Education
- The referral process for Early Intervention
Local organizations that serve children with disabilities:
You can find much more information on our Resources for Children with Disabilities and Developmental Delays webpage.
Support a strong start and a bright future.
We champion high-quality early childhood care and learning experiences and support for families so all children develop their full potential.
