Too many Adams County babies, tollers and preschoolers don't receive adequate health care, including immunizations and well-child check ups – and many need learning support like developmental screenings – to be healthy and ready for Kindergarten.
GOAL: Every Child in Adams County is healthy and starts school ready to learn
Young children who receive regular oral health care, physical health care, including developmental screenings, supportive early learning experiences and needed early childhood interventions are more likely to grow to adulthood with better social, emotional and academic skills.
Collective Action ensures all children are ready for kindergarten
ACYI partners with the Early Childhood Partership of Adams County (ECPAC) to support the early childhood years (0 – 8). Colleive action helps to build bridges among Adams County prenatal health services, physical, oral and mental health providers, parent programs, early learning centers, childcare providers and libraries to ensue our children are healthy and on the path to early academic success. Impacts for children are magnified when all our community partners work together.
Health Care. Comprehensive health care, starting with good prenatal care and including oral and social-emotional health, is essential to ensure that all children get off to a good start. Healthy kids are better learners. Our objectives include:
1. From the beginning children thrive and are healthy
- Increase first trimester prenatal care and post partum-depression screening
- Increase families' access to information and services to promote healthy child development
- Increase well-child check ups and immunizaiton
2. Children's development is supported at home and in the community
- Increase parents' understanding of child development
- Increase child developmental screenings and needed early intervention services
Early Learning. Research shows that effective early childhood educaiton has lasting positive results into adulthood. Without positive early learning opportunities children often start elementary school behind and never catch up. Our objectives include:
1. Early learning is supported at home and in the community
- Increase family reading in the home to children under 5
- Increase enrollment of at-risk chidlren in formal quality early learning programs
- Increase family, friends and neighbors providing access to quality early learning information
2. Children entering kindergarten are ready for school
- Increase the number of children prepared for kindergarten