To improve access to Head Start services for newly arrived refugee children and families, BRYCS teamed with the Office of Head Start (OHS) National Center on Cultural and Linguistic Responsiveness (NCCLR), a national training and technical assistance center, run by Bank Street College of Education and the Education Development Center. BRYCS and the NCCLR promote collaboration between local refugee resettlement and Head Start programs and developed a broad range of materials to provide technical assistance geared towards refugees, refugee service providers, and Head Start programs. Resources include:
Illustrated Handbook
- Raising Young Children in a New Country: Supporting Early Learning and Healthy Development
This handbook provides families with information on six themes: family well-being, health and safety, healthy brain development, early learning and school readiness, guidance and discipline, and family engagement in early care and education. Programs serving refugee families, newly arrived immigrant families, and others may use this resource with parents to help ease their transition to a new country. (Available in in Arabic & Spanish)
Cultural Backgrounders:
- Bhutanese Refugee Families
- Refugee Families from Burma
- Refugee Families from Iraq
- Refugee Families from Somalia
- The Mixtec, Zapotec, and Triqui Indigenous Peoples of Mexico
*Also see Ways to Use Cultural Backgrounders.
And don’t forget! BRYCS has documented a number of Promising Practice on
Promising Practices & Highlighted Resources
- Don’t forget! BRYCS has identified and documented a number of “promising practices” and highlighted resources on this topic. Get new ideas, share your promising practice, and read about other refugee-serving programs across the country!
Head Start has served low-income children, ages 3 to 5, since 1965, with the goal of literally giving them a“head start” in school by providing early and comprehensive services, including education, nutrition, and dental, health and mental health care. Early Head Start, established in 1995, serves pregnant women and children up to 3 years of age, so that all low-income children prenatal through 5 years of age are covered during these critical developmental years. In addition to serving children, Head Start considers family engagement a priority. Parents are involved in a variety of roles: in their children’s learning, as volunteers and program staff, and as advisors in program policy. Head Start also supports parents in pursuing their own educational, literacy, and employment goals. For more information and resources on Head Start, visit the Early Childhood Learning & Knowledge Center. For Head Start service providers who are interested in learning about refugees and refugee resettlement, visit BRYCS’ About Refugees.