Free for asking, Grant Wood AEA program offers help for child care providers

Gazette - 6/6/2023

Jun. 5—TAMA — When Breanna Waseskuk dropped her daughter, Toula, off at day care, "it would hurt both our feelings."

"She would cry and scream," Waseskuk said. "I would leave day care and cry in my car."

Toula, now 4, struggled to adjust when being dropped off or picked up from LinkyDo day care in Tama, an in-home child care center operated by Candi and Chris Link.

Candi Link reached out to the Grant Wood Area Education Agency — with Waseskuk's permission — for help. The agency, which serves educators in seven counties in Eastern Iowa, including Linn, Johnson and Iowa, offers a free program to child care providers called the Child Alliance Response Team — or CART. It provides coaching and consultation of research-based, behavioral intervention strategies to child care providers to support children ages 5 and younger.

In Toula's case, CART staff created a book using photos showing her arriving and leaving day care happy. Toula also received three flash cards, which read: "I need a break," "I need a hug," or "I need help" to help her communicate her feelings. Toula also was able to access speech therapy through her local school district.

Today, Toula is thriving, hugging Link when she is dropped off at day care and smiling at her mother when she is picked up.

"It makes my heart smile," Link said.

"Ask for help," said Waseskuk. "You might feel helpless. It might be embarrassing. The help came to me, and I am so thankful it did. I could tell the difference."

Both child care providers and families using day care can ask for the free service. CART can be a big help to parents who may be in danger of losing their employment if their child is unable to remain in a child care setting because of challenging behaviors, said Hilary Robinson, a CART service provider for the Grant Wood AEA.

CART staff will conduct a behavior assessment for referred children, identify strategies and practices providers and teachers may use and provide coaching and implementation assistance to guide child care providers working with challenging behaviors in young children.

Link, who first reached out to CART in March 2022, two years after opening her child care center, said it helped her "become more capable" at a time when she wondered if she was "cut out" to be child care provider.

"There's a tremendous amount of support waiting for you," Link said. "There's a lot of burn out coming from being a home provider. You're fairly isolated and can feel kind of abandoned and alone in your struggle. CART services are there to show you you're not alone. You just have to reach out and ask for help."

With the help of CART, Link realized another child who frequently behaved "inappropriately" at day care was really looking for more attention. After she and the student began sitting down together every day to read a book while the other kids engaged in play, Link saw a tremendous improvement in the students' behavior.

Not only did some children at her center begin learning how to regulate their emotions with the help of CART, Link also learned strategies that work for her when she gets overwhelmed, including deep breathing, drinking a glass of cold water and grabbing a Hershey's Kiss chocolate, she said.

CART is funded through Early Childhood Iowa, a statewide initiative working to advance the early childhood system while promoting collaboration to ensure young children and families receive the services they need. Since August, Grant Wood AEA's CART staff have worked with 65 child care centers and in-home day cares.

Robinson said CART empowers early childhood educators and helps them gain "skills and confidence" by proactively addressing a child's challenging behavior.

Jean Burger, Grant Wood AEA early education administrator, said CART is helping increase the quality of child care families and children are receiving. CART staff can do full-day trainings with child care centers or hourlong trainings with in-home providers and offer one on one coaching.

Child care providers or families can learn more about CART by visiting gwaea.org/cart.

Comments: (319) 398-8411; grace.king@thegazette.com

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