Social/Emotional Development Program

 

The social/emotional development program provides social and emotional support to child care providers child care centers. Additionally, Albany County Head Start and Saratoga County Head Start have partnered with the Council to provide mental health support services to the children enrolled in their center-based and home-based programs.

 

The Building Emotional Learning and Literacy (BELL) program is a current project funded by United Way of the Greater Capital Region in partnership with the Literacy, Education and Parent Engagement (LEAPE) Initiative. Its goal is to build social emotional wellness and early literacy within not- for-profit child care centers in Schenectady County.

 

Support and education for early childhood caregivers and teachers is provided on topics related to social emotional development, the prevention of challenging behavior, and building social emotional wellness in childcare environments.

 

The BELL program works to ensure that children will enter school ready to learn by providing child care professionals with the tools necessary to build a foundation for early literacy and social/emotional wellness for children in their care. This program was developed as a part of the LEAPE (Literacy, Education & Parent Engagement) initiative, a collaborative partnership between the Capital District Child Care Council and Schenectady County program partners. The LEAPE collaborative is comprised of the following partners:

Participants in the BELL Program receive training to support children in early literacy and social/emotional wellness. The BELL Program offers opportunities for peer support and collaboration. Council educators serve as mentors to guide participants through the program and provide individualized classroom assistance.

 

Program Goals