Many children spend the most active and important parts of their day in child care. This guide paints a picture of high-quality child care for preschoolers, describing daily routines, mealtimes, how the classroom is arranged, materials and equipment, and other features that go beyond the...

This publication, the first major report on the Early Head Start national evaluation, focuses on early implementation experiences and tells the story of the 17 programs that helped launch the first nationwide program for low-income infants and toddlers.

Children's early school experiences form the foundation for later educational success. Using data from the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study, this report highlights children's gains in reading and math during their first four years in school and describes achievement in reading and math at the...

Discussion about the extent to which the government could and should invest in the child care market has increased among policymakers. This report summarizes a conference convened by ASPE to engage a multidisciplinary group of economists, developmental psychologists, child care researchers, and...

Families with infants and toddlers, especially low-income families, rely heavily on child care that is provided by family, friends, and neighbors ("kith and kin" caregivers). The national evaluation of Early Head Start found that a large proportion of program families used kith and kin care. In...

This issue brief presents findings from the Informal Caregivers Research Project, which aims to find out who informal caregivers are and to learn about their existing networks and needs for support in California. This brief, the first of three, highlights the importance of informal child care in...