The young children of military families need the same kind of child care experiences that all children need: care that is warm and responsive, learning opportunities that are developmentally appropriate, and relationships that respect the whole family. But providing high-quality care also means understanding the many ways that children and families differ and tailoring our care in response. When we enroll military-connected families into our program, that means taking responsibility to learn all the ways that military service impacts children and parents, and then using that knowledge to plan meaningful learning experiences and build caring relationships.
The following resources can help child care professionals provide care and learning that reflect and respect their military connectedness.
Articles on Child Care for Military-Connected Children
The Child Care Setting
- Reflections of Military Life in Children’s Pretend Play
- Ensuring that Children’s War Play Is Healthy, Safe, and Positive
- Seeing Themselves: Reflecting the Military Side of Young Children from Military Families
- Welcoming a New Military Child into Child Care
- Caring for Children with Special Needs from Military Families
Coping with Change and Stress
- Preparing for Deployment: Supporting Young Children
- Coping with Change: Young Children in Military Families Find Comfort in the Familiar
- Coping with Change: Practical Ways Child Care Providers Can Support Children from Military Families
- Understanding Troubling Changes in Behavior in Young Military Children
- What Child Care Providers Need to Understand about Stress in Military Children
- Strategies Child Care Providers Can Use to Help Young Children in Military Families Relieve Stress
- Building Resilience in Young Children
- Supporting Young Military-Connected Children When They are Most Vulnerable
Supporting Military Parents/Families
- Preparing for Deployment: Stressors for Parents
- Parent-Provider Relationships: 7 Keys to Good Communication
- How Child Care Providers Can Help Deployed Parents and Their Children Stay Connected
- Supporting Dads in Child Care: Let’s Play!
Resource Lists
- Children’s Books for Young Children in Military Families (in PDF)
- Building Resilience in Young Military Children: Resources
- Supporting Military Families Living with PTSD: Resources
- Resources for National Guard and Reserve Families
Web Conferences
- Secure Attachments: Building Relationships with Parents and Children in Military Families (recorded)
- Using Books in Child Care to Connect with Military Children’s Lives (recorded)
- Stress and Young Children from Military Families (recorded)
- Developing Resiliency in Young Military Children: The Role of Early Learning Professionals (recorded)
- Reflections of Military Life in Young Children’s Activity (recorded)
- Intentional Connection: Establishing Positive Relationships Between Child Care Providers and Military Families (recorded)
- Sensitive Conversations with Military Families: Communicating Well When It Matters Most (recorded)
- Getting to Know You (Again): Helping Young Children Adjust to the Return of a Military Parent (recorded)
- When a Parent Comes Home Changed: Supporting Young Children Whose Military Parent has been Injured (recorded)
- Welcoming a Military Family Who Has a Child with Special Needs (recorded)
- Children Under Stress (Part 1): Understanding the Language of Behavior (recorded)
- Children Under Stress (Part 2): Responding When Children Withdraw (recorded)
- Children Under Stress (Part 3): Responding When Children are Aggressive (recorded)
Social Media
You can also join our growing online community of child care professionals on social media, where we gather and share resources and information from other sources and have ongoing discussions about topics that matter when caring for children from military families.
- Explore our blog posts
- Join our discussions in our group on LinkedIn: Early Care & Education for Military Families
- Follow us on Pinterest: Child Care and Military Families
- Like us on Facebook: Child Care and Military Families