C.H.A.N.C.E. and EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATION (ECE)
Young children exposed to domestic violence will very likely attend pre-school programs, child day care centers, and family day care programs in caregivers’ homes, as well as Head Start and Early Head Start classrooms, and Early Intervention programs. Early childhood education practitioners in all of these settings are uniquely poised to act as significant protective factors for young children and families living with domestic violence. ISF's work is aimed at enhancing protective factors throughout the ECE system.
Exposure to domestic violence is a risk factor that compromises children, leading to poor physical, emotional, and behavioral outcomes. It is often compounded by other risk factors such as parental mental illness or substance abuse, physical abuse, exposure to violence, and poverty. Protective factors are those variables that shield children from risk and adversity. Protective factors include caring adults and strong relationships with others, the child’s intellectual capacity, temperament, and social competence (Edelson, 2002).
The Institute for Safe Families has created the C.H.A.N.C.E. (Caregivers Helping to Affect and Nurture Children Early) Training Curriculum to equip those working in early childhood programs with knowledge about the impact of domestic violence on young children and their families, and with skills for responding effectively.
