Resources

Getting Started Checklist

o	Can I explain and discuss what is meant by "early childhood", "child care" and "child development"?
o	Can I explain the program implications of the definitions adopted?
o	Can I explain to a skeptical colleague why it is worthwhile to invest in ECD?
o	Do I know the basic approaches to ECD, and which interventions are complementary?
o	Can I make intelligent suggestions about programs and understand where projects or components fit into the larger health and education picture?
o	Have I obtained information about the status of children in the country: -- Survival, health and nutrition -- Cognitive, psycho-social and emotional child development -- Progress and performance in primary school
o	Have I obtained information about child-rearing practices in the country? (see sample table Child rearing practices matrix )
o	Have I obtained information about the economic, social, cultural, demographic and political context?
o	Have I identified projects in the country that should be coordinated with an ECD project or attached as a subproject?
o	Have I checked with other child and ECD organizations to find out what ECD activities they are supporting in the country and what people and organizations might be available there for consultancies? (See sample table Inventory of ECD projects matrix )
o	Does a national Plan of Action for Children exist? Have relevant social policy statements been identified?
o	Have relevant stakeholders been identified and consulted in order to locate levels of interest, different perceptions of problems, and possible conflicts? (See sample table Stakeholder matrix )
o	Has an institutional analysis been carried out? What resources are available or lacking?
o	Has a central problem been identified and agreed upon?
o	Has a project objective been formulated and agreed upon that is clearly stated and associated with indicators (of quantity, quality and time) that can be used to assess its attainment?
o	Have the project approach and the project outputs/activities been agreed upon that are clearly stated and associated with indicators (of quantity, quality and time) that can be used to assess attainment?

Source: The Inter-American Development Bank Program Guide, Early Childhood Care and Development.