Request a CT-AIMH Training Series

If you would like CT-AIMH to provide your staff, program or agency with any of these audience-specific IMH training series offerings, for specifics and pricing please contact us by email at [email protected].  All of the training series align with IMH competencies.

A. IMH Training Series Curriculum for Childcare Providers:

Childcare providers play a critical role in the lives of young children as they are an additional attachment figure for children.

1. Introduction and Overview of Infant Mental Health and Endorsement®

• Enhanced understanding of the definition of infant mental health and the importance of relationship-based practice in the field of early care and education
• Enhanced understanding of the skills and strategies of an infant mental health specialist
• Understand the process for Endorsement through the Connecticut Association for Infant Mental Health(CT-AIMH)

2. Understanding Early Brain Development

• Enhanced understanding of basic brain development
• Enhanced understanding of the importance of human relationships to the developing brain
• Understand the effects of stress and trauma on the developing brain.

3. Understanding Attachment Relationships with Infants and Toddlers

• Enhanced understanding of Attachment Theory
• Enhanced understanding of the importance of promoting healthy attachment relationships within the childcare setting

4. Development, Observation, Screening and Referral

• Describe the “jobs” of infants and toddlers during varying stages of development
• Understand the benefits of comprehensive screening for infants and toddlers
• Become aware of the various screening tools available for very young children
• Understand how to interpret screening results and making appropriate referrals
• Identify the early intervention programs in CT that include infant mental health in their work with infants, toddlers and their families
• Use the screening process as an opportunity to support the parent-child relationship

5. The Impact of Temperament and Sensory Integration on Infants and Toddlers

• Enhanced understanding of the three major temperamental types
• Learn ways of adapting and responding to infants and toddlers with varying temperamental styles
• Understand how sensory awareness develops in infants and toddlers
• Identify sensory issues in the infants and toddlers in their care
• Learn ways to adapt the childcare environment to meet the sensory needs of infants and toddlers

6. Understanding Separation in Infants, Toddlers and Parents

• Understand the relationship between attachment and separation
• Develop strategies to support positive separations within the childcare environment

7. The Importance of Play

• Become aware of the recognized giants in the field of play
• Gain an understanding of the value of self-directed, experiential learning
• Recognize ways to use play to inform curriculum development within the care setting

8. Creating Environments that Support Attachment

• Develop an understanding of the origins of childcare
• Understand the various types of child groupings
• Recognize the benefits of primary care
• Learn strategies to develop responsive caregiving environments that support attachment

9. Partnering with Families

• Recognize the importance of parental involvement to the childcare experience
• Understand parental risk factors that can affect the developing child
• Learn strategies for communicating effectively with families
• Learn ways of supporting parents and building positive relationships with families

10. Reflection in the Early Childhood Setting

• Understand the principles of relationship-based practice
• Define the components of reflective supervision
• Share reflections from this training series experience
• Discuss how participation in the sessions has influenced them and how any new learning will inform their future practice

 

B. IMH Training Series Curriculum for Home Visitors:

1. Using Infant Mental Health Skills and Strategies to Inform our Work with Infants, Toddlers and Families in Home Visiting Programs

• Enhanced understanding of infant mental health skills and strategies
• Enhanced understanding of best practices in home visitation
• Learned ways to support positive relationships among infants, toddlers & their families.
• An increased understanding of attachment and its impact on early relationships
• Increased capacity for reflective practice in their work as family home visitors

2. Trauma, Loss and Brain Development in Infancy and Early Childhood

• Discuss the impact trauma and loss has on a child’s development
• Explain how young children use play to explore, assimilate and cope with trauma and loss
• Describe skills that are effective when working with traumatized parents and infants and young children
• Discuss the role protective factors and resilience play in a child’s ability to cope with trauma
• Understand basic brain development, and the importance of human relationships to the developing brain

3. Broadening our Understanding of Infants and Toddlers: The Impact of Development, Temperament and Sensory Integration

• Identify the various stages of development & the “jobs” of infants & toddlers
• Understand how the various stages of development are impacted by early relationships and environments
• Describe the three major temperamental styles and nine characteristics of temperament
• Discuss the process of sensory integration in very young children
• Learn ways to share information with families about children’s individual styles as a means of supporting the parent-child relationship

4. Culturally Responsive Framework for Working with Young Children and Families

• Understand where one finds “culture” when working with infants/toddlers and their families
• Learn what skills a home visitor needs to glean a family’s culture
• Understand the importance of family priorities and daily routines in promoting development
• Understand how one’s own cultural experience can impact interactions with families

5. Reflective Practice in the Workplace

• Define reflective practice and its importance
• Understand how to be reflective and how to promote reflection in others
• Understand what a reflective culture is and how it can be fostered in the workplace
• Practice strategies for using reflective practice

6. Incorporating Self-Care and Emotional Regulation Strategies into Home Visiting Practice

• Understand the biological impact of stress
• Experience and learn various relaxation and self-care techniques
• Understand the biological impact of relaxation and emotional regulation
• Understand the importance of incorporating relaxation, self-care and emotional regulation strategies into their personal and professional practice, including reflective supervision

 

C. IMH Training Series Curriculum for Child Welfare, Early Head Start & Community Providers:

1. Infant Toddler Development, Screenings, Assessments and Referrals: What is Appropriate and Available for Very Young Children and their Families?

This presentation will focus on an overview of infant/toddler development, screenings and assessments that include a relationship focus and that are appropriate for very young children and their families and finishing with when and where to make referrals.

Objectives:

• Understand the benefits of comprehensive screening for infants & toddlers
• Describe the various screening tools available for very young children
• Identify screening results and make appropriate referrals
• Identify the early intervention programs in CT that include infant mental health in their work with infants, toddlers & their families
• Use the screening process as an opportunity to support the parent-child relationship
• Identify strategies for working collaboratively across agencies and systems to benefit young children & their families

2. Integrating a Trauma Lens into Infant Mental Health Practice

This presentation will include a quick overview of underlying developmental assumptions, define trauma for infants and young children and why it matters, identify trauma effects, offer strategies for engaging families, suggest tools to use, and discuss applying learning to one’s work.

Objectives:

• Understand why trauma matters and its impact on relationship development
• Identify the effects of trauma on the young child, the parent, the relationship, and the provider
• Identify strategies for engaging families
• Identify techniques for increasing reflective capacity

3. Understanding Infant/Toddlers and their Families and the Challenges of Unresolved Loss and Trauma.

Working towards deeper integration between DCF and Head Start, including the following specific areas:

-Developmental issues of infants/toddlers and their families and what attachment looks like given this unresolved trauma, including the potency of disruption/repair

-What happens when families’ strategies break down: punishment, shame, control, including strategies to break the cycle and the importance of safety and validation

-Recognizing our own triggers and vulnerabilities, managing reactivity, and moving from reactivity to reflection

-Fine-tuning observation skills using multiple video case presentations for viewing and learning

Objectives:

• Have a deeper understanding of how the concept “disruption and repair” facilitates the encoding of secure attachment
• Articulate how healthy early childhood development becomes derailed by the witnessing or direct experience of scary or frightening events
• Facilitate an increase in reflective awareness, ability to observe & sensitivity to parent-infant interactions
• Understand the importance in developing strategies to emotionally regulate, slow down, & reflect, which is different than being in constant reactive mode
• Recognize the impact of parent’s own unresolved trauma and the second-generation effects of hyper vigilance with infants and children.
• Learn the value of establishing safety, acceptance and validation before asking for too much change.

 

4. Culturally Responsive Framework for working with young children and their families

Understanding the values, beliefs and assumptions that we bring to our work. Looking at culture in family systems, how culture affects caregiving/parenting, and how culture affects early attachments.

Objectives:

• To understand where one finds “culture” when working with infants/toddlers and their families
• To learn what skills a home visitor needs to glean a family’s culture
• To understand the importance of family priorities and daily routines in promoting development
• To understand how one’s own cultural experience can impact interactions with families.

 

5. Family Time Visitation: Promoting Parent-Child Relationships

Participants will learn why visitation important for infants, young children and their families and how to optimize visitations to ensure the best outcomes for young children.

Objectives:

• Understand infant mental health perspective when working in child welfare and Early Head Start
• Learn strategies important to home visiting that support multiple relationships
• Reflect on personal experiences and feelings in your work
• To learn strategies that promote bio parent and foster parent relationships
• Learn strategies that give parents the opportunity to parent

 

6. Reflective Practice How Infant Mental Health Principles Can Be Integrated into the Work Place

Participants will gain an understanding of the concepts embraced in reflective practice (respect, relate, reflect and repair), in practicing responses that promote reflective practice, and in developing plans for infusing reflective practice in their work places.

Objectives:

• Define reflective practice and its importance
• Understand how to be reflective
• Understand how to promote reflection in others
• Understand what a reflective culture is and how it can be fostered in the workplace
• Practice strategies for using reflective practice