0-5 Advocacy Guide

introduction

This guide has everything you, as a leader of a local CASA program in Texas, will need to know to get started with, or to enhance volunteer advocacy for, the infant and toddler population. The information shared here has been complied and provided by Child Advocates of Fort Bend (CAFB), and their model Safe Babies Court and Infant and Toddler CASA program.

The infant and toddler (zero to five) population is the largest group affected by maltreatment across the United States. In the state of Texas, approximately 47% of children in foster care are ages zero to five. This is the largest population that most CASA programs in Texas serve, so it is key for volunteers to understand the challenges and needs of this vulnerable population. CASA programs can expand services to address the specific needs of the infant and toddler population, and volunteers can support enhanced advocacy for this age group in various ways:

  1. CASA volunteers can recognize the early years are critical in early childhood development,
  2. They can advocate for children’s health and medical care,
  3. They can observe children’s cognitive and milestone development,
  4. They can facilitate connections between families of origin and foster families to build a support network, and
  5. CASA volunteers can be trained to amplify the positive and help parents value the possible, in themselves and their children, during parent-child visits. By modeling during parent-child visitations, advocates can gently guide parents to support their children’s optimal cognitive, emotional and social development.

How to Use this Guide

Scroll through the entire page to check out all of the available resources or use the section guide below to jump to specific areas of focus.

background information

Here is some material that you can utilize to learn about the history of the Infant and Toddler Project. This pamphlet may be downloaded and shared with your court, board or any other stakeholders if you decide you want to focus in on this advocacy.
View Handout

Why create a focus on work with children zero to five?

As a result of the involvement in the Infant and Toddler Court Team, Child Advocates of Fort Bend’s CASA program expanded services to address the specific needs of the infant and toddler population. This program recognizes that the early years are critical in early childhood development. CASA volunteers observe children’s health and medical care, as well as their cognitive and milestone development, and facilitate connections between families of origin and foster families to build support networks utilizing Collaborative Family Engagement. During parent-child visits, CASA volunteers are trained to amplify the positive and help parents value the possible in themselves and their children. By modeling during parent-child visitations, volunteers can empower parents to support their children’s optimal cognitive, emotional and social development. In the Infant and Toddler program, volunteers spend more time with younger children and attend court more frequently (monthly), recognizing change occurs rapidly during these critical years in a child’s life. Volunteers serving children in the Infant and Toddler Court have reported they feel parents, CASA, CPS and service providers are held more accountable due to the frequency of the hearings. Actions steps must be completed promptly as the next court date occurs quickly. Collaboration is also a key component to the program. Parents are provided with a wraparound service response as many of the service providers attend court to provide feedback.

The Infant and Toddler Court Team has had a significant impact on the way Fort Bend County serves the population. It changed the frame of work to focus on the parent-child relationship in cases. It is imperative for babies to build and continue a bond with their parents for reunification to occur. All the research shows that children do best with their families of origin. If possible, we want reunification to occur for infants and toddlers in a safe approach and as quickly as possible. CASA volunteers must be ready and willing to work with the parents and advocate for the needs of the whole family to best serve the child.

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Safe Babies Court Model

The National Zero to Three organization has developed Court Team models that understand the urgency to achieve permanency and foster connections for children in this age range. These courts are named Safe Babies Courts. While your community may not have a court model that specializes in infants and toddlers currently, your CASA program can gather information about the Safe Babies Courts and share the information and resources with your judicial leadership and legal community.

The following documents outline more information about Safe Babies Courts:

  • Infant and Toddler Courts - This presentation gives an overview of the history of Safe Babies Courts in Tennessee and how the court model evolved.
  • Baby Courts RJOI - This document is additional information about core components of Safe Babies Courts and the role the court plays with supporting parents who are in the CPS system and have children ages zero to five.
  • Infant and Toddler Court Teams - This document outlines the accomplishments/outcomes of the work of the pilot Safe Babies Court programs supported by Zero to Three Advocacy.
  • Safe Babies Court Teams’ Logic Model - Document that outlines challenges, resources, key activities, and short- and long-term impacts of work with within the court system for children ages zero to five.
  • Parent/Court Partnerships for Judges - Tip sheet on how judges and the court can be more focused on trauma responses when dealing with parents and children in the zero-to-five population.
  • Core Components of Safe Babies Courts - This document provides an overview of this model court, why it’s important, and the main points for a volunteer to know.
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Getting Started in Your Program

CASA programs may decide to have designated and specially trained volunteers focusing on this age range, or may decide to equip all their volunteers with the skills and training necessary for advocating for this young and vulnerable population. Child Advocates of Fort Bend has designated Infant Toddler Court-Appointed Special Advocates who primarily work with children from birth through to age five. These specially trained volunteers closely observe children’s health and medical care, as well as their cognitive and milestone development, and facilitate connections between families of origin and foster families to build support networks. During parent-child visits, these volunteers amplify the positive and help parents value the possible in themselves and their children. By modeling during parent-child visitations, advocates gently guide parents to support their children’s optimal cognitive, emotional and social development.

It is important to know that in the Infant and Toddler program, volunteers spend more time with younger children and attend court more frequently, recognizing change occurs rapidly during these critical years in a child’s life. 

The following documents will help you get started as a program as you look at recruiting, training and supporting volunteers.

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Advocacy for Infants & Children Up to Age Five

There are three main components to Child Advocates of Fort Bend’s Infant and Toddler Program, which center around education, medical and parental visits. 

A. Educational Advocacy

The more volunteers can know about resources and areas of need for education for this age group, the better.  The role of the volunteer is to do educational advocacy for the child, but in the Infant and Toddler Program, this information may also be shared with the child’s parent by the volunteer. This will help the parent make sure their child is on track for school success.

Teachers and childcare providers are an invaluable source of information about the child as they often spend a large part of the day observing and interacting with the child in multiple situations. Asking them questions about what they observe and any concerns they have. Keeping an open dialogue with them is helpful is recommended. Examples of questions that are important to ask include:

  • Does the infant make eye contact and appropriate facial responses when learning activities or when new stimuli are introduced?
  • Does the infant respond to music and textures when introduced>
  • How does the child get along with other children?
  • How do they get along with grown-ups?
  • Any issues in their ability to form relationships with others?
  • How well does the child stay on task?
  • Are there any disruptive behaviors that you might see from the child during the day?
  • Are there specific situations where the child appears to be, or is, dysregulated?

B. Medical Advocacy

Another important opportunity for advocacy for the CASA volunteer will be with the medical team working with the child, if applicable. As part of CASA advocacy, learning about development of young children and discussing any concerns with both the parents and doctor is critical. This will also help you advocate for any additional medical resources that you feel may be beneficial for the child. Recognizing delays and bringing that information forward to parents, CPS/SSCC and the medical team is a helpful and important thing you can do.  At any point in the case, you can speak with DFPS about requesting any additional screenings. It is very important to get any medical screenings done as early as possible so interventions can occur quickly. DFPS has different assessments with which all volunteers should be familiar. They include:

  • ECI - According to Texas Health and Human Services (HHS), Early Childhood Intervention (ECI) “is a statewide program within the Texas Health and Human Services Commission for families with children birth up to age three, who have developmental delays, disabilities or certain medical diagnoses that may impact development. ECI services support families as they learn how to help their children grow and learn.”[1]  The goal is always to have any screenings done as early as possible so the treatment plan can start sooner rather than later.
  • 3 in 30 - What are the components of 3 in 30?[2]
    1. 3-day Medical Exam – Within three business days, children entering DFPS care must see a doctor to be checked for injuries or illnesses and get any treatments they need.
    2. Child and Adolescent Needs and Strengths (CANS) Assessment - Within 30 days, children (ages 3-17) must get a CANS assessment. The CANS is a comprehensive, trauma-informed behavioral health evaluation and communication tool. It is intended to prevent duplicate assessments by multiple parties, decrease unnecessary psychological testing, aid in identifying placement and treatment needs, and inform case planning decisions. CANS assessments help decision-making, drive service planning, facilitate quality improvement, and allow for outcomes assessments. The CANS is an evaluation that helps to understand any impact of trauma a child may have been through, and how they are doing. CANS identifies services that may help the child, such as counseling, as well as existing strengths to build on, such as positive relationships.
    3. Texas Health Steps Medical Checkup - Within 30 days, children must see a doctor for a complete check-up with lab work. This makes sure that:
      • Medical issues are addressed early,
      • Children are growing and developing as expected, and
      • Parents and caregivers know how to support strong growth and development.
[1] https://www.hhs.texas.gov/services/disability/early-childhood-intervention-services

[2] https://www.dfps.state.tx.us/Child_Protection/Medical_Services/3-in-30.asp

C. Parent-Child Visits

The parent/child visit is an important tool for all involved and is especially crucial for infants and young children. Ensuring that parents get quality and ample time with their child consistently throughout the life of the court case should be considered a necessity. The visit provides volunteers with an opportunity to help parents in a variety of ways, such as learning about physical and emotional development, school readiness and aiding them to build and maintain a strong bond with their child.

Observing visits is also a good time for CASA volunteers to get know the child’s parents as people, for who they really are as humans. This is an opportunity to build a working and trusting relationship between the volunteer and the parent, and to learn more about them and their family. During the visit, the volunteer can utilize a CFE tool to engage with them and learn more about them and their story. Visits for the zero to five age group may be more interactive between the parent, child and volunteer than visits involving older children. While the visit is for the parent and their child, it presents an opportunity for the volunteer to model supportive, nurturing behavior. Ensuring the visit is a positive, productive experience for both child and parent supports the goal of parent/child reunification.

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Positive Visitation Practice

The positive visitation practice was created at CAFB and with their community partners to help ensure that visits between children and their parents are positive, and that nurturing behaviors are reinforced through modeling from the volunteer. This practice approach may or may not be utilized in your CASA program. CASA volunteers who are trained in positive visitation practice should consult with their CASA supervisor before utilizing the positive visitation practice explained here. Again, only volunteers who have been trained in the positive visitation practice should utilize this approach. Any positive visitation practice work should also be done in consultation with the CPS/SSCC caseworker, the attorney ad litem and other service providers for the parents and children.

In positive visitation practice, there is an emphasis for the CASA volunteer to be “looking for the positive” during the visit, that they can then reinforce with the parent. This is important because sometimes parents can feel that being observed during visits is adversarial and may result in negative observations being reported in court. They may worry that the visit could end up being a barrier towards a successful reunification/permanency. For the parent, being observed during their visit may be an added worry to what is already a stressful and unnatural situation.

CASA volunteers play an integral role in painting a picture of what is happening in a child’s life for the court. The court needs an accurate depiction of the parent-child relationship to help determine what is in the best interest of the child. By understanding the dynamics of the parent-child relationship, CASA volunteers can make an informed recommendation about the parents’ access to a child and reunification. When observing visits, CASA volunteers might look for several factors: parent/child interaction, emotional reactions of the child, parent understanding of appropriate play, toys, snacks, appropriate use of touch.

CASA volunteers should know and understand that their role is not to insert themselves in a visit; however, it is very important for volunteers to recognize when a parent may be struggling in a visit and in need of additional resources to help them and their child have a positive experience. The CASA volunteer can encourage positive interaction between the child and parent by gentle guidance and through mirroring. Positive visitation practice is an approach that CASA volunteers can utilize to model and reinforce bonding behaviors between child and parent. By engaging in positive visitation practices, a parent learns how to interact positively with their child in a safe environment. The volunteer is there to engage the parents, model for them and observe. It always needs to be remembered that the visitations are for the parents and their child: the primary purpose is not about teaching or modeling for the parent and the information should not be forced upon them. However, it is an opportunity that can be presented to the parent. Volunteers are there to assist the visit so that it can be safe, enjoyable and time for connections and bonding for the infant or young child and their parent. Additional information regarding positive information can be found in the Volunteer Advocacy Guide (coming Summer 2023).

Key components of the positive visitation practice include:

A. Parent-Child Visit Observation

B. Visitation Bag

The visitation bag is a key tool in positive visitation practice and is utilized with parents during the visits. The visitation bag is one way to support happy, healthy, productive and positive visitation. Visitation bags can be made or picked up at the CASA office, and then brought to the visit by the CASA volunteer.

  • Visitation Bag Explanation
  • How to Use the Visitation Bag: A printable trifold that explains what a visitation bag is and provides suggested items.
  • Infant & Toddler Visit Bag Guide
  • Visitation Bag Items: Please find the list of items that were provided in your Zero to Five Visitation bag. These items are only suggestions. CAFB suggests utilizing a wish list so donors can provide items needed for the bags.
  • Sensory Items
  • Making Homemade Sensory Toys Overview: Sensory toys help to build nerve connections in the brain. It encourages the development of motor skills. It supports language development. It encourages 'scientific thinking' and problem solving. Not all parents can afford sensory toys. Items to make these toys may be bought at the Dollar Store, Thrift Stores, Family Dollar, etc. Volunteers are encouraged to bring these toys to visits and educate the parents on the importance of play with Sensory Toys. Homemade sensory toy kits will be provided to parents should they like to make their own toys.

    Below are some examples of homemade sensory toys that CAFB utilize. There are many other examples of sensory items you can make at home. Feel free to be creative and adapt the item to the child you are visiting with.

C. TBRI®

Trust-Based Relational Intervention® (TBRI®) is an attachment-based, trauma-informed intervention that is designed to meet the complex needs of vulnerable children. CAFB’s volunteers are TBRI® trained and bring this trauma-informed lens to their interactions and advocacy with both children and their parents. TBRI® offers many different resources and tools that CASA programs and volunteers can use in their advocacy for infants and toddlers. For more information, please visit the TBRI website.

It may be helpful for CASA volunteers to initially observe the parent-child visit to determine if the parent may need a more structured format to help them during the visitation. If it is determined there is a need, the volunteer can meet with the parent to discuss the challenges they feel came up during the visit. Based on the discussion, the volunteer can help the parents develop their own visitation timeline utilizing the visitation timeline document as a guide. It is important for parents to develop their own plan for their time with their child. Creating their own plan and timeline for their visit supports the parent to have a sense of autonomy and control in their situation.  

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Resources for Volunteers

See below for Resources that volunteers can use in their 0-5 advocacy.

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Additional Resources

Here are some additional resources that can be used to support advocacy with children zero to five years of age.

Books

  • The Connected Parent by Karen Purvis
  • What Happened to You? by Bruce D. Perry, M.D., Ph.D., and Oprah Winfrey
  • Retelling the Stories of Our Lives: Everyday Narrative to Draw Inspiration and Transform Experience by David Denborough
  • Books by Cindy R Lee
    • Redo Roo.
    • It’s Tough to be Gentle
    • Doggie Doesn’t Know Yet
    • Baby Owl Lost Her Whoo
    • The Penguin and the Fine Looking Fish

Videos

Podcasts

Websites

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