• A comprehensive guide prepared by experienced Canadian experts in early childhood education, early intervention, child development, home visiting and family support.
• A section on making an effective telephone contact and a framework for the initial home visit, which is different from all the rest
• A section on sharing the planning process with families
• 50 activities that strengthen such parenting capacities as confidence, self-esteem, resourcefulness, sensitivity, problem solving, communication, and motivation
• A section of corresponding handouts that can be reproduced and shared with families
• The Comfort, Play and Teach section that contains over 150 parent-child focused activities for the ages 0 - 5 years in the areas of cognitive, social-emotional and language development
• A section of Frequently Asked Questions that relate to common parenting issues/concerns in the early years of development

• To enhance the skills and knowledge of home visitors in planning effective visits with families
• To increase the repertoire of strategies that support families to reach their goals
• To strengthen a more inclusive approach toward working with families
• To facilitate the application of theory and research into practice

RESOURCE GUIDE FOR HOME VISITORS

1. Protocol Section
   Focus:
   • Effective telephone contact
   • Framework for the first home visit
   • Preparation for successive visits
   • Planning process with families
   • Family planning sheet



2. Strengthening parenting capacities
   Focus:
   • Self-esteem
   • Confidence
   • Coping
   • Knowledge of child development
   • Problem solving
   • Communication
   • Values and beliefs
   • Resourcefulness



3. Activities to enhance early development
   Focus:
   • Framework of Comfort, Play and Teach
   • Areas of development – Language, Social- Emotional and Cognitive
   • Ages: 0-6m; 6-12m; 12-18m; 18-24m; 2-3 yrs; 3-4 yrs; 4-5 yrs.
   • Developmental milestones



4. Frequently asked questions
   Topics Include: