Building Support for Healthy Standards Among Child Care Providers

Messaging is an important consideration for CACFP childcare leadership, and should be strategic, not incidental. Messaging is the intentional choice of words to help internal and external stakeholders understand the values, personality and goals of your organization. Messaging can also help inspire others to your cause. To this end, it's important to cultivate positive messaging around healthy lifestyles in your childcare setting.

Child care professionals want to do what’s best for children. Setting consistent standards for nutrition, physical activity, and screen time in child care is one way to ensure all child care settings can help children grow up healthy. Messaging can be an effective method of sharing information and encouraging healthy behaviors. In an effort to develop messages that would increase support for strong, consistent standards, Child Care Aware® of America has developed a healthy standards messaging toolbox for child care professionals. This healthy standards toolbox was developed as the result of focus groups conducted with child care professionals (teachers and providers) in six states.