Focus Area

Early Childhood

The early years of life from birth to age six are among the most formative and developmentally critical – the brain is growing, motor skills are being developed, and social emotional skills are being learned. But for the 556,160 children under age 6 experiencing homelessness, these milestones are at risk.

Early Childhood Goal: All young children and expectant parents experiencing homelessness (prenatal to age six) are identified, enrolled, and participate in high-quality early childhood programs. Young children meet developmental milestones and enter kindergarten ready to learn.

Homelessness is a traumatic experience that harms young children and has been found to be associated with delays in language, literacy, and social-emotional development, putting children at risk for later academic problems. The younger and longer a child experiences homelessness, the greater the cumulative toll of negative health outcomes, which can have lifelong effects on the child, the family, and the community.

Thrive From The Start

Every infant and toddler deserves a safe, stable, and nurturing start in life. That’s why we’ve joined forces with Housing Is, Prevent Child Abuse America, and ZERO TO THREE to launch Thrive From The Start—a cross-sector effort dedicated to addressing homelessness among infants, toddlers, and expectant parents.

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Case Studies

Highlighting programs in Chicago, Fort Worth, and Boston, emphasizing early childhood development, family support, and removing barriers to service access.

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Head Start App

The goal of this app is to increase the enrollment of young children experiencing homelessness by serving as a link between K12 school districts and the Head Start and Early Head Start programs in their community who can serve them.

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Our Early Childhood Work

Providing practical assistance to early childhood development programs and school districts to better understand what the law requires and strategies for supporting young children experiencing homelessness;
Publishing data, resources, and tools to expand access to high-quality early childhood development programs for families experiencing homelessness;
Advocating for policies that remove barriers for families experiencing homelessness to access high-quality early childhood development programs.
Providing strategic support to state and national partners working at the intersection of homelessness and early childhood education.

Building Early Access, Care, and Opportunities Nationwide (BEACON) for Children Experiencing Homelessness

BEACON for children experiencing homelessness puts practical tools and training directly into the hands of the providers who work with young children every day – in early childhood, housing, homeless assistance, child welfare, and health care.

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