The Quality Child Care Niagara (QCCN) program provides ECE’s with the tools and training they need to ensure that the individual child as well as the group can be successful in all required learning activities, and can derive the maximum developmental benefit from them.
The training and continued support provided through QCCN facilitates opportunities for ECE’s to create developmentally based programming for all children enrolled in licensed child care settings across Niagara region.
Many Licensed Child Care Centres experience children with challenging behaviours. Quality Child Care Niagara (QCCN) has many facets of training for ECE’s including the CARE checklist. The purpose of this website is to give ECE’s a place where they can go to ask questions on challenging behaviours and questions related to the CARE checklist.
If you do not see an answer to your question below, please click on the envelope 
to submit your question.
Questions
Q 1. Why is it important to observe a child’s behaviour?
Q 3. Why is C.A.R.E. checklist broken down into three categories?
Q 4. Where can I obtain more CARE checklist forms?
Q 6. Are the CARE checklists mandatory in all licensed centres?
Q 8. Can a family access parenting help without a CARE checklist being done?
Q 9. How do we help a child in our centre who is 4 years old and has severe fears?
Q 10. Is there some type of checklist that I can use on children who are over 72 months of age?
Answers
1. Why is it important to observe a child’s behaviour?
Answer: All behaviour should be seen as being diagnostic and informative. This does not mean that the child’s behaviour is the result or a symptom of psychological or emotional problems. It does mean that the behaviour of a child when observed over a period of time and examined within the context of his or her environment provides adults with insight into the child’s thoughts and how he or she may likely respond to certain situations.
2. I have heard it said that it is important to stop children from practicing wrong behaviours. Does this mean the child is intentionally trying to be negative?
Answer: Usually children who are ‘practicing’ behaviours are not trying to be negative for the sole purpose of being negative. Children are practicing each day a great number of new skills and behaviours. Most often these are appropriate skills and behaviours. Young children need to practice in order to master the skill or behaviour. If the specific behaviour is seen as negative or inappropriate it is essential to assist the child in developing a new appropriate skill, behaviour, or positive method of responding to his or her environment. If we allow the child to continue with the negative behaviour it will become entrenched and then it is more difficult to correct or modify.
3. Why is C.A.R.E. checklist broken down into three categories?
Answer: Currently we have not had enough completed C.A.R.E checklists to identify reliable and valid interpretations of these categories. The goal is to provide child care professionals with more insight into what specific scores within each of these three categories or indices (actions, relationships, emotions) so that specific suggestions can be provided and implemented in the day care for that child based on their scores in the one or more of the categories.
4. Where can I obtain more CARE checklist forms?
Answer: You may obtain CARE forms from the ECCDC by calling 905-646-7311 ext. 300 or 308.
5. I have a child between 24-42 months of age that scored a 62 on the CARE checklist. What direction should I take with this child.
Answer: According to the CARE checklist a score between 45-69 for a child 24-42 months would require a referral to NCYS' Niagara Preschool Regional Services (NPRS).
6. Are the CARE checklists mandatory in all licensed centres?
Answer: The CARE checklist is a QCCN tool to assist in the appropriate referral of children with behavioural issues.
7. Should we still do a CARE checklist if the child has been diagnosed and if they are already involved with NCYS? My instinct is yes, not as a tool to get a referral, but as a way to begin to plan an intervention.
Answer: Yes you are correct. It is useful for planning and for tracking and providing update on treatment success to the therapist.
8. Can a family access parenting help without a CARE checklist being done?
Answer: Yes but for parenting support only we have to charge a fee.
9. How do we help a child in our centre who is 4 years old and has severe fears? He was so fearful of Halloween time that he wouldn't go in any stores for fear of Halloween decorations. We thought that it would pass when Halloween was over but now he is fearful of Santa. Ever since he was under 1 year of age, he was fearful of stuffed animals. Now he is afraid of loud noises, which includes the vacuum, etc. I took him to a department store last week and he actually had terror in his eyes. I can't avoid these stores. We want to know how to help him.
Answer: It would be helpful if you could complete the CARE form which has specific items we could discuss. From your very brief description it appears that he has a very real fear which manifests with typical anxiety symptoms. It sounds as if he could benefit from counseling. I would suggest making a referral through Contact Niagara to NCYS.
10. Is there some type of checklist that I can use on children who are over 72 months of age?
Answer: A Behaviour checklist for school age children is in the the development stage and should be ready late Fall 2009.
* If you do not see the answer to your question above please click on the envelope to submit your own question.
