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On an annual basis, Tribal Lead Agencies for the Child Care and Development Fund (CCDF) are required to submit aggregate information on services provided via the CCDF Tribal Annual Report, also known as the ACF-700 report. The ACF-700 report offers the Office of Child Care (OCC) a glimpse into how CCDF program dollars are being spent. The submitted report helps to tell the CCDF Tribal child care “story.” The data are essential for demonstrating the accomplishments of Tribal child care programs.
The Child Care and Development Fund (CCDF) is the primary federal funding source dedicated to providing child care assistance to families with low-incomes. As a block grant, CCDF gives funding to states, territories, and tribes to provide child care subsidies through vouchers or certificates to families with low incomes, and grants and contracts with providers in some states. CCDF provides access to child care services for working families with low incomes, so parents can work, attend school, or enroll in training. Additionally, CCDF promotes the healthy development of children by improving the quality of early learning and school-age experiences for both subsidized and unsubsidized children. Within the federal regulations, lead agencies administering CCDF decide how to administer the CCDF subsidy programs. States determine payment rates for child care providers, copayment amounts for families, specific eligibility requirements, and have some flexibilities on how to prioritize CCDF services.
This issue brief—based on interviews with eight Tribal Maternal, Infant, Early Childhood Home Visiting (Tribal MIECHV) grantees1— focuses on the ways in which home visiting programs can promote the development of early language and literacy skills, which are important aspects of child development. The brief starts with a short overview of early child development to illustrate how language, literacy, and culture are nested within overall development. It reviews why early language and literacy is important and the need for home visiting programs to be intentional in helping families support children’s language and literacy development. The brief shares examples of how Tribal MIECHV grantees are helping families build upon everyday activities from storytelling to singing, talking, reading, and other strategies. It also highlights
how some grantees are tapping into community resources to extend language and literacy offerings.