Guidance and Resources from the California Department of Education (CDE)
Information from the California Department of Education (CDE), Early Learning and Care Division (ELCD) for Executive Directors and Program Directors of All State Subsidized Early Learning and Care Programs
- MB 20-17 Requirements for Distance Learning Plans, Program Quality and Distance Learning Services for Direct Service Contractors
- Early Learning and Care Resources for Family Engagement and Professional Development
- Reopening and Transitioning for Direct Contract Programs
- Upcoming Guidance and Family Fees
- Serving School-Age Children During Distance Learning
- Management Bulletin 20-10 Family Child Care Home Education Network
- Management Bulletin 20-09 Program Self Evaluation, Contract Monitoring, and Program Quality Requirements
Resources from the Field - Have an idea? Please share it with us!
Mrs. Lineth Garcia is a bilingual preschool teacher teaching children both virtually and in person. She has lots of great ideas to share with you!
Ideas from Mrs Garcia's classroom: "Mrs. Garcia creates the majority in Google docs or slides and saves them as PDFs to send to parents. Then the hyperlinks still work to redirect them to our Google Meets/videos/reminders. Since they are saved as PDFs, families cannot make changes to the actual documents."
- Agenda: Example of the agenda I create and send out prior to our scheduled Google Meet on Friday
- List of items in the bag
- Distance Learning Circle Time: Invitation to Google Meets with class rules
- I created a 'virtual classroom' that looks like our classroom with clickable links.
Mrs. Garcia also creates videos of the songs, stories, and dances that she will be using in her classroom that week. Below are two video examples:
Resources for Teachers and Administrators in a Virtual Environment
- DRDP Measures: Things to Observe Virtually PDF
- Observing and Documenting for the infant/toddler and preschool DRDP measures by level: Resources with ideas for families and teachers on supporting children's learning
- Watch Me Grow - I/T Modified Essential View DOC
- Watch Me Grow - PS Modified Essential View DOC
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Observing and Documenting for the DRDP-K measures by level: Resources with ideas for families and teachers on supporting children's learning
- DRDP-K Approaches to Learning–Self-Regulation (ATL-REG) measures PDF
- DRDP-K Social Emotional Development (SED) measures PDF
- DRDP-K Cognition, Including Math and Science (COG:MATH) PDF
- DRDP-K Language and Literacy Development (LLD) measures PDF
- DRDP-K English Language Development (ELD) measures PDF
- DRDP-K Physical Development–Health (PD-HLTH) measures PDF
Resources for Teachers and Administrators Onsite
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Trauma-Informed Care: Nurturing Resilience and Connection During COVID-19 1 modules/1.00 hour | Available in English and Spanish at California Early Childhood Online (CECO)
Resources to Support Child Care Providers and Programs for Reopening and Transition
Newly Released COVID-19 Guidance for Child Care
California for All Kids Early Learning and Care Playbook
Reopening for Direct Contract Programs
The CDE, ELCD understands that the rapidly changing context around the novel coronavirus pandemic poses considerable challenges to early learning and care providers. The CDE, ELCD is working on developing guidance that implements the 2020–21 Budget Act and related legislation. This notice provides information regarding the implementation of the requirement for programs to reopen.
Direct Contract Program Reopening
The 2020–21 Education Omnibus Budget Trailer Bill (Senate Bill [SB] 98) requires programs operated by the contracting agency to open by September 8, 2020, or within 21 calendar days from the start date of the contracting agency’s 2020–21 program calendar approved by the department, whichever is sooner. Per SB 98, programs can only be funded to be physically closed if they are closed due to a state or local public health order. The CDE, ELCD recognizes that many direct contract programs will not be able to open for in-person early learning and care before this deadline for reasons such as site closures.
The CDE, ELCD is working on a management bulletin that will define what it means to be closed by a local or state public health order due to the COVID-19 pandemic, as provided by SB 98. The MB will seek to address various situations that arise locally, including (1) orders that broadly close childcare and/or preschool programs, (2) orders that specifically close an agency’s childcare and/or preschool program, and (3) situations where a direct contract program is operated by or on the campus of a local educational agency (LEA). The CDE, ELCD will also be issuing additional guidance addressing what distance learning means and what must be addressed in the distance learning plan required by SB 98.
Until the CDE, ELCD has released this MB, direct contract programs, including the California State Preschool Program (CSPP), General Child Care (CCTR), and California Migrant Child Care (CMIG), that are operated by a LEA or operate on a LEA campus, including community-based organizations that operate on a LEA campus, may physically close and continue to be funded when the LEA site has determined it may not open. This guidance includes only programs operating on a LEA campus. Other program models not on a LEA campus must remain open unless these programs have been directed to close by a state or local public health department per situations numbers 1 and 2 above. Any ELC program or program component that closes as a result of these conditions must provide distance learning for enrolled children and families.
Once the LEA or the state or local public health agency decides its campus(es) are safe to reopen, the programs on the respective LEA campus(es) must physically reopen as well.
In addition, both LEA and non-LEA direct contract programs have the ability to revise their program calendars due to situations where they are unable to open within 21 calendar days of their operating calendar, and where the closure is not due to a state or local public health order. If a direct contract program is closed for a reason other than a state or local public health order, the program must reopen by September 8, pursuant to SB 98. Revised program calendars do not need to be submitted at this time; the forthcoming MB will include detailed guidance on calendar revisions as applicable.
If you have questions regarding the information in this email, please contact your assigned Program Quality Implementation Regional Consultant on the ELCD Consultants Regional Assignments web page at https://www.cde.ca.gov/sp/cd/ci/assignments.asp .
Upcoming Guidance and Family Fees
The CDE, ELCD would like to thank local partners and programs for all of your efforts in supporting children and families during this incredibly difficult time. We acknowledge each and every one of you who are continuing to support the children and families of California. Whether you are currently open, preparing to open, or preparing for distance learning, the ELCD acknowledges your need for guidance at this time. We appreciate your efforts and continue to work with the Legislature and the Administration in order to provide the direction you need.
To address concerns regarding the collection of family fees in a variety of situations, the CDE, ELCD engaged with the Legislature and the Administration on a solution to waive family fees for July and August 2020. Further, the CDE understands the Administration and Legislature plan to address the fee cost in August Budget Actions.
Contractors must immediately suspend collecting any family fees for the month of August and must notify families and providers that the fees for July and August have been waived, pursuant to the Superintendent’s authority provided by Education Code Section 8209. In addition, contractors should not disenroll families for non-payment of family fees until further guidance is released from the CDE. This guidance will address family fees for emergency childcare, distance learning, reimbursing families for paid fees, reimbursing providers for fees not collected, and other issues.
In addition, we understand the urgent need for information and appreciate your patience as we work hard to implement Management Bulletins (MBs) based on the Fiscal Year 2020–21 Budget Act.
As a reminder, the CDE will be releasing MBs for direction and guidance covering the following topics:
- Direct contract programs–regarding distance learning, Desired Results Developmental Profiles (DRDPs), contract reimbursement, and related issues
- Alternative Payment & Data–regarding provider payment and data collection requirements
- Resource and Referrals (R&Rs) and Local Planning Councils (LPCs)–regarding data collection requirements and supply distribution
- Family Fees – regarding family fees for children that are distance learning and addressing family fees paid for July and August.
Please visit our Early Learning and Care Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) web page for the latest updates at https://www.cde.ca.gov/sp/cd/re/covid19elcdfaq.asp.
If you have questions regarding the information in this email, please contact your assigned Program Quality Implementation Regional Consultant on the ELCD Consultants Regional Assignments web page at https://www.cde.ca.gov/sp/cd/ci/assignments.asp.
Guidance for Serving School-Age Children During Distance Learning
The CDE, ELCD would like to thank local partners and programs for all of your efforts in supporting children and families during this incredibly difficult time. We acknowledge each and every one of you who are continuing to support the children and families of California. Whether you are currently open, preparing to open, or preparing for distance learning, the ELCD acknowledges your need for guidance at this time. We appreciate your efforts and continue to work with the Legislature and the Administration in order to provide the direction you need.
The ELCD knows that many school districts are beginning the school year with distance learning; therefore, school-age children need care during their parent’s work hours. The ELCD also knows that questions have arisen about how to interpret California Code of Regulations, Title 5 (5 CCR), section 18076.2, which does not allow CalWORKs Stage 2 (C2AP), CalWORKs Stage 3 (C3AP), California Alternative Payment Program (CAPP), California Migrant Alternative Payment Program (CMAP), and Family Child Care Home Education Network (CFCC) contractors to reimburse providers during “scheduled instructional minutes” of a public or private educational program that the child is enrolled and attending.
Since K-12 distance learning does not provide supervision for children, the CDE does not consider it to be scheduled instructional minutes for the purposes of reimbursing providers.
Therefore, providers shall be reimbursed for care during the time a school-age child is participating in K-12 distance learning and attending their childcare program or provider during the typical school hours.
If the child is participating in a hybrid model (in-person instruction and distance learning) the provider may only be reimbursed for the time that the child is not receiving in-person instruction.
Contractors are responsible for budgeting their contract funds to ensure providers will be reimbursed for an increase in the cost of care associated with school-age children that are participating in distance learning.
The ELCD will be revising Management Bulletin (MB) 20-15 to include this clarification. Until that MB is released, the guidance in this listserv should be utilized when making payments to providers.
Please visit our Early Learning and Care Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) website for the latest updates at https://www.cde.ca.gov/sp/cd/re/covid19elcdfaq.asp.
If you have questions regarding the information in this email, please contact your assigned Program Quality Implementation Regional Consultant on the ELCD Consultants Regional Assignments website at https://www.cde.ca.gov/sp/cd/ci/assignments.asp.
