Promising Practices

Filed under Evidence-Based Practice, Education / School Environment, Children

Goal: The goal of this program is to promote social and emotional learning (SEL) and character development, to prevent bullying, and to build the problem-solving abilities and other life skills required for positive relationships throughout students' lives.

Impact: One study found that PATH students performed significantly better than their counterparts on the sociometric tests for aggression and hyperactivity-disruptive behavior according to peer sociometric reports. The PATH classrooms also received better observer ratings for their overall classroom atmosphere.

Filed under Evidence-Based Practice, Health / Physical Activity, Children, Urban

Goal: To promote water consumption with an educational and environmental intervention in elementary schools of deprived urban areas to prevent overweight.

Impact: This program shows that environmental and educational, school-based interventions can have effective impact in the prevention of overweight among children in elementary school, even in a population from socially-deprived areas.

Filed under Evidence-Based Practice, Education / Student Performance K-12, Children, Teens, Families

Goal: The Raising Healthy Children program is a social development approach to positive youth development.

Filed under Evidence-Based Practice, Education / Literacy, Children, Adults, Families

Goal: The mission of Reach Out and Read is to help prepare young children to succeed in school, by partnering with physicians to encouraging parents and children to read aloud together.

Impact: Reach Out and Read improves children's language development by 3-6 months and improves language ability with increased exposure to the program.

Filed under Evidence-Based Practice, Education / Literacy, Children, Adults, Families, Urban

Goal: Reach Out and Read prepares America's youngest children to succeed in school by partnering with doctors to encourage families
to read together.

Filed under Evidence-Based Practice, Health / Children's Health, Children, Racial/Ethnic Minorities, Urban

Goal: The goal of the Reducing Environmental Triggers of Asthma intervention is to improve asthma control by removing environmental allergens and irritants from the home.

Filed under Evidence-Based Practice, Community / Governance, Children

Goal: The goal of requiring that all Connecticut children receive at least 1 dose of influenza vaccine each year to attend a licensed child care program and preschool setting is to reduce influenza transmission and decrease influenza-associated hospitalizations statewide.

Impact: Requiring vaccination for admission into a licensed child care program or preschool program has helped to increase vaccination rates among children in Connecticut and reduced serious morbidity from influenza statewide.

Filed under Evidence-Based Practice, Health / Children's Health, Children, Families, Urban

Goal: The goal of Romp & Chomp is to increase healthy eating and physical activity in order to reduce overweight and obesity in children less than 5 years of age.

Impact: The Romp & Chomp program was a multistrategy and multisetting community based intervention designed to reduce childhood obesity by encouraging healthy eating and active play. The program results have shown that Romp & Chomp, working alongside other health promotion programs, was successful in reducing the prevalence of childhood obesity.

Filed under Evidence-Based Practice, Community / Domestic Violence & Abuse, Children, Teens

Goal: The goals of the program are to increase students’ awareness of what constitutes healthy versus abusive dating relationships; to increase students’ awareness of dating abuse as well as its causes and consequences; to equip students with the skills and resources to help themselves or friends in abusive dating relationships; and to equip students with the skills to develop healthy dating relationships, including positive communication, anger management, and conflict resolution.

Impact: Safe Dates educates and equips youth to identify, address, and mitigate abusive and violent dating relationships.

Filed under Evidence-Based Practice, Health / Children's Health, Children, Adults, Families, Urban

Goal: The mission of Safety Stop is to increase the number of children who are properly secured in safety seats during trips made in a vehicle by educating parents and caregivers participating in Safety Stop car seat fittings and consultations.

Impact: Safety Stop increased mean scores on child safety seat knowledge by 5% (p < 0.01) among participating parents and caregivers.