Better Together
Better Together was a project led by Nemours Children’s Health and Go NAPSACC at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill from 2019-2022.
Implemented in Arizona, Arkansas, Indiana, and Mississippi, Better Together improved healthy eating and physical activity policies, environments, and practices within state systems and participating early care and education (ECE) programs. The project focused training efforts on ECE programs in under-resourced communities. Better Together included four components:
1) Statewide systems change;
2) Learning Collaboratives to provide focused training support and peer-learning opportunities to ECE program staff;
3) Building a Statewide Go NAPSACC network; and
4) Family Cafés focused on nutrition and physical activity topics.
Developed through Better Together, updated ECE Learning Collaborative resources and new Family Café materials are available to download.
- Better Together Learning Collaboratives
The Better Together Learning Collaboratives include four modules that integrate the online Go NAPSACC program self-assessments and tools into the Learning Collaborative framework. Users can use and adapt these materials to plan and implement their own Learning Collaboratives with ECE programs.
The Better Together Learning Collaboratives bring together Leadership Teams from various early care and education (ECE) programs to learn about healthy habits in ECE settings while sharing experiences with each other and implementing new strategies in their own programs.
Through the Learning Collaboratives, ECE program staff connect with trainers and each other to create healthier environments for young children.
- Better Together Family Cafés
Nemours Children’s and Curricula Concepts implemented Family Cafés as part of Better Together from 2021 – 2022. These Cafés promote positive, experience-based approaches and practices in ECE settings and to strengthen ECE program and family relationships.
A family café creates an environment where parents and primary caregivers feel safe to engage with each other on focused topics affecting their children and families. The Better Together Family Cafés consist of five guided discussions with families on nutrition and physical activity topics.