Coaching, training, and advising for early childhood professionals
The department contracts with local organizations to provide free and low-cost coaching, training and advising to child care and early childhood professionals. Develop is Minnesota's training registry for child care and early learning professionals.
Training
Develop is Minnesota's training registry for child care and early education professionals. Develop is the place to find training events for licensing requirements, Parent Aware, Child Development Associate (CDA) or other topics. Training events are available in-person, online and in multiple languages. Most are free or low cost.
Create a Free Individual Profile in Develop
To access the tools and resources in Develop, you must first create a free Individual Profile. Watch the video below or follow the steps in this PDF to learn how to create your Individual Profile.
About an Individual Membership in Develop
Once you have created an Individual Profile in Develop, you may want to apply for a free Individual Membership. While it's not needed to register for trainings, you can:
- Build a complete, accurate, and private electronic record of your professional achievements and store them in Develop’s secure database.
- Showcase your achievements by displaying your Career Lattice Step certificate!
- Participate in Parent Aware.
- Apply for grants and scholarships.
- Apply for Develop’s Trainer, Course Writer, and/or Relationship Based Professional Development (RBPD) Specialist memberships.
Learn more and start the process by visiting the Achieve website. Achieve works with the state to process membership applications, track professional development, and more.
Professional development advising
The department contracts with Child Care Aware of Minnesota to offer free professional development advising to all early educators. Contact your local Child Care Aware agency to access professional development advising.
New to the field? You can connect with professional development advisors for free. They provide individualized support for career goals in child care through the Empower to Educate statewide program.
Early educators can receive support and track their learning with a Develop individual membership, obtain a Career Lattice Step (CLS), apply for grants and scholarships, and find employment connections such as the Early Childhood Job Board through Achieve, Minnesota’s Center for Professional Development.
Professional Development Advisors can also help you strategize meeting your long-term career goals, including higher education and how to finance it. Connect with one today.
Coaching
Coaches, consultants and mentors with specialized expertise provide individualized support to early educators through one-on-one interactions. Individuals across Minnesota can access a variety of free coaching supports to enhance their skills, confidence, and positively impact young children’s development.
Educators in centers and family child care programs can access free coaching support focused on a wide range of early childhood and group care topics. Coaches from the Center for Inclusive Child Care partner with educators to problem-solve and identify strategies, tools and techniques that support you in your daily practice.
Center directors across Minnesota seeking to grow leadership capacity and confidence can reach out to the Center for Inclusive Child Care to join an Early Childhood Leadership Development cohort. These cohorts provide a structured, supportive space to enhance your leadership skills, improve program quality and connect with peers across the state.
Educators working in centers and family child care programs, as well as nonlicensed Family Friend and Neighbor (FFN) providers, can receive Mental Health Consultation support. This service combines training, skill-building and reflective practice to promote the social-emotional health and wellbeing of young children, their families, and you.
Supporting children with special needs
All children come with unique needs, challenges and gifts. Creating inclusive learning spaces that meet the individual needs of all children, including those with disabilities, takes planning and creativity. Download our guide to creating inclusive learning spaces and explore training and coaching opportunities below.
Coaches from the Center for Inclusive Child Care can partner with you to identify strategies and resources to respond to challenging behavior and best support children diagnosed with a special need. They provide hands-on support and modeling, and explore strategies for responding to behaviors that are challenging.
Training on many different topics related to children and specialized needs can be found in Develop: https://www.developtoolmn.org/.
Educators working in centers and family child care programs, as well as nonlicensed Family Friend and Neighbor (FFN) providers, can receive Mental Health Consultation support. This service combines training, skill-building and reflective practice to promote the social-emotional health and wellbeing of young children, their families, and you.