Head Start Home Base Specialist

It is the responsibility of the Home Base Specialist to partner with families to support their child’s cognitive, language, literacy, social/emotional, and physical development in alignment with Head Start Program Performance Standards. This role promotes strong parent-child relationships, school readiness, and family well-being by delivering comprehensive, high-quality home-based services.

All Generation Ed Employees

• Reliability/Dependability
  • Problem Solving
  • Customer Service
• Teamwork and Collaboration
  • Integrity
  • Initiative and Growth
• Quality and Timeliness of Work
  • Effective Communication

• Effective Behavior Management
• Curriculum Planning and Execution
• Parent and Family Engagement

• Establish and maintain respectful, strengths-based relationships with families that support family engagement and trust.
• Partner with families to develop individualized child goals and family partnership agreements that reflect strengths, needs, and priorities.
• Support families in achieving self-sufficiency goals through ongoing communication, encouragement, and follow-up.
• Encourage and support parent leadership and involvement in program activities, including parent meetings, Policy Council, and engagement opportunities.

• Conduct weekly home visits (minimum of 90 minutes) to deliver developmentally appropriate, curriculum-based learning experiences that promote school readiness and parent-child interaction.
• Support parents as their child’s first teacher by modeling and coaching developmentally appropriate practices across developmental domains.
• Provide guidance on home safety, nutrition, positive discipline, and age-appropriate learning activities.

• Complete developmental screenings and ongoing child assessments within required time frames.
• Observe, document, and analyze child progress to inform individualized planning.
• Share assessment results and progress with families and collaboratively adjust goals and strategies.

• Ensure children are up to date on required health services, including prenatal care (as applicable), well-child exams, immunizations, and screenings.
• Coordinate with health, nutrition, mental health, and disabilities staff to ensure comprehensive services are integrated into the home setting.
• Collaborate with families and community partners to support referrals, evaluations, and services for children with suspected or identified disabilities.

• Plan and facilitate group socialization experiences (minimum twice per month) that promote peer interaction, parent engagement, and school readiness.
• Develop lesson plans that reflect the cultures, languages, and interests of enrolled families.
• Provide ongoing parent education on child development, health, nutrition, and family well-being.

• Assist families in accessing community resources, scheduling appointments, and navigating support systems.
• Provide timely information, referrals, and follow-up to address family needs and goals.

• Maintain accurate, complete, and confidential records in compliance with program, state, and federal requirements.
• Ensure timely data entry, documentation, and reporting.
• Participate in ongoing monitoring, self-assessment, and federal/state reviews, including Program Information Report (PIR) data collection.

• Ensure the safety and well-being of children at all times during home visits, socializations, and program activities.
• Monitor environments to ensure activities are developmentally appropriate and safe.
• Serve as a mandated reporter and follow all procedures related to suspected child abuse and neglect.

• Attend and actively participate in staff meetings, case conferences, trainings, and program committees.
• Collaborate as part of a multidisciplinary team to integrate services and support program outcomes.
• Engage in continuous professional development to maintain credentials and stay current with best practices.
• Model…