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Washington Communities of Practice

Start Early Washington’s communities of practice focus on developing collaborative learning environments for home visiting professionals.

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What is a Community of Practice and What Makes it Different From Attending Training?

Communities of practice offer a co-creative and participatory space for shared learning where building knowledge is a shared process that draws upon all participants’ combined experiences and expertise. Through discussion, shared experiences, relationship building and reflection, participants can inform their practice, tend to their own goals and help shape the sessions.

Communities of practice are structured differently from learning environments that rely on a teacher or an expert. Instead, they balance elements of learning, practice and community to ensure building relationships receive the same consideration as thinking and doing.

Our Approach

Grounded in a strengths-based approach, Start Early Washington’s Home Visiting Implementation Hub (Hub) supports new and experienced home visiting programs. The Hub believes in the power of “peers interacting with peers” when it comes to those who make a difference with families through home visiting.

Start Early Washington launched Washington Communities of Practice to provide more opportunities for home visiting professionals to interact, seek mentorship, and share their experiences, challenges and successes.

Hub staff support each community of practice with facilitation and resources.

registration information

Communities of Practice

Family Engagement

 Are you curious about building rapport or conducting screenings and assessments with families? Do you wonder about the balance between meeting the fidelity to your model and meeting fidelity to your community?

Audience: This community of practice is for home visitors and supervisors providing direct services to families willing to share their wisdom, experiences, resources and strategies in a peer-to-peer virtual environment.

Details: There is a difference between program participation and program engagement. An article posted by The Institute for Child and Family Well-Being states that most families receive services for a year or less. Bring your examples, challenges, questions and strategies to share with peers about family engagement. Be ready to listen and share experiences with other participants about the realities of engaging families.

Specific topics include:

  • Family impacts/experiences on family engagement
  • Home visitor impacts on family engagement
  • Rapport-building and trusting relationships
  • Fidelity to the model/funder and fidelity to the community – Part 1
  • Fidelity to the model/funder and fidelity to the community – Part 2

This community of practice consists of eight 90-minute sessions on Wednesdays from 12 p.m. to 1:30 p.m. PST, Sept. 27 through Nov. 1.

Registration closes when we reach 15 participants.

REGISTER HERE

Each Community of Practice is limited to 15 participants to encourage trust, meaningful interaction and space for rich dialog that results in a productive, positive group experience. Consistent attendance (at least five of the six 90-minute sessions) is required of those who register.

Connecting with Peers

Do you need help with staff or family retention? Are you looking for strategies for data monitoring?

Audience: This community of practice is for home visiting supervisors willing to share their wisdom, experiences, resources, and strategies with other supervisors across the state in a peer-to-peer virtual environment.

Details: Bring your examples, challenges, questions, and strategies to share with other home visiting supervisors. Be ready to listen and share experiences with other participants about the realities of being a supervisor.

  • Specific topics will be determined by participants at the first meeting. Examples of topics could include recruitment and onboarding new home visitors, team building, leading a diverse team, and community engagement, etc.
  • This community of practice consist of eight 90-minute sessions on Wednesdays from 12 p.m. to 1:30 p.m. PST, Feb. 15 through April 5.

Registration closes when we reach 15 participants.

Register Here

Each Community of Practice is limited to 15 participants to encourage trust, meaningful interaction, and space for rich dialog that results in a productive, positive group experience. Consistent attendance (at least five of the six 90-minute sessions) is required of those who register.

Tackling the Tough Stuff

Are you interested in connecting with other home visitors around common and complex visit scenarios? Would you like to learn or strengthen strategies to better your work with families? 

Audience: This community of practice is for home visitors willing to share their wisdom, experiences, resources, and strategies in a peer-to-peer virtual environment centered around a book “Tackling the Tough Stuff.”

Details: Share your examples, challenges, questions, and strategies with other home visitors. Be ready to listen and share experiences with other participants about each chapter decided. Books will be provided for those who register and are prepared to attend six of the eight sessions.

  • Participants will determine specific chapters during the kickoff meeting on April 12 from 12:30 p.m. to 1:30 p.m. PST.
  • This community of practice consists of eight 90-minute sessions on Thursdays from 12 p.m. to 1:30 p.m. PST, April 27 through Aug. 3.
  • Registration closes when we reach 15 participants.

REGISTER HERE

Each Community of Practice is limited to 15 participants to encourage trust, meaningful interaction and space for rich dialog that results in a productive, positive group experience. Consistent attendance (at least five of the six 90-minute sessions) is required of those who register.

WA State Home Visiting Core Competencies

How do the Washington State Home Visiting Core Competencies support your work as a supervisor? Are you curious how other supervisors and programs use the core competencies?

Audience: This community of practice is for supervisors looking to connect with other supervisors regarding the new Washington State Home Visiting Core Competencies.

Details: These core competencies were developed by the home visiting field —for the home visiting field. Bring your examples, challenges, questions, and strategies to share with your peers regarding Washington State Home Visiting Core Competencies. Be ready to listen and share experiences with other participants.

Discussion topics include:

Introduction and review of the core competencies. 
How do core competencies support staff, supervisors and programs?

  • This community of practice consists of eight 90-minute sessions on Wednesdays from 12 p.m. to 1:30 p.m. PST, Feb. 7 through March 27.
  • Registration closes when we reach 20 participants.

REGISTER HERE

Each Community of Practice is limited to 20 participants to encourage trust, meaningful interaction and space for rich dialog that results in a productive, positive group experience. Consistent attendance (at least six of the eight 90-minute sessions) is required of those who register.

Looking for More?

Additional Resources From Start Early

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NEAR@Home

Offers resources for home visitors to respectfully and effectively address adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) with families.

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Training Opportunities

Trainings build skills in fundamental home visiting competencies and family assessments and include a mix of information-sharing, discussion and practice opportunities.

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The National Home Visiting Summit

Our annual conference brings together early childhood leaders from across the county to advance the home visiting field.

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Stay Connected

Stay up to date on early childhood policy issues and home visiting programming in Washington state.

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Washington State Hub

Learn more about our work in Washington State and access relevant resources and publications. 

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Resources for Professionals

From interactive courses to engaging events, we support educators in building powerful practices that transform teaching and learning. 

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