9132 – Virginia Child Care Leadership Pathway: Toddlers

Welcome to the Virginia Child Care Leadership Pathway – Toddlers! This 26-hour professional development pathway is designed to help early childhood educators build the knowledge, skills, and confidence needed to provide high-quality care for toddlers ages 12–36 months.

Throughout this pathway, you will explore best practices in toddler development, positive guidance, responsive caregiving, health and safety, language and communication, social-emotional development, learning through play, family partnerships, and creating engaging environments that encourage independence and exploration.

Each course combines practical strategies with research-based information that can be immediately applied in your classroom or child care program. Interactive activities, knowledge checks, and real-world examples will help reinforce your learning and prepare you to provide developmentally appropriate care for Virginia’s growing learners.

By the end of this pathway, you will be able to:

• Explain key milestones in toddler physical, cognitive, language, social, and emotional development.
• Apply developmentally appropriate practices that encourage exploration, independence, and problem-solving.
• Create safe, engaging, and nurturing learning environments that support active toddlers.
• Strengthen partnerships with families through effective communication and collaboration.
• Implement positive guidance, responsive caregiving, and health and safety practices that promote healthy development and lifelong learning.

Upon successful completion of all required coursework and assessments, you will have completed the Virginia Child Care Leadership Pathway – Toddlers (26 Hours) and be better prepared to support children as they develop confidence, independence, and the foundational skills needed for future learning.

We are excited to be part of your professional journey and hope this pathway provides valuable tools, knowledge, and confidence that you can use every day in your work with toddlers.