Breastfeeding Education

Education enables staff and families to support breastfeeding

Training caregivers (both child care staff and enrolled families) in age-appropriate breastfeeding practices helps guide them on healthy options for young children. It provides staff with the know-how to communicate with and support families in healthy breastfeeding practices.

Best Practices

Click any best practice goal below to find resources that can help child care programs promote staff/caregiver education.

“Provide training to families on age-appropriate infant feeding practices, including safe handling and storage of human milk, at least once per year.”
“Provide training to teachers and staff on promoting and supporting breastfeeding, including exclusive breastfeeding, 2 or more times per year.”
“Provide written guidelines to breastfeeding families on how to proper label and store human milk for use in the child care facility.”

Resources to: “Provide training to families on age-appropriate infant feeding practices, including safe handling and storage of human milk, at least once per year.”

Go Nutrition and Physical Activity Self-Assessment for Child Care (Go NAPSACC) Bilingual Self-Assessments

Summary: Contacting a consultant and completing the online version of the Go NAPSACC assessments opens up a suite of planning, learning, and implementation tools to understand further what the health best practices are and how to reach them at your child care.
Source: Go Nutritional and Physical Activity Self-Assessment for Child Care (Go NAPSACC)
Access: https://gonapsacc.org/our-focus-areas

Healthy Beverage Consumption in Early Childhood: Recommendations from Key National Health and Nutrition

Summary: The CDC’s Early Childhood Nutrition: Resources page contains toolkits and resources to help advance nutrition, including through breastfeeding, in child care settings.
Source: Center for Disease Control
Access: https://healthyeatingresearch.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/HER-HealthyBeverage-ConsensusStatement.pdf

Healthy Kids, Healthy Future

Summary: Click on the "Support Breastfeeding" circle to get information about how to support breast feeding in a day care setting as well as tips for setting up a breastfeeding area. Use the menu to the left to find more activities and resources.
Source: The Nemours Foundation
Access: https://healthykidshealthyfuture.org/5-healthy-goals/support-breast-feeding/

MIBFN Child Care Training Videos

Summary: Click on “Child Care” in the left-hand menu to find free training videos for child care professionals on breast feeding practice.
Source: Michigan Breastfeeding Network
Access: https://mibreastfeeding.org/tools/

MiRegistry Course Catalog

Summary: By entering “breastfeeding” or “infant feeding” in the “Course Title, Competency, or Qualification” search box, professional development classes related to supporting breastfeeding and feeding infants will appear. Click on “View Course Detail” for each class to read more.
Source: MiRegistry
Access: https://go.miregistry.org/CourseCatalog.aspx

Proper Handling and Storage of Human Milk

Summary: Includes safe preparation and storage techniques for nursing mothers and caretakers of breastfed infants and children. This will help mothers maintain the high quality of expressed breast milk and the health of the baby. Also available in Spanish.
Source: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Access: https://www.cdc.gov/breastfeeding/breast-milk-preparation-and-storage/handling-breastmilk.html

Safe Foods = Healthy Kids

Summary: An interactive food safety workshop for childcare providers delivered by MSU Extension educators. Topics include cleaning and sanitizing, cooking and storing food as well as common allergens and personal hygiene. Use the “Events” tab to register for the free, MI-Registry approved course.
Source: Michigan State University Extension
Access: https://www.canr.msu.edu/safe_food_healthy_kids/

Storage, Handling, and Preparation of Breast Milk in Early Care and Education (ECE) Programs

Summary: Simple tip sheet storing, handling, preparing, and disposing breastmilk.
Source: Center for Disease Control
Access: https://www.cdc.gov/early-care-education/media/pdfs/ECE-Storage-and-handling-Breastmilk-ECE-082022-508.pdf

Supporting Breastfeeding Families in Early Care and Education (ECE) Programs

Summary: Simple tip sheet for handling and storing breastmilk and how to support breastfeeding moms.
Source: Center for Disease Control
Access: https://www.cdc.gov/early-care-education/media/pdfs/ECE-Supporting-Breastfeeding-Families-ECE-082022-508.pdf

Ten Steps to Breastfeeding Friendly Child Care Centers Resource Kit

Summary: A resource kit to promote breastfeeding in child care centers in 10 simple steps.
Source: Wisconsin Department of Health and Human Services
Access: https://www.dhs.wisconsin.gov/publications/p0/p00022.pdf

Resources to: “Provide training to teachers and staff on promoting and supporting breastfeeding, including exclusive breastfeeding, 2 or more times per year.”

Go Nutrition and Physical Activity Self-Assessment for Child Care (Go NAPSACC) Bilingual Self-Assessments

Healthy Kids, Healthy Future

MiResistry Course Catalog

Storage, Handling, and Preparation of Breast Milk in Early Care and Education (ECE) Programs

Supporting Breastfeeding Families in Early Care and Education (ECE) Programs

Ten Steps to Breastfeeding Friendly Child Care Centers Resource Kit

Resources to: “Provide written guidelines to breastfeeding families on how to proper label and store human milk for use in the child care facility.”

Go Nutrition and Physical Activity Self-Assessment for Child Care (Go NAPSACC) Bilingual Self-Assessments

Healthy Kids, Healthy Future

Proper Handling and Storage of Human Milk

Storage, Handling, and Preparation of Breast Milk in Early Care and Education (ECE) Programs

Ten Steps to Breastfeeding Friendly Child Care Centers Resource Kit

MSU Extension SNAP-Ed