Caring for Our Children
National Health and Safety Performance Standards
Guidelines for Early Care and Education Programs
Caring for Our Children, (CFOC) is a collection of national standards that represent the best practices, based on evidence, expertise, and experience, for quality health and safety policies and practices for today's early care and education settings.
CFOC Online Standards Database
(Most up-to-date source)
Search the CFOC Online Standards Database by health and safety topic, search term, chapter, or standard number.
Suggested Citation for CFOC Standards Online Database:
American Academy of Pediatrics, American Public Health Association, National Resource Center for Health and Safety in Child Care and Early Education. CFOC Standards Online Database. Aurora, CO; National Resource Center for Health and Safety in Child Care and Early Education; 2020. [URL of Standard/Chapter]. Accessed [date].
Icon Legend
 | Standard included in Stepping Stones (SS) |
 | Most recent revision date |
 | Frequently asked questions regarding the selected standard |
Get CFOC4
Download Free PDF Version of CFOC4
Copyright 2019
Purchase CFOC4 Print Version
Copyright 2019
Suggested Citation for CFOC4 Download:
American Academy of Pediatrics, American Public Health Association, National Resource Center for Health and Safety in Child Care and Early Education. Caring for Our Children: National Health and Safety Performance Standards; Guidelines for Early Care and Education Programs, 4th ed. Itasca, IL: American Academy of Pediatrics; 2019. http://nrckids.org/files/CFOC4 pdf- FINAL.pdf. Accessed [date].
Current CFOC Standard-based Resources
Other NRC Resources
- *New* COVID-19 CFOC Crosswalk
- Special Collections
- *Updated* A Parent's Guide to Choosing Safe and Healthy Child Care
- Licensing Toolkits
- Healthy Weight Checklists and Tipsheet
- *New* Capítulo 5: Instalaciones, suministros, equipos y salud ambiental
(CFOC Chapter 5 Spanish Translation)
Related External Resources
This web site was developed in part with funds from cooperative agreement #U44MC30806 for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Administration for Children and Families, Office of Head Start, Office of Child Care, and Health Resources and Services Administration, Maternal and Child Health Bureau, by the National Center on Early Childhood Health and Wellness. This content on this web site may be duplicated for noncommercial uses without permission. This publication is in the public domain, and no copyright can be claimed by persons or organizations.