Commission Publications

Legislation from the 2012 General Assembly session that impacts Connecticut’s children

The 2012 legislative session turned out to be a momentous one for Connecticut children, with major bills concerning education, child health and safety, families, and youth-employment winning passage. This report gives a plain-language summary of each bill. Download a PDF copy

Commission on Children 2011 RBA and Annual Report

This report details the Commission's work in policy, prevention, accountability, public information, and capacity building in 2011.

Download a PDF copy | Read previous annual reports

Ready or Not: A Parent's Guide to School Readiness, Prenatal to Age Five

A 30-page, plain-English booklet explains for parents how to ensure their child begins school "ready to learn." The guide begins with pregnancy and ends at the school house.

¿Listo O No?: Guía para Padres sobre la preparación escolar, de edad prenatal a cinco a años

Spanish edition of Ready or Not.

Watch Me Grow: A Parent's Guide to Quality Child Care

This booklet, which doubles as a poster for measuring children's height, gives parents guidance on choosing high-quality child care.

Mirame Crecer: Una Guía para Padres el Cuidado de Calidad de los Niños

Spanish edition of Watch Me Grow

The Social State of Connecticut: 2008

This 90-page report, co-sponsored with the William Caspar Graustein Memorial Fund, measures Connecticut's "social health" in 11 quality-of-life areas. Released in November 2008. Download a PDF copy | Read more on the release of this report and download earlier reports

Connecticut's Playbook for Prevention

This is an easy-to-read "game plan" that parents, educators, care providers, and policymakers can follow to ensure all Connecticut children grow into happy, healthy, and productive adults. Released in February 2008. To read more about the Playbook, download PDF versions of it, or order printed copies, visit KidsforCT.org.

A Children's Stock Portfolio

This 25-page report, organized like a stock portfolio but written in plain English, shows that state prevention policies help children succeed and produce a healthy return-on-investment (ROI) for the state. Released in April 2007. Download a PDF copy

Parent Leadership Training Institute (PLTI) brochure

Learn the basics about PLTI, a Commission initiative that helps parents become leading advocates for children. Download a PDF copy

Learn more about PLTI

Stand Up to Bullying! Strategies to Make Connecticut Safe for Learning

This 12-page report summarizes a forum held at the Legislative Office Building in Hartford on October 22, 2007. The event was sponsored by the Commission and the Office of the Child Advocate. Download a PDF copy

First Words, First Steps: The Importance of the Early Years

What policies should Connecticut follow to promote the health and education of infants and toddlers? The Commission on Children and the state Department of Social Services (DSS) collaborated to answer that question in this document. Download a PDF copy

Child Poverty in Connecticut, 2007

A four-page fact sheet summarizing the latest data. Released in October 2007. Download a PDF copy

All Children Can Read by Fourth Grade

Five pages of key facts about reading, along with a list of steps taken by state government has taken since 1997 to ensure school readiness. Updated in March 2007. Download a PDF copy

Healthy Children, Healthy Communities

Prepared in conjunction with an exhibit at the Stepping Stones Museum for Children in Norwalk, this 12-page pamphlet explains what state government has done in recent years to promote children's health, safety, and learning. Released in December 2006. Download a PDF copy

Ready by 5 and Fine by 9

A suggested framework for early childhood education by the Governor's Early Childhood Cabinet, of which the Commission is a member. Published in October 2006, 40 pages. Download the PDF

Connecticut Leads the Way with School Readiness and Early Reading Success

An overview, updated in 2005, of the 1997 school readiness legislation (Public Act 97-259), in which Connecticut made a comprehensive commitment to best practices in early learning. Download a PDF copy

Opening the Kindergarten Door: The Preschool Difference

Kindergarten teachers in Connecticut's priority school districts were surveyed to determine how many children enter kindergarten ready for school. This 10-page booklet, released in April 2004, contains the results. Download a PDF copy

Every Grownup Is a Famous Storyteller

This 18-page booklet, created by the Commission and sponsored by the state Department of Education, uses a photo exhibit to make basic points about the importance of reading to children. Introduction by Dr. Alice S. Carter of Yale University's Department of Psychology. Updated in 2002. Download a PDF copy

Brave Enough to Be Kind

Recommendations on ways to curb bullying. Authored by the Commission, the Connecticut State Board of Education, and the Governor's Prevention Partnership. Updated through November 2002, 20 pages. Download the PDF

Children Eclipsed by Natural and Unnatural Disaster: What They are Telling Us and What We Can Do

The Commission marked the fifth anniversary of the September 11 attacks by compiling student writing and artwork on terrorism and safety. Commission Executive Director Elaine Zimmerman provides commentary. Published in 2006, 62 pages. Download a PDF copy