Of U.S. children under the age of six an estimated 5 million have at least one immigrant parent. While the vast majority of young children born to immigrant parents are U.S. citizens (92%), many live in mixed-status families, meaning family members may have a range of statuses including citizenship, permanent residency, refugee, asylee, or undocumented status. Low-income children of immigrants often have less access to child care and early education but experience significant improvements in school readiness when ECE is available to them. Despite lower enrollment in child care centers due in part to the lack of availability in their communities, foreign-born parents of young children report positive perceptions of center-based child care and value early education.

With a workforce made up primarily of women of color, 22% of whom are immigrants, it’s clear that the child care sector relies greatly on the labor and dedication of immigrants to care for our children and power our economy. As chronic recruitment and retention issues persist across ECE, many programs depend on the immigrant workforce to keep programs’ doors open and to meet children and families’ multi-cultural and multi-lingual needs. Despite their contributions to the field, early educators of color receive even lower wages than the $13.07 median hourly rate as a result of historical undervaluing of the profession that undermines the work of educators. In the midst of existing and new challenges, these educators continue to do their best to support and meet the needs of the children and families they serve.

As a member of the Protecting Immigrant Families coalition and in keeping with our mission, vision, values, and code of ethics, NAEYC will continue to stand with and support educators caring for and educating all children in their communities.

As part of that commitment, we are share resources below designed to help child care and early learning programs in:

• Building Welcoming Communities
• Supporting Hard Conversations
• Getting Prepared
• Taking Care of Yourselves

We also include resources that might be needed in the case of an immigration raid that affects children in your program or community.

• How to Support Young Children in Immigrant Families (Colorin Colorado, 2018) 
• Welcoming Refugee Children into Early Childhood Classrooms (NAEYC, 2017) 
• For more resources on how to support dual language learners, go here. 

• Conversations that Matter: Talking with Children About Big World Issues (NAEYC, 2020). Discusses the importance of talking about tough issues with children and how to approach those conversations. 
• Using Story Circles, Art, and Play to Support Children’s Responses to Stress and Trauma (NAEYC, 2023). Includes direct references to immigration, signs of trauma/stress in children, how to foster community, and more. 
• Being a Helper: Supporting Children to Feel Safe and Secure after Disasters (NAEYC, 2018). Discusses trauma and grief from disasters, how disasters affect children, and how to support children, families, and educators. 
• Rocking and Rolling. The Calm in the Storm: Supporting Young Children before, during, and after a Community Disaster or Trauma (NAEYC, 2018). How programs and educators can support children and families before, during, and after a community trauma. Includes reflection and action steps.  
• When Children Are Afraid of a Parent’s Deportation (English, Spanish, Korean) (Minnesota Association for Children’s Mental Health). Contains concrete steps to support children’s sense of safety, positive identity, and healthy relationships during an uncertain time. It can be useful to any adult who is involved in caring for infants, children, and adolescents. 

• Update caregiver contact information for all children. This will be particularly important in the event a child’s primary guardian is detained and you need to contact an alternate caregiver. 
• A Guide to Creating “Safe Space” Policies for Early Childhood Programs (CLASP, 2025)  This guide gives practitioners, advocates, and policymakers information and resources to design and implement “safe space” policies that safeguard early childhood programs against immigration enforcement, as well as protect families’ safety and privacy. 
• Review and share know your rights, emergency preparedness, and emotional support resources with families in your program. 
  • Know Your Rights Information for Students and Families (American Federation of Teachers). Fact sheet on what families can do to prepare, things educators and programs can do to protect students, what to do if ICE comes to the door, family immigration raid emergency plan. (Spanish)  
  • Step by Step Family Preparedness Plan (Immigrant Legal Resource Center, 2024). Toolkit on child care options available in case of an absent parent, where to find trusted immigration services in your community, and how to prepare to assert your constitutional rights in the presence of an immigration officer.  
  • Creating a family immigration raid emergency plan (American Federation of Teachers). Seven steps to help prepare your family for an immigration raid.

• Schools and Immigrant Students Navigate an Era of Immigration Enforcement (Migration Policy Institute, 2025). Provides guidance on the types of protocols and policies schools can put in place based on established law to promote safe zones. 
• What to do if ICE Visits Your School: Sample Policies and Guidance from School Districts and States (Immigrant Connections, 2025). Collection of policies, guidance, and protocols used by various school districts and states for what to do if ICE (Immigration & Customs Enforcement) visits your school. 

The resources below were designed to help higher ed staff and faculty in supporting their immigrant students and communities. 

• Presidents’ Alliance on Higher Education and Immigration (PAHEI, 2025). Suite of resources to increase public understanding of how immigration policies and practices impact our students, campuses and communities. 
• Checklist for Supporting Non-Citizen Campus Members (PAHEI, 2025). Outlines key steps you can take to understand the needs of immigrant populations at your institution and the tools you can develop to respond to future policy changes.  
• Immigration Enforcement on Campuses: What You Need To Know (PAHEI, 2025). This FAQ provides answers to common questions related to federal immigration enforcement on campuses. 

• Caring for Yourself (NAEYC, 2020) Promotes healing and hope for early childhood educators by offering self-care strategies to support their work with children and families with a history of trauma. 
• Simple and Lasting Mindful Emotional Management Habits for Early Childhood Educators (NAEYC, 2023) Self-care strategies for educators to promote mindful awareness of emotions and emotional management to help with stress levels. 

• Guiding Caregivers: How to Talk to a Child About Deportation or Separation (National Child Traumatic Stress Network, 2019). English - Spanish How to speak to children about these issues including, if it is appropriate to talk to children at all about such things and how to use analogies to explain the idea of deportation and separation. 
• Traumatic Separation and Refugee And Immigrant Children: Tips For Current Caregivers (National Child Traumatic Stress Network, 2018). English - Spanish Discusses the impact of sudden, chaotic, or unpredictable separation from parents and siblings including depression, anxiety, or separation-related traumatic stress symptoms. 
• National Immigration Legal Services Directory (Immigration Advocates Network). Search tool for immigration legal services providers by state, county, or detention facility.