Early Head Start Family and Child Experiences Study (Baby FACES)

2007-2023

Early Head Start Family and Child Experiences Study (Baby FACES) Logo

The Early Head Start Family and Child Experiences Study (Baby FACES) are a series of ongoing descriptive studies aimed at maintaining an up-to-date, extensive knowledge base to support Early Head Start policies and programs. Baby FACES aims to inform program planning, technical assistance, and research at the national level by:

  • Providing descriptive information about the quality, frequency, and intensity of Early Head Start services;
  • Describing the characteristics, qualifications, and professional supports provided to staff working with Early Head Start families;
  • Identifying key characteristics, strengths, and needs of families served in Early Head Start;
  • Learning how Early Head Start children and families are faring in key areas of child and family well-being; and
  • Exploring associations between the type and quality of Early Head Start services and child and family well-being.

Baby FACES 2009 employed a longitudinal cohort design with a representative sample of 89 Early Head Start programs in 2009. It followed approximately 1,000 children in two age cohorts: (1) a perinatal group of pregnant mothers or newborn children under 3 months of age in Spring 2009, and (2) a group of infants about 1 year old in Spring 2009. Data were collected annually, in the spring, until children left or aged out of the program (at age 3) through annual interviews with parents, teachers, home visitors, and program directors; direct child assessments; video-recorded parent-child and assessor-child interactions; and weekly service logs.

Baby FACES 2018 and 2022 used a repeated cross-sectional research design with a nationally representative sample of programs, centers, classrooms, home visitors, and children of all age groups enrolled in Early Head Start. Data collection included interviews with parents, teachers, home visitors, center directors, and program directors; assessment of children’s development via parent- and staff-report; assessment of parent-child relationship quality; in depth observational assessments of Early Head Start center-based service quality (in 2018); and in depth observational assessments of Early Head Start home-based service quality (in 2022).

Point(s) of contact: Amy Madigan, Jenessa Malin, and Jackie Gross

Information collections related to this project have been reviewed and approved by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs under OMB #0970-0354. Related materials are available at the Baby FACES information collection page on RegInfo.gov.

The approved documents are accessible by clicking on the ICR Ref. No. with the most recent conclusion date. To access the information collections (E.g. interviews, surveys, protocols), click on View Information Collection (IC) List. Click on View Supporting Statement and Other Documents to access other supplementary documents.

Baby FACES 2009-2012, 2018, and 2022 data are archived at the Child and Family Data Archive .

Related Resources

In this brief, we use data collected in spring 2018 from a nationally representative sample to describe Early Head Start teachers’ and home visitors’ characteristics, the program activities (or processes) they are part of, and how well their programs operate (or function).

This brief draws on data from the Early Head Start Family and Child Experiences Survey (Baby FACES) 2018, using a nationally representative sample of families who receive Early Head Start home-based services to examine whether programs promote more positive parent—child relationships when they focus their goals, professional development, and the content of their home visits on those relationships.

Using data from the Early Head Start Family and Child Experiences Survey (Baby FACES), this brief explores how well several parent- and staff-reported language screening and assessment tools perform in a low-income Early Head Start population. Specifically, the brief examines the reliability of the tool or the ability of the tool to produce scores that are stable regardless of when the tool is administered, where it is administered, and who administers it. It also explores the validity...

This brief explores the child- , family- , and program-level factors that may be associated with whether children leave Early Head Start or Head Start before their eligibility ends. The brief utilizes data from the Early Head Start Family and Child Experiences Survey (Baby FACES) and from the 2009 cohort of the Head Start Family and Child Experiences Survey (FACES 2009). Analyses show that most families who enrolled stayed for as long as they were eligible. However, some families left...

In this technical brief, we report on the use of the Toddler Classroom Assessment Scoring System (CLASS-T) in the Early Head Start Family and Child Experiences Survey (Baby FACES). We begin by providing a brief overview of the Baby FACES study, including its methodology and approach to data collection. Next, we provide a descriptive snapshot of quality in center-based settings drawing on observations conducted in Early Head Start classrooms serving 2- and 3-year-old children in Baby FACES...

This survey has been specifically designed to help the Administration for Children and Families (ACF) gain a… 

This instrument details the Baby FACES Teacher/Home Visitor Child Rating Documentation with Variable Names for…

The questions in this survey are about you and your child, your health, and your family routines…

This report shares key information about the design, methods, and findings of Baby FACES 2022.

Learn about the structural and process quality in Early Head Start classrooms, how classroom practices and other features of the classroom are associated with teacher—child relationships, and whether teacher—child relationship quality in Early Head Start is associated with infant and toddler outcomes.

Explore the Baby FACES 2018 data tables for information about the programs, staff, services, and children and families served Early Head Start.

This report summarizes lessons from the design of the first round of Baby FACES (2009) and describes ways that future descriptive studies of Early Head Start may be designed to build on past work and address information needs for research, policy, and practice. It includes a discussion of the methodological strengths, limitations, and challenges experienced in Baby FACES 2009.

Using information collected as part of the Early Head Start Family and Child Experiences Survey (Baby FACES), this report and accompanying brief provide a descriptive picture of classroom and home visit quality in Early Head Start. Baby FACES captures classroom and home visit quality using two observational measures: Classroom Assessment Scoring System, Toddler Version and the Home Visit Rating Scale-Adapted measures. Specifically, the report and brief examine average levels of quality...

This report describes findings from the Early Head Start Family and Child Experiences Survey (Baby FACES), a longitudinal study in 89 Early Head Start programs around the country. Baby FACES follows two cohorts of children through their time in Early Head Start, starting in 2009, the first wave of data collection. The Newborn Cohort includes pregnant mothers and newborn children (194 are in this group) and the 1-year-old Cohort includes children who were approximately 1 year...

This practitioner-friendly booklet, Friendly Baby FACES, presents data from all three waves of Baby FACES, but primarily focuses the 1-year-old cohort at the second wave of data collection. The booklet explores program features and services, family characteristics, and children’s development at age 2. Specifically, Friendly Baby FACES explores the following questions... 

This report is geared toward a research audience and presents results from a series of analyses aimed at figuring out the methods for handling missing data that generate the most accurate estimates of child care center attendance. This topic is important given that proper linking of child care dosage to developmental outcomes requires accurate data on attendance. However, if a fair amount of data is missing, the accuracy of attendance estimates may be compromised. In order to address...

This report describes findings from the second wave of data collection for the Early Head Start Family and Child Experiences Survey (Baby FACES) conducted by Mathematica Policy Research. Baby FACES is a longitudinal study in 89 Early Head Start programs around the country. Baby FACES follows two cohorts of children through their time in Early Head Start, starting in 2009, the first wave of data collection. The Newborn Cohort includes 194 pregnant mothers and newborn children...

We designed the Baby FACES sample to be representative of the population of Early Head Start programs at the…

The Early Head Start Family and Child Experiences Survey, or Baby FACES, is the latest contribution to an…

This instrument details the Baby FACES Teacher/Home Visitor Interview Documentation with Variable Names for…

This instrument details the Early Head Start Child and Family Experiences Survey (Baby FACES) Parent Interview…

This instrument details the Spanish version of the Baby FACES Parent Interview 2009 Data Collection for June…

This instrument details the Baby FACES Program Director Interview for April of 2009...

This instrument details the Baby FACES Program Director Interview for April of 2010…

This survey has been specifically designed to help the Administration for Children and Families (ACF) gain a…

This instrument details the Baby FACES Parent Interview 2009 Data Collection for Spring 2009…

This instrument details the Summary of Data Collection by Mode, All Measures…