Training Requirements

Family Child Care Learning Homes

New Family Child Care Learning Home (FCCLH) Providers are required to possess a qualifying education credential and obtain 20 hours of pre-service training prior to applying for licensure and prior to receiving a certificate of license. The pre-service training includes attending a Licensure Orientation Meeting (LOM) class that is required for all FCCLH applicants that are not currently licensed. Additionally, new FCCLH Providers must obtain at least 10 hours of State-approved Health and Safety Orientation Training within their first 90 days of licensure. After the first year of licensure, new and existing FCCLH Providers must obtain 10 hours of annual training each calendar year (January through December), in diverse topics relating to the care of children.

Child Care Learning Centers

New Child Care Learning Center (CCLC) Directors are required to possess a qualifying education credential and attend a Licensure Orientation Meeting (LOM) class prior to applying for licensure and prior to receiving a certificate of license. Within the first 90 days of licensure, CCLC Directors are required to obtain at least 10 hours of State-approved Health and Safety Orientation Training. After the first year of licensure, new and existing CCLC Directors must obtain 10 hours of Georgia state-approved annual training each calendar year (January through December), in diverse topics relating to the care of children.

Initial Program Orientation

Initial Program Orientation training is required for all Staff, FCCLH Provider and CCLC Director included, prior to beginning work in a child care program. Verification of the completion of Initial Program Orientation, which ensures all Staff are aware of the policies and practices governing the program, must be kept in the Staff person’s personnel file for review by Child Care Services (CCS) Consultant review. A sample form for this orientation can be found under the Staff Forms section of the appropriate facility type at: http://www.decal.ga.gov/CCS/Default.aspx

No Georgia state-approved training hours are given for this orientation. This orientation must be conducted by a designated program official and include detailed information on the following:

The child care program’s policies and procedures
The portions of the Child Care Learning Center (CCLC) or Family Child Care Learning Home (FCCLH) rules and regulations dealing with the care, health and safety of children
The Staff person’s assigned duties and responsibilities
Reporting requirements for suspected cases of child abuse, neglect or deprivation
Communicable diseases and serious injuries
Emergency weather plans
The program’s emergency preparedness plan
Childhood injury control
The administration of medicine
Reducing the risk of Sudden Unexpected Infant Death (SUID), which includes sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS)
Hand washing
Fire safety
Water safety
Prevention of HIV/AIDS and blood borne pathogens

Health and Safety Orientation

All CCLC and FCCLH staff with direct care responsibilities must complete at least 10 Georgia state-approved hours of Health and Safety Orientation training within the first 90 days of employment, which satisfies the first-year training requirements. Staff who provide direct care to children include, but are limited to, lead teachers, assistant teachers, substitutes, family child care helpers, staff involved with transportation/field trips, etc. Staff who do not provide direct care could include administrative staff, cooks, or maintenance and housekeeping staff; however, if any of these employees provide direct care to children at any time, they must obtain the required Health and Safety Orientation training.

Health and Safety Orientation training may only be taken once for a minimum of 10 credit hours of training. After which, the Health and Safety Orientation training will not count towards the required 10 hours of annual training for the preceding five (5) years. The Health and Safety Orientation training must address the following topics:

Prevention and control of infectious diseases (including immunization)
Prevention of sudden infant death syndrome and use of safe sleeping practices
Administration of medication, consistent with standards for parental consent
Prevention of and response to emergencies due to food and allergic reactions
Building and physical premises safety, including identification of and protection from hazards that can cause bodily injury such as electrical hazards, bodies of water, and vehicular traffic
Prevention of shaken baby syndrome, abusive head trauma and child maltreatment
Emergency preparedness and response planning for emergencies resulting from a natural disaster or a human-caused event (such as violence at a child care program)
Handling and storage of hazardous materials and the appropriate disposal of bio contaminants
Precautions in transporting children
Recognition and reporting of child abuse and neglect
Child development to include all major domains (i.e., cognitive, social and emotional, physical development and motor skills, communication, language, and literacy, and approaches to play and learning)

CCS Consultants will evaluate from a staff person’s date of hire listed on their employment application to ensure the Health and Safety Orientation training was successfully completed within the first 90 days of employment.

Pediatric First Aid and Pediatric CPR Training

Pediatric First Aid and pediatric CPR must be successfully completed within 45 days of employment at a child care program. Current and valid evidence of the successful completion of pediatric CPR and pediatric First Aid taught by a certified or licensed health care professional or trainer must be maintained on the child care program premises for every Provider/Director, all Employees and Provisional Employees with direct care responsibilities. Compliance will be verified by licensing consultants during on-site regulatory visits. Pediatric CPR and pediatric First Aid training do not count towards the 10-hour annual training requirement.

In all CCLCs, there must always be one staff person present in each child care area where children are present that has current and valid pediatric First Aid and pediatric CPR training. And in all FCCLH, the Provider, an Employee, or Provisional Employee with current evidence of the successful completion of pediatric CPR and pediatric first aid must always be present on the premises whenever a child is present. Additionally, during any field trip or transportation of children, there must always be a Provider/Director, Employee, or Provisional Employee present who has current evidence of the successful completion of pediatric CPR and pediatric first aid.

Annual Training

After the first year of employment, a minimum of 10 hours of annual training offered by an accredited college, university or vocational program or other DECAL approved source is required to be obtained by all CCLC and FCCLH staff, year after year (January through December), during their employment with the child care program. For example, an Employee with a hire date of 5/1/24, will have their first-year anniversary on 5/1/25. Therefore, their annual training year would run from 1/1/26 through 12/31/26 and continue every year thereafter. Annual training completed between January 2025 through December 2025 will be evaluated during the licensing regulatory visit in 2026.

Staff should be encouraged to obtain a variety of training year after year that is progressive in building knowledge about aspects of child care and not retaking the same types of trainings over and over again. Annual training should be diverse in topics suitable to meet the needs of the individual person, as well as be of interest to them and assist them with job performance and job-related skills in the field of early care and education to include:

At least two (2) hours of evidence-based, developmentally appropriate language and literacy practices
At least two (2) hours of on-going child development and health and safety related topics which could include Child Development (e.g., developmental domains, discipline and guidance techniques, etc.), Health (e.g., prevention of illnesses and infectious diseases, cleanliness, etc.), Safety (e.g., prevention of Sudden Unexpected Infant Death (SUID), medication authorization, etc.), Child abuse and neglect (e.g., identification and prevention, etc.)
No more than two (2) hours on business-related topics (e.g., recordkeeping, management, business planning, etc.)

It is important to remember that all virtual trainings must never be taken while supervising children. Proper supervision of children requires staff members’ full attention to ensure the health and safety of children in their care.

Evidence of the completion of annual training must be documented and maintained in each Staff member’s personnel file and/or Georgia’s workforce registry and professional development system (i.e., Geogia Professional Development System (GaPDS)) and be made available to DECAL for inspection upon request.

Language and Literacy Practices

Every CCLC Director, FCCLH Provider, Employee, and Provisional Employee must obtain a minimum of two hours of annual evidence-based, developmentally appropriate language and literacy practices training offered by an accredited college, university or vocational program or other DECAL approved source. All approved language and literacy practices trainings certificates must contain the following statement, “State-approved by Georgia Department of Early Care and Learning and meets the Early Language and Literacy Lab training requirement”. For more information about training, please see the

To locate state approved training opportunities throughout the state of Georgia, please visit the Georgia Professional Development System (GaPDS) website.

For more specific information and frequently asked questions on required training, access the following link: http://www.decal.ga.gov/documents/attachments/TrainingFAQ.pdf or contact DECAL's Child Care Services Division at 404-657-5562.

For additional information and frequently asked questions on training, access the following link: http://www.decal.ga.gov/documents/attachments/TrainingFAQ.pdf