Caring for our Children Basics represents the minimum health and safety standards experts believe should be in place where children are cared for outside of their homes. Caring for our Children Basics seeks to reduce the conflicts and redundancy found in program standards linked to multiple funding streams. Caring for our Children Basics should not be construed to represent all standards that should be present to achieve the highest quality of care and early learning. For example, the caregiver training requirements outlined in these standards are designed only to prevent harm to children, not to ensure their optimal development and learning. (author abstract)