Giving Compass' Take:

• Education Dive reports on Santa Cruz's First 5 organization, which has worked to spread evidence-based home visiting programs to reduce child malnutrition — with strong results.

• Collaboration, data and strategic partnerships have helped scale First 5's efforts. How can this be a model for other areas of the country?

• Here's more on how home visits can make an impact on lives.

The potted plants in Julia Coke’s cozy living room are a reminder of when she worked in landscaping. But now her days are occupied with keeping 1-year-old Luca, who crawls on one knee, from playing with the leaves or trying to put them in his mouth.

Learning how to set limits as a mom has become a more frequent topic of conversation during her sessions with Justine Wiley, the Nurse-Family Partnership (NFP) home visitor who arrives at the Watsonville, California, Spanish-style bungalow every few weeks with a backpack of toys and answers to Coke’s questions.

“I really like how I get to direct what I want to learn about,” says Coke, as she and Wiley sit on the floor with Luca and his toys and discuss topics ranging from the right-sized car seat to giving toddlers choices to avoiding battles over diaper changing or sitting in a high chair.

Read the full article about the positive impact of home visiting by Linda Jacobson at Education Dive.