Early Childhood Development
Learning development starts long before a child begins kindergarten. A child’s development is strengthened through regular interaction and stimulation in both the home and in quality early learning settings.
Here are five things to know about child care and childhood development:
- The brain is most flexible and adaptable to learning during the earliest years of life. More than 1 million new neural connections are formed every second in the first few years of life.
- Children are already rehearsing how to produce language at 7 months old.
- When a child enters kindergarten ready for school, there is an 82% chance they will master basic skills by age 11, compared with a 45% chance for children who are not school ready.
- High-quality early childhood education has a long-term effect on children’s cognitive and socioemotional development through kindergarten and beyond. It’s also shown to help children improve attentiveness, regulate their emotions, and develop social connections.
- Attending preschool is shown to reduce the likelihood that a child repeats a grade by 15%.
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Posts
Congress Passes Bipartisan Bill to Boost Early STEM Learning Funding
WASHINGTON – Yesterday, the House of Representatives passed the Building Blocks of STEM Act, a bipartisan, bicameral bill that instructs the National Science Foundation (NSF) to consider age distribution when …
New Research Demonstrates the Importance of Early Learning — and What Comes After
In addition to the proven life-long benefits, the overwhelming research shows that children living in poverty who experience quality early childhood education programs are more prepared for school, both behaviorally …
HHS Undertakes Nationwide Child Care Listening Tour
The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) just wrapped up a nationwide, 10-city listening tour, which featured roundtable discussions with parents, employers, child care providers, states and localities, tribal …
New Data Confirms Importance of Home-Based Care for Infants and Toddlers
This week, Child Trends released new data about the different types of care settings and which are preferred by families with infants and toddlers. Using data from the National Survey …
Prenatal-to-Three Policy Impact Center Connects Researchers and States
Today, the Pritzker Children’s Initiative announced the launch of the Prenatal-to-Three Policy Impact Center at the University of Texas at Austin (UT). The Impact Center will partner with states to …
Study Backs Up Research on Success of Tennessee’s Voluntary Pre-K Program
Earlier this week, researchers from Vanderbilt University and the Annenberg Institute at Brown University released a new working paper reaffirming the success of Tennessee’s Voluntary Pre-K (TN-VPK) program. The researchers …
AAP Report Reinforces Role Pediatricians Can Play in Promoting School Readiness
The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) released a new report yesterday which highlights the role pediatricians play in supporting healthy development of young children so they are ready to learn …
New Effort Helps Bridge Gap between ECE and K-12 Systems
The Office of Head Start launched a new project this week to bridge the gap between early education and public K-12 school systems. Coordination between the two systems will help …
Children at the Border Are Being Traumatized
Thousands of migrant and refugee children have been separated from their families at the southern border as a result of the current “zero-tolerance” immigration policy that requires government officials prosecute …
Bipartisan, Bicameral Bill Would Improve Supports for Infants and Young Children Exposed to Trauma
A bipartisan bill introduced this week by Senators Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV), Dick Durbin (D-IL), Tammy Duckworth (D-IL), and Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) — along with Representatives Danny Davis (D-IL) and …
