Sharing Web Resources

The name and link for the organization I selected is Zero to Three at http://zerotothree.org/.  ZERO TO THREE is a national, nonprofit organization that provides parents, professionals and policymakers the knowledge to nurture young children’s early development.

Their mission:  To ensure that all babies and toddlers have a strong start in life.

From the website, I learned that President Obama included babies and toddlers as part of his 2014 budget proposal.  This budget proposal is to provide $7 billion over 10 years to ensure young children and families have access to high-quality child care.  The President’s plan also goes beyond home visiting to reach more families where they live, with information, guidance, and encouragement.  The budget proposal released also allocates $15 billion of funding over 10 years to invest in this effort.  “Babies don’t come with an instruction manual, and every parent can benefit from reliable information about early learning and a helping hand,” says Melmed.  “The President’s plan helps parents utilize what science and evidence-based practice has to offer in order to give babies, toddlers, and young children the best start in life.”

The President’s plan is specifically rooted in brain science, which shows that babies are born wired to learn. Starting on the first day of a child’s life, positive early experiences establish a strong foundation upon which all later learning and healthy development is built.  However, infants and toddlers who lack quality early learning experiences can fall quickly behind.  Research clearly shows that gaps can appear even before their first birthday.  The President’s plan builds on what we know works: start early with consistent, high-quality, evidence-based supports that match what parents need and help parents nurture the early development of their babies and toddlers.  

I think this information is great news, especially regarding the issue of dual language learners that I have been learning about this week.  I think when children receive high-quality early education, all children, regardless of their language, culture, race, religion, income, etc. will have a much better chance of being successful throughout school and throughout their adult lives.