Education funding must match growth of children’s brains

Government funding for education ignores the years when children’s brains are growing the fastest, according to new research by The Urban Child Institute.

The Urban Child Institute consultant and author of the report, Steve Ross, said: “By the time a toddler has his third birthday, his brain has grown to 80 percent of its adult size. And yet, during this time of the greatest brain growth, only 2.5 percent of the $1.8 billion spent on educating our children is spent during these first three years.”

In other words, when we can have the greatest impact on children and give them a fair start in life, we do just the opposite, said Ross. “We don’t make the smartest investment, which is to make sure that the youngest children are ready for school,” he said. “For many of these children, they start off behind in school and they never catch up.”

Early childhood is a “critical time” for investment in children’s education.

“This is a critical time because children are sponges for knowledge at that time and the more that we put into them, the further they can reach in life,” she said. “Early education is the same as building a house. We need to provide a strong foundation on which we build our children to be lifelong learners.”

http://tri-statedefenderonline.com/articlelive/articles/6209/1/Education-funding-must-match-growth-of-childrens-brains/Page1.html

[Sam: To realize the full potential of a new born child is a race against time. The initial 6 months after birth is critical to brain development. A rich language environment stimulates brain development, with better IQ, EQ and language skills.

Babies who miss this critical period miss it for life. This is especially true to infants born to parents so successful in their careers that they cannot spare sufficient time with their babies every day.

Leverage on the cutting edge R & D and service for infants and toddlers offered by Le Beaumont. Come to the Saturday Parenting Seminar. Talk to young parents who have joined this cutting edged program. Observe how these babies blossom.