Quick Facts
The brain is the only organ that is NOT fully formed at birth.
During the first 5 years of life, the brain grows between 85% - 95%.
The brain is not fully developed until young adulthood, between
24 – 26 years old.
Newborns recognize the voices of their parents/caregivers at birth and will start to mirror expressions and movements almost immediately.
A young child’s brain is in a constant state of “fight,” “flight,” or “freeze,” due to it not being fully developed, so for adults to keep calm and show the child s/he is safe is critical for development, growth, and learning.
The experiences children have during the first three years of life have a deep impact on how their brain develops.
Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) cause toxic stress in young children, leading to tendencies towards behavior issues, academic challenges, anxiety, and fear, which affect them into adulthood.
The THIRD most stressful event that can happen to a child (birth-to-five years old), underneath of (1) death of a parent and (2) divorce, is (3) changing teachers. Having consistency in the classroom during this time is essential for early learning.
Children who participate in an early learning program are more likely to have academic and social successes as they develop.
Young children are scientists from birth—everything is new and like an experiment! They are brave and courageous by trying new things each and every day. As much as young children have to learn from adults, adults can learn from young children. Be brave! Play! Experiment!
Giving children a positive and healthy start, benefits growth and development and a lifetime of practices that all stem back to early childhood.
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