Discoveries are being made that provide new information about how a child s brain develops. Did you know . Learning is making brain cell connections. Connections are formed at an incredible rate over the first few years of life. A child s brain almost triples in weight between birth and age three.
Early experiences can result in a significant variation in the number of brain cell connections.
The major milestones of the first years including smiling, babbling, talking, crawling, walking and fine motor coordination in the fingers, all follow a built in pattern of brain development. Children need age appropriate learning experiences. The years from birth to age five are crucial for oral language development, upon which reading and written language are based. Quality child care programs enhance brain development and have long term positive results. Quality programs include rich and responsive language experiences with caring adults and a learning environment which gives children the opportunity to take part in music and art experiences and explore a variety of learning materials.