With lots of families spending more time at home together, it may feel like every week now is the week of the young child. However, there’s one particular week in which we pay special attention to young children, their families, and the early care and learning programs and teachers that support them. The Week of the Young Child is an annual celebration sponsored by the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC). This year it falls on April 11-17, 2020.
Why this focus on young children? Today we know more than ever about brain growth and the optimum period for development – the first few years of life. This week is a time for all of us – parents, grandparents, policy makers, philanthropists, businesses, teachers, and individuals – to recognize the value of investing time, energy, and resources in those early years.
We can celebrate early learning, young children, their teachers, and families in many different ways during this week. Here are some ways you can celebrate this special week:
Music Monday
- Playing with Music at Home
- Support Math Readiness Through Music
- Sing With Me Baby!
- 10 Ways Babies Learn When We Sing to Them
- Message in a Backpack™–Make Animal Music
Tasty Tuesday
Work Together Wednesday
- Five Essentials to Meaningful Play
- Making at Home
- How to Support Children’s Approaches to Learning: Play with Them!
- 10 Prop Boxes for Ideas: Mini Learning Centers at Home
Artsy Thursday
- Message in a Backpack™ Family Field Trips: Museum
- Meaningful Art Projects Parents Can Fit Into a Busy Day
- Supporting the Development of Creativity
Family Friday
- Am I Really My Child’s First Teacher?
- Explore the Great Outdoors with Your Child
- Message in a Backpack™–Bubbles
Bookmark this page and do an activity each day. Then visit Best Beginnings on Facebook and share a picture of how you celebrated your young child! We’d love to see what you come up with.
We want to thank Governor Dunleavy for his proclamation naming April 11-17, 2020 The Week of The Young Child in Alaska.
