Early Childhood Education

Early childhood education is one of the most important aspects in the social and mental development stages in a child's life. According to the NAEYC (National Association for the Education of Young Children), it spans the human life from birth to age eight. The term "early childhood education" is most commonly associated with preschool or child day care programs. Young children are literally human sponges, capable of taking in, absorbing, and retaining massive amounts of sensory information.

This early stage in a child's life is a critical part of the child's growth. Cognitive development- how they begin to perceive themselves in relation to others, how they think they should act and react, and how they expect others to respond and react to them and their responses is an important process for the child. Because of this, it is important to not only carefully select professional and trained caregivers, but to also emphasize relationships with the family, the home culture, and the home language. Child care should support the child's family instead of merely being a substitute for them.

If a young child does not receive sufficient parental interaction, nutrition, nurture, and stimulus during this most important and critical stage, the child may be left with a developmental handicap that threatens his or her success in the early schooling stages and beyond.

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