Tuesday, May 16, 2006
First news item that I would like to share an editorial from the Mankato Free Press. Raises some interesting thoughts and I must say that I agree completely. It's not that I'm not a Minnesota sports fan, but I believe that the money could be put to better use elsewhere... like early childhood!
Published: May 15, 2006 12:28 am
Our View -- Support Early Childhood Programs
The Free Press
The voices most affected by the proposed legislation aren’t always heard. They’re awfully high-pitched and squeaky.
But if a recent Minnesota poll is a solid indication, louder voices, those of voters, are ready to stick up for those squeaky voices.
A poll sponsored by the Every Child Matters Education Fund points to voters in Minnesota thinking more should be done for our state’s youngest children. Most of those polled ranked health, education and well-being of children and youth as their top priority. Forty percent also said that during the past five years or so the conditions for children in Minnesota have deteriorated.
You don’t have to be an educator to know the impact that sound child care and early childhood education have on a child. And it’s about more than kindergarten readiness. A study by the Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis showed early childhood programs save the government money in the long run — in criminal justice costs, social services and special education funding.
In Minnesota in 2001, Early Childhood was funded at $120 for each child younger than 5 in the school district. In 2003, that funding was slashed to $96 per child, chopping $4.5 million in funding from those programs by 2005.
Even when things looked better in 2005, the state never increased Early Childhood support to 2001 levels. Funding in 2005 was only partially restored to $104 per child. To be investing in children at levels below what we invested in the 1990s is not “bettering the next generation.” Now it’s up to the state’s lawmakers to find the money to adequately support and expand early childhood programs.
Gov. Pawlenty proposed $10 million for early childhood programs in his budget plan but makes the spending contingent on some changes to the programs. His bill stalled in the House.
The DFL-dominated state Senate put more than $23 million into early childhood programs out of a $127 million supplemental spending bill passed last week.
Lawmakers have to act fast to make sure the Legislature doesn’t end this month without funding in place. They might have an incentive if they keep in mind voters’ opinions on childhood issues.
Wouldn’t it be a shame if at the end of this legislative session, we’d be left with three new stadiums but no new classes for preschoolers to learn the sounds of the letters that spell B-A-L-L.
The second item in the news is the announcement that PBS Kids will begin airing Curious George, a preschool educational show based on the books by Margret and H. A. Rey, on September 4, the network says. Each episode of the series will include two animated stories and several live-action sequences that explore science, math, and engineering.
CURIOUS GEORGE will use George's insatiable curiosity as a way of acquainting preschoolers with key concepts in math, science and design engineering technology. The series will encourage inquiry and curiosity, promote hands-on exploration, and show parents and caregivers how to support children's science and math-related play. George's memorable misadventures from dismantling clocks to rounding up errant bunnies will offer a perfect vehicle for motivating kids to expand their own investigations of the world.
I'm not much of an advocate for television in the child care setting. But if you must have tv, at least make sure it is appropriate. Sounds like this show will have some good ideas for providers.
