For many people these days, the word "policy" invokes thoughts of red and blue, left and right, elephants and donkeys. But for those in the research and policy group at the Urban Child Institute, the word is less dichotomous.
In "Data Book 2013: The State of Children in Memphis & Shelby County," The Urban Child Institute explores social and economic conditions affecting optimal brain development for babies ages zero to three, and subsequently outlines critical areas that need improvement. Research findings show that the environment and community in which a child is born and raised contributes greatly to her future well being, while the health and well-being of its children determines a community's future.
Starting school can be a little scary for children. However, reading books about kindergarten can help them get excited about starting school and ease their fears of the unknown. The Urban Child Institute has put together this list of books that not only explain what to expect in kindergarten, but also introduce the skills that children need to succeed.
Is your child ready for kindergarten? One of the ways you can help children prepare for kindergarten is simply to read books to them about kindergarten. Reading these kinds of books is a good way to help them get excited about learning and ease their fears of the unknown.
Current research tells us that the first years of a baby's life are critical for his or her brain development. That research is valuable and those facts are important, but mothers need application. How can a mom create experiences for her own baby that will encourage his cognitive development?
Urban Child Institute Devoted to Helping Memphis Kids
August 1, 2013
There is a persistent and ever widening divide in our country between those who have plenty and those who suffer poverty. Nowhere are the effects of that divide more harmful, and often irreversible, than in the lives of the children born into poverty. It is in the experiences of those early years, from conception through age three, when the brain develops to 80 percent of its capacity, that a course for long-term well-being is set.