Another "Holiday"... WOYC

April 13-19 is Week of the Young Child (WOYC). It's an annual celebration to honor young children and thank teachers (and everyone else) who make a difference in young children’s lives. It was first established in 1971, 45 years after the National Association of Young Children (NAEYC) was founded.

The theme for Week of the Young Child 2008 is "Bring Communities Together for Children – Children Bring Communities Together". NAEYC encourages state and local Affiliates, early childhood programs, and organizations who work on behalf of young children to plan events that bring community together. Click here for key facts and resources to learn more about their mission.

NAEYC's goal is "not to simply defend the status quo". Their convictions about early childhood care and education are a vision that has still not been reached to this day. Here's a brief list from their site for those of you who are unaware of their work (and this is only a miniscule portion of it).

* All young children deserve excellent early care and education.
* High quality early experiences make a difference in children’s lifelong academic and social success.
* These programs must be accessible to all families.
* Early Childhood Professionals must have excellent preparation, ongoing professional development, and compensation commensurate with their qualifications and experience.
* Effective early education must be both challenging and appropriate to young children’s ages, individual needs, and culture.
* Everyone needs to work together to build a successful future for our youngest children.

It looks like our involvement this year is simply taking Enid to a Scholastic Preschool Book Fair at DEPC. Look into activities going on in your area this week and help make a difference!