Finding Child Care

Research on brain development shows that babies are born with an “unfinished” brain. The parts of the brain that handle thinking, remembering, emotions, and social behaviors are undeveloped at birth. The brain’s growth is affected by early experiences with both parents and other caregivers. The quality of non-parental care is measured by the same indicators as care by mothers and fathers: warm, responsive, consistent caregiving, attentive to the needs of individual children.

Recent research shows that the quality of child care has a lasting impact on children’s well-being and ability to learn. Children in poor quality child care lag behind their peers in language and reading skills and display more aggression toward other children and adults.

The quality of child care matters! Babies who are held, talked to, sung to and read to simply do better later in school. In other words, you and your early care and education professional influence your child’s brain structure, and shape learning, thinking, and behavior for life! Download our Child Care Need Form.