The state released a draft plan Tuesday to systematically change how children are taught in the nearly 2,000 days between birth and kindergarten. Gov. Christine Gregoire requested the plan as she prepares her budget for the Legislative session.
“Eighty-five percent of human brain development happens within the first five years of life,” state Department of Early Learning Director Bette Hyde said at a news conference Tuesday. Unfortunately, that’s when the state is the least organized in providing a comprehensive support system, she said.
The 108-page plan covers all aspects of a early childhood life, including health and nutrition, child care, school readiness and special needs. Here are a few of the plan’s 34 initiatives:Affordable pre-kindergarten for all families who want it. A quality rating system for child-care centers so parents can make informed choices. More training and higher compensation for child-care providers. Training for parents and babysitters to reinforce early learning at home. More children attending all-day kindergarten and taking diagnostic kindergarten tests to assess each child’s skills.
The goal is to coordinate the state’s fragmented system of agencies that support young children, including child-care providers and preschools, school districts, pediatricians and state agencies.
Some initiatives are free or low-cost, while others will be implemented in the next five or 10 years. Some are already in the works, such as the quality rating system.
“A lot of what is in the plan is already happening around our state we need to coordinate and align investments and efforts with a clear vision for children and families,” said Nina Auerbach, president of Thrive by Five, a public-private partnership for early learning.
She said the plan suggests several financing options: Federal grants, a private-public matching fund, an employer-based 401(k)-style plan for child care and some families might pay low-cost tuition for state preschool.
Ironically, the order for such the state early learning plan came from a school funding veto. In May, Gregoire vetoed part of the basic education bill that will redefine how the state pays for education. That part would have provided early learning support for at-risk toddlers, but Gregoire wanted to expand that to all children.
The main players behind the plan were the state Department of Early Learning, the state schools superintendent and Thrive by Five. In total, more than 100 people from dozens of agencies worked on the plan and about 1,000 people reviewed it, Hyde said. The final plan will be done in March.