The Huffington Post – Staff Writer
“Five things are needed as part of a child’s basic care: good nutrition, health care, learning, play and protection (and of course love when providing all of these). By the time a child reaches the age of five about 90% of its brain development is complete. It is clear that busy stimulation and learning is needed from day one to give every child the best start in life. In these early years, a child’s brain develops 700 new neural connections every second – the highest rate of development during an individual’s lifetime. Thankfully, with an increased focus on early years and new research our knowledge of brain development and the inherent potential of all children is growing almost as fast! So the excuses need to stop – we cannot ignore investment in this area any longer.”(more)