ONE Introduction WHAT IS EARLY LEARNING? “Early learning,” or “early literacy,” as it is sometimes known, has become something of a buzzword in public libraries and across our coun- try in recent years. We are beginning to recognize the fact that many chil- dren are entering school unprepared for the social and intellectual requirements that entails, and often those children are not reading on grade level by third grade. Third grade is a critical marker in students’ careers. As it is popular to say, up to third grade, children are learning to read. After third grade, chil- dren are reading to learn. Children who find themselves behind with third- grade reading struggle the entire rest of their school careers to catch up to grade-level work in all subjects. This struggle then in turn contributes to significant learning attrition in high school. This lack of high school success can lead to low-paying jobs and low quality of life after students leave school. In order to prevent this, the focus on learning has turned to the earliest years, particularly those leading up to third grade, as the place to begin improving the lives of children. For the purposes of this book, we define early learning as learning that hap- pens between ages zero and five. This is indeed a critical time period for learning! The Harvard Center for the Developing Child offers this intriguing fact: “90% of a child’s brain development happens before age 5.” Now, please do not panic. It is never too late to learn. This fact simply emphasizes that the younger a learner is, the easier the learning is. Consider how many times you or a friend has
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