We built this baby….

I’ve been watching my neighbors build their garage over the past year. First, there were months of preparation: planning what they hoped it would look like and the kind of space and functionality it would offer; interviewing contractors; choosing the proper materials; talking; looking over sketches…To me, as an outsider, this was mostly invisible, although I cheered them on as they shared snippets as we talked over the garden fence.

Then, late this fall, the work began. A highly skilled team of construction workers came every day, and as my dog and I watched out of the window, they carefully dug the footer, and laid a foundation. Day after day, the workers were there, and, to be honest, I didn’t really SEE much progress. Most days, if my dog hadn’t gone crazy barking at the trucks coming and going and the sound of power tools, I wouldn’t have known they were doing anything.

Then, suddenly, this week: walls went up. A roof was trussed. The building took shape. I was shocked. How did THAT all happen?

And I thought about how similar the process is to quality early childhood care and education. So much has to happen before we “see” the results. But without that careful planning and foundation building, baby’s brains won’t offer the solid architecture necessary for lifelong learning and healthy living.

Below you’ll find an infographic about what building a baby’s brain can produce, one neural network at a time. It links to the CDC’s (Center for Disease Control) website, where there are a number of wonderful interactive resources that highlight developmental milestones.

What will you do today to build a baby’s brain? Because really: if we can spend months planning and building the foundation of a garage, don’t our children deserve at least that much? Doesn’t our society, too?