PLANK FIVE:
EARLY LEARNING RIGOR; OPTIONAL HIGH SCHOOL

"We know that what happens in the first five years of a child's life has a huge amount of influence on everything that
happens afterwards."

ED BALLS, BRITISH SECRETARY OF STATE, DEPARTMENT OF CHILDREN, SCHOOLS AND FAMILIES

The importance of providing a safe, nurturing, healthy environment for our very youngest children is well documented. Recent scientific studies show that ages birth to five years are critical to the brain development of children. Brain development in this age group is essential for kids to learn. What we do (and equally important...don't do) will forever shape their future and leave an imprint on all of society. We know children learn more in their first five years than during any other five year period in their lives.

Public schools offer kindergarten to all

children, but attendance is optional. An early warning signal of future educational problems is the fact that only half of the children entering kindergarten are ready to learn. We should start even earlier than kindergarten and offer programs and information to parents to ensure that all children are ready to be successful learners in kindergarten and beyond.

We must effect a systematic change in societal values and elevate the importance and commitment for parenting infants and toddlers. We must raise the bar and establish a new resolve in all parts of society to embrace the importance of an early learning environment that will optimize a child's ability to learn in kindergarten and instill skills that foster a lifetime of learning.

In addition to providing a strong foundation for learning, pre-school programs provide other societal benefits. Economist Robert Lynch in Enriching Children, Enriching the Nation, found that providing high-quality pre-school education produces large, measurable