Week of the Young Child 2009
April 19-25

Established by the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC) over 30 years ago, the Week of the Young Child (WOYC) provides an opportunity “to recommit ourselves to ensuring that each and every child experiences the type of early environment--at home, at child care, at school, and in the community--that will promote their early learning.”

We celebrate the Week of the Young Child to:
Highlight the need to invest in high-quality early education;
Engage state legislators in programs in their districts; and
Raise community awareness of the importance of high-quality early education.

> Read about how others are celebrating WOYC.

How you can celebrate WOYC

Invite your state legislators to visit your program.
We encourage you to invite your legislators to visit your program and see early education in action. Invite local press to the visit or take photos to send to your newspaper if a reporter cannot attend. Let EEA know what you are planning and we will profile your event on our website and provide you with additional resources.

>Click here for a checklist and simple tips to help plan your visit.

>Click here for talking points to use when calling or emailing to invite your legislators to your program.

>Click here for a sample press advisory to send to your newspaper after you confirm your legislator's visit to your program.

Submit a Letter to the Editor.
Click here for a letter template. Send the letter to your local newspaper to inform your community about WOYC and the importance of high-quality early education. Let EEA know if your letter is published and we will highlight it on our website.

Contact your state legislators.
Click here to ask you state legislators to preserve the progress the Commonwealth has made on behalf of young children and families in the Fiscal Year 2010 state budget.

Wear your WOYC sticker.
Download our WOYC sticker template and print out WOYC stickers on AVERY 5163 mailing labels. Distribute the stickers to colleagues, family, and friends and wear the sticker to show your commitment to our young children and families.

Share your story.
Join other early educators and share your stories about continuing your education, nurturing young children and families and the hard work you do every day. Read the stories of other early educators from across the state. Click here to submit your story to EEA.

Let EEA know what your plans are for WOYC.
>Send an email to Kyle Demeo, EEA Early Childhood Field Director and let her know what you are doing to celebrate WOYC.

Visit NAEYC for more tips on how to celebrate WOYC.

Invite friends to join the Early Education for All (EEA) Campaign
As a member of EEA, your friends will receive news and updates about our efforts to ensure high-quality early education for Massachusetts' young children and families and professional development opportunities for early educators. To sign others up for the campaign, print out and distribute this form or have friends click here to join online.

The Early Education for All Campaign’s Week of the Young Child activities are made possible through the generous support of the Verizon Foundation.

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