The Maine Department of Education and the Maine Association for the Education of Young Children (MaineAEYC) invite you to join us in celebrating the Week of the Young Child®, an annual celebration sponsored by the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC), during the week of April 1-7, 2023. While the Week of the Young Child is still a couple of months away, the Maine DOE and MaineAEYC are providing a couple of informational sessions in early February to help schools and communities start to plan for how they will celebrate.
Consider registering to attend one of the following virtual informational sessions:
NAEYC is the world’s largest early childhood education association with close to 60,000 members and a network of 52 Affiliates, committed to promoting high-quality early learning for all young children, birth through age 8. Their collective vision is that all young children thrive and learn in a society dedicated to ensuring they reach their full potential.
The purpose of Week of the Young Child® is two fold. First, it aims to focus public attention on the needs of young children and their families while recognizing the early childhood programs, services and providers who meet those needs. Second, it calls on citizens and communities to consider and plan how we can better meet the needs of young children and families at the local, state and national levels.
Week of the Young Child® is an exciting series of fun filled daily themes that celebrate young children, their families, their teachers and the communities that support them.
It is our hope that programs serving young children and their families will plan and participate in activities that support the daily themes and call attention to the important work you are doing. This is a great opportunity for schools, child care centers, home child care programs, before & after care programs, public libraries, museums, and community organizations to come together to collaborate and organize celebrations in communities across the state. MaineAEYC and the DOE have several activities planned for the week, including ECE STATE HOUSE DAY in Augusta on April 5th from 8:00am to 12:00pm. We hope to see you there!
Want to learn more about the Week of the Young Child (WOYC)? Interested in being a part of WOYC, but not sure how? Want to plan a WOYC event, but looking for ideas? Want to learn more about WOYC mini grants being offered by MaineAEYC?
Join MaineAEYC and the Department of Education for a Week of the Young Child Informational Session on: February 2nd, 3-4pm OR February 9th, 1-2pm
You can find Week of the Young Child® resources, including a guidebook and mini-grant opportunity, at the MaineAEYC, DOE and NAEYC websites. For more information please feel free to contact:.
Morgan Hart Tolin, M.Ed
Professional Learning Director
Maine Association for the Education of Young Children
morgan@maineaeyc.org
Nicole Madore
Early Childhood Specialist
Maine Department of Education
Nicole.Madore@maine.gov
Marcy Whitcomb
Public Pre-K Consultant
Maine Department of Education
marcy.r.whitcomb@maine.gov
Sue Gallant
Pre-K Expansion Consultant
Maine Department of Education
Sue.Gallant@maine.gov