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·3 min read

5 Questions for the Governor: Tennessee’s Bill Lee

The Editors·

5 Questions for the Governor

·3 min read

Crying is Easy; Laughing is Hard

The Science and Wonder Behind a Baby’s Laugh

K.C. Compton·

Research Lab

·7 min read

A woman making a kissing face at a baby she's holding up, with a sun setting behind them

The “Child Care For Working Families Act”: Transition Fuel for Universal Child Care (3-Part Series, Part 1)

Series: Which Path Forward?: Analyzing the Flurry of Federal Child Care Proposals

Elliot Haspel·

Child Care Crisis

·8 min read

The Rise of the Rural Library Network: A New Resource for Some of Our Favorite People (Librarians and Children)

Mark Swartz·

Community Engagement Reading Time

·4 min read

How Two Zaentz Fellows Are Adapting to—and Shaping—the Early Education Landscape

Mark Swartz·

Best Practices Case Studies

·3 min read

For Want of a Diaper, Families Are Getting Lost: No Diapers. No Day Care. No Job.

K.C. Compton·

Public Policy

·7 min read

The Bridgeport Baby Bundle: Thinking in Systems, not Programs

Mark Swartz·

Case Studies Community Engagement

·5 min read

The American Rescue Plan Provides a Blueprint for Keeping Kids Safe and Reducing Reliance on the Foster Care System

Kendra Hurley·

Child Care Crisis Public Policy

·5 min read

OPINION: How a Faulty Generalization is Sabotaging Early Childhood Policy

Katharine B. Stevens·

Case Studies Facts and Figures

·4 min read

Child Care is Infrastructure. Biden’s Relief Bill Understands That

Bryce Covert·

Child Care Crisis Public Policy

·7 min read

Researchers Connect Cardio Health and Cognition—Even as Early as Preschool

K.C. Compton·

Research Lab

·6 min read

5 Questions for the Governor: Connecticut’s Ned Lamont

The Editors·

5 Questions for the Governor

·8 min read

Oskar Eustis: Welcoming America Onstage

Mark Swartz·

Community Cultivators

·7 min read

5 Top Takeaways from the Fireside Chat: “A Moment to Think Creatively”

Mark Swartz·

Top Takeaways

·3 min read

“Knowledge Accumulates”: The History of the American Rescue Plan’s Child Provisions and What it Means for Cutting Child Poverty

Mark Swartz·

Best Practices Facts and Figures Public Policy Research Lab

·4 min read

Working with ECE Providers in Massachusetts during Covid-19: Insights from Amy O’Leary

Traci M. Childress·

Conversations COVID-19

·7 min read

Playful Learning in Pittsburgh: The Park as Classroom

Mark Swartz·

Best Practices Case Studies Public Policy

·3 min read

Vocabulary for the Win with Conversational Turns

A Scalable Program for Early Learning

K.C. Compton·

Case Studies Research Lab

·7 min read

OPINION: American Rescue Plan: the United States Finally Invests Serious Resources in Our Children

Bryce Covert·

Child Care Crisis Public Policy

·5 min read

#KidsAreEssential: New Public Education Project Brings Together a Robust, Bipartisan Coalition to Capture the Child Care Moment

Mark Swartz·

Child Care Crisis Public Policy

·4 min read

OPINION: Nearly Half of Child Care Teachers Leave Every Year — Why Aren’t We Talking About This?

Elliot Haspel·

Child Care Crisis

·6 min read

Home Grown Launches “Leading from Home” Initiative to Support Provider Leaders Nationwide

Natalie Renew·

Best Practices Case Studies Community Engagement Public Policy

·3 min read

Top Takeaways from Three Sessions of the Finding Joy Through Playful Learning Conference

Mark Swartz·

Top Takeaways

·8 min read

A Young Mother Reflects on Risk Factors, Protective Factors and Using Personal Experience to Help Others

Blanca Goetz·

Case Studies Conversations

·3 min read

FILM REVIEW: “Through The Night:” An Intimate Portrait of Family Child Care Reveals Deeper Truths About Caregiving

Elliot Haspel·

Case Studies Child Care Crisis

·4 min read

5 Questions for the Governor: Kansas’ Laura Kelly

The Editors·

5 Questions for the Governor

·4 min read

Lessons from the History of Children’s Television, the Original Distance Learning

Mark Swartz·

Community Engagement

·6 min read

A Golden Opportunity for Early Childhood Apprenticeships

Why the Bank Street College of Education Believes the Time Is Right

Mark Swartz·

Best Practices

·3 min read

What the Eyes Don’t See: Dr. Mona Hanna-Attisha

Book Review: What the Eyes Don’t See: Fueled by Idealism, Backed by Science

How a Pediatrician Confronted a Public Health Crisis and Rocked a Nation

K.C. Compton·

Public Policy Reading Time

·7 min read

Ai-jen Poo, Founder of National Domestic Workers Alliance, Discusses Why Now is the Time for Transforming Our Undervalued and Largely Unseen Care Workforce

Bryce Covert·

Child Care Crisis COVID-19

·10 min read

Boosting California’s Early Childhood Capacity

Sacramento Council Member Eric Guerra Fights for Kids

Mark Swartz·

Public Policy

·4 min read

What Do Young Children Know about Race? You Might Be Surprised.

I-LABS’ Equity Briefs for Parents, Providers and Policymakers

Mark Swartz·

Research Lab

·5 min read

Henry Louis Gates, Jr.: A Child Of Television Explores History – Personal, American and Global – to Illuminate Ancestry, Cultural Influences and Social Justice

Mark Swartz·

Community Cultivators

·6 min read

Equity for Young Children Begins with Equity for Adults: Lessons from the Mississippi Learning Network

Judy Jablon and Alison LaRocca·

Best Practices Case Studies

·7 min read

Zero to 3: Never a Better Time to Learn a Second Language

K.C. Compton·

Research Lab

·7 min read

Opinion: Here Come The Tired Arguments Against Universal Child Care — Reject Them

Elliot Haspel·

Child Care Crisis Public Policy

·9 min read

New Mexico On Verge of Securing State Constitutional Change to Ensure Stable Funding for Children Zero to Five

Bryce Covert·

Public Policy

·7 min read

Infants the World Over Can Spot a Lullaby—in Any Language

Researchers Are Hot on the Trail of Why

K.C. Compton·

Research Lab

·5 min read

Universal Child Care Neither New Idea Nor Unprecedented

Bryce Covert·

Case Studies Child Care Crisis

·3 min read

Explore Our Series:

Child Care Crisis

5 Questions for the Governor

Community Cultivators

Top Takeaways

Early Learning Nation (ELN) is a nonprofit, independent magazine focused on early learning. Our original content includes local and national news, features and interviews, along with resources from early learning communities across the nation. ELN leads with science and connects with early learning professionals, parents and caretakers, policymakers, scientists and community leaders to share the latest challenges and successes in the field.

Early Learning in the States

The latest in early learning news

Three Ways to Support High-Quality Early Care and Education. Pro Tip: Support Teachers!

Shira Mattera and Ximena Portilla·May 5, 2021·3 min read

Congress and the Biden Administration have proposed and enacted some of the largest investments in early childhood since the 1960s.... Read More

5 Questions for the Governor: Tennessee’s Bill Lee

The Editors·May 4, 2021·3 min read

Literacy is a top priority because we know that so much of our success in K-12 hinges on building better readers. In the past, we’ve had an environment of “too little, too late” when it comes to helping kids before they pass the third grade, which is recognized as a milestone for reading development. Read More

Crying is Easy; Laughing is Hard

The Science and Wonder Behind a Baby’s Laugh

K.C. Compton·April 30, 2021·7 min read

The game of peekaboo is a universal language—and there’s way more to it than you might imagine. You know the... Read More

The “Child Care For Working Families Act”: Transition Fuel for Universal Child Care (3-Part Series, Part 1)

Series: Which Path Forward?: Analyzing the Flurry of Federal Child Care Proposals

Elliot Haspel·April 28, 2021·8 min read

When I declared on this site a few months back that “The Era of Child Care Incrementalism Is Over,” I had no idea how much April would prove the point. Not only is the White House gearing up to release the American Families Plan -- which will include, per the Washington Post, over $400 billion in early care & education funding -- but on Thursday, Sen. Patty Murray and Rep. Bobby Scott reintroduced a new iteration of the Child Care For Working Families Act (CCWFA). Read More