2. Kids development from infant to toddler to
child is amazing!
In five short years - a
fraction of a normal
lifespan - a child develops
the physical, thinking and
language, emotional and
social abilities that will stay
with them for a lifetime.

3. How development happens…laying the foundation
Every baby is born with billions of
brain cells that represent life-long
potential. Proper development
requires that these brain cells connect
with each other over time in a stepby-step, prescribed order.

4. Sensitive periods in early brain development
Beginning in utero and
continuing throughout the
first years of life, there are
especially sensitive periods
for the developing brain.
Source: Nelson, C.A. In Neurons to Neighbourhoods (2000). Shonkoff, J.& Phillips, D. (Eds.)

5. Early environments and early experiences matter …
Simply put, the quality
of a child’s earliest
environment and
exposure to positive
experiences at the right
stages of development
has a strong influence
on the course of their
life path.

6. Nurturing relationships are essential …
Young children
experience their
world in an
environment of
relationships.

7. ‘Serve and return’ - building the foundation
for future relationships
At work in the ‘serve and return’ process is the
interaction of genes and experience that not only
shape and modify the architecture of the
developing brain, it is a key ingredient in
forming relationships between young children,
their parents and other caregivers.

8. Young children need each other …
the importance of play
It turns out mom was right when
she said “go outside and play,
it’s good for you!”

9. Healthy development disrupted …
toxic environments
When a child is raised in a
constantly stressful environment
we refer to this as “toxic stress.”
Toxic stress is not good for
anyone, but more so for the
developing child.

10. The gap between what we know and what we do …
By school age in Canada, more
than 25 per cent of children are
behind where they should be in
their physical, social, language or
cognitive development by the time
they enter kindergarten. This
applies to Alberta children as well.

11. Why does this matter so much?
Equity
Renewal
Prosperity

12. Investing in early childhood development …
3

13. Alberta families – we’re changing
Our families are different
Families are smaller
Most of us live in and around large cities
We have more young aboriginal families,
and growing numbers of young immigrant
families

14. Alberta communities - we’re changing
Alberta is increasingly
an urban province
with at least 80 per
cent of us now living
in and around large
cities.

15. Where Do We Go From Here?
Re-visiting how we provide support to young children
and their families …

16. Measuring life readiness …
Common indicators
across sectors that
consider the whole child
and her “life readiness”
… we know too little
about them or how our
young children are
doing overall.

17. Building on what we know is effective …
Early and intensive in home support
Programs that support children and
their parents

18. A truly integrated system for early learning
and care
We have many examples of
high quality early learning and
care programs and services,
but …

19. High quality, accessible and affordable opportunities
for early childhood learning and care
Well prepared and highly
skilled staff
Small play group sizes
Age-appropriate learning
activities and materials
Language-rich
environment
Warm relationships
between children and staff

20. Creating the village …
What can we do – together – to ensure all Alberta
children have opportunities to grow, develop and thrive?

21. We're all in this together ...
As individuals, families,
communities and
‘communities of best
practice’ we all have a
stake in ensuring healthy
early childhood
development for Alberta
children.

22. www.health.alberta.ca/about/OCMOH-Reports.html