During the past several years our knowledge and understanding of brain growth and development has grown exponentially. We now know how to provide environmental stimulation that will create optimal neural wiring in the cortex and encourage the development of thoughtful, academically competent adults. We understand the critical connection between the quality of infants' emotional relationships and their later social behavior. And we realize that some windows of opportunity for affecting children's brain development are remarkably brief. Our challenge now is to act on this knowledge to ensure that every child born in Michigan reaches kindergarten with the intellectual and emotional foundation necessary to enable him/her to become a productive, contributing citizen.

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