1Designating October 2013 as "Pennsylvania's Promise for Children
2Month" in Pennsylvania.

3WHEREAS, There are approximately 730,000 children from birth
4to five years of age in Pennsylvania today; and

5WHEREAS, A young child's brain forms 700 neural synapses a
6second, and the circuits for key functions such as vision,
7hearing, language and higher cognitive function develop most in
8the first five years of life; and

9WHEREAS, The creation of these circuits is affected by a
10child's early learning environment; and

11WHEREAS, Quality early learning and child development play a
12major role in a child's future success in school and in life;
13and

14WHEREAS, Young children learn best when they have proper

1health and nutrition, a safe and stable family and home life and
2activities that stimulate creativity, curiosity and all the
3skills they will need to succeed in school and in life; and

4WHEREAS, Forty years of research show that children receiving
5high quality early education are more likely to be prepared for
6and do better in school, graduate high school, attend college or
7job training and be better prepared for a competitive work
8force; and

9WHEREAS, Talking, reading and playing with children from
10birth builds the language, math and social skills they need to
11be ready for kindergarten; and

12WHEREAS, Choosing quality early learning programs like
13Keystone STARS, Pre-K Counts, Head Start, Early Intervention,
14Nurse-Family Partnership and Parent-Child Home Program which
15partner with families and provide children with good teachers
16and learning activities sparks creativity and a love for
17learning so they can grow and develop; and

18WHEREAS, Every $1 invested in quality early education saves
19at least $7 in special education, public assistance, corrections
20and lost taxes; therefore be it

21RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives designate October
222013 as "Pennsylvania's Promise for Children Month," recognizing
23that every child in Pennsylvania deserves access to quality
24early learning opportunities and that it is the responsibility
25of every citizen of this Commonwealth to help our children reach
26their promise.