House Bill 3909

    Florida House of Representatives - 1998                HB 3909

        By Representative Miller






  1                      A bill to be entitled

  2         An act relating to education; providing that

  3         state-funded education and care programs for

  4         infants and toddlers must foster brain

  5         development; requiring an evaluation and a

  6         report; providing an effective date.

  7

  8         WHEREAS, at birth, a child has one hundred billion

  9  brain cells that will be developed by the experiences of life,

10  and

11         WHEREAS, the stimulation that causes brain development

12  can be positive, such as conversation, music, and parental

13  love, or it can be negative, such as neglect or emotional and

14  physical abuse, and

15         WHEREAS, during the first year of a child's life the

16  connections between the cells, the synapses, increase

17  twenty-fold, making the first year a crucial time for brain

18  development, and

19         WHEREAS, infants develop synapses when they listen to

20  language and music, see colors and shapes, and feel and handle

21  objects of different sizes, shapes, and textures, and

22         WHEREAS, there is no other time in a child's life as

23  productive for brain development as the first year, NOW

24  THEREFORE,

25

26  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:

27

28         Section 1.  Each state-funded education and care

29  program for children from birth to 5 years of age must provide

30  activities to foster brain development in infants and

31  toddlers. A program must provide an environment rich in

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CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.






    Florida House of Representatives - 1998                HB 3909

    516-194-98






  1  language and music and filled with objects of various colors,

  2  shapes, textures, and sizes to stimulate visual, tactile,

  3  auditory, and linguistic senses in the children and must

  4  include classical music and at least 30 minutes of reading to

  5  the children each day. A program may be offered through an

  6  existing early childhood program such as Healthy Start, the

  7  Title I program, subsidized child care, the prekindergarten

  8  early-intervention program, Florida First Start, the Head

  9  Start program, or a private childcare program. A program must

10  provide training for the infants' and toddlers' parents

11  including direct dialogue and interaction between teachers and

12  parents demonstrating the urgency of brain development in the

13  first year of a child's life.

14         Section 2.  The Executive Office of the Governor shall

15  contract for an evaluation of programs to stimulate brain

16  development in infants and toddlers and shall report the

17  results of the evaluation to the President of the Senate and

18  the Speaker of the House of Representatives by January 1,

19  2000.

20         Section 3.  This act shall take effect upon becoming a

21  law.

22

23            *****************************************

24                          SENATE SUMMARY

25    Provides that each state-funded education and care
      program for children from birth to 5 years of age must
26    foster brain development through specific activities.
      Requires an evaluation and a report to the legislature.
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