By Tim Hilton, on February 17th, 2012% 
Submitted by Megan London, Coach Mentor for Child and Family Opportunities
In January of 2011, I joined the Coach Mentor team at Child and Family Opportunities, Inc. (CFO) in Ellsworth, Maine. At the time, this was a new project to CFO, and it was funded by the Administration for Children and Families as an innovative nationwide approach to improve the quality of teaching in Head Start classrooms, promote positive, sustained outcomes for children, and promote career development for early childhood professionals working in Head Start classrooms. The funds that CFO was awarded from this highly competitive grant were used to support our team of three Early Learning Mentor Coaches who provided on-the-job guidance, coaching, training and technical assistance to classroom . . . → Read More: A Reflection on a Year of Coach Mentoring
By Tim Hilton, on February 1st, 2012% 
From the Center of the Developing Child at Harvard University:
Brain Hero: Following a two-year collaboration with the Interactive Media Division of the School of Cinematic Arts at the University of Southern California to develop and test new ways of communicating the science of early childhood development, the Center on the Developing Child has released the collaboration’s first product, “Brain Hero.” The three-minute video depicts how actions by a range of people in the family and community can affect a child’s development. Based loosely on such games as “Guitar Hero,” “SimCity,” and “The Game of Life,” the video adapts the visual sensibility of interactive game models to a video format and portrays how actions taken by parents, teachers, policymakers, and . . . → Read More: Brain Hero
By Tim Hilton, on February 1st, 2012%
From the Center on the Developing Child of Harvard University:
This feature highlights five numbers to remember about the development of young children. Learn how the numbers illustrate such concepts as the importance of early childhood to the learning, behavior, and health of later life and why getting things right the first time is easier and more effective than trying to fix them later.
View their interactive feature or download the PDF from the Center on the Developing Child’s website.
By Tim Hilton, on January 25th, 2012% 
Maine’s unique quality of life is important to us and we want to preserve it for our children. We want to make sure they have the opportunity to live, work and raise their families here. Yet, given the stressors of our economy and the challenges currently facing so many Maine families, the future of our state and our children is in doubt. The question before us is what can we do today to guarantee the future prosperity of our state’s economy and its quality of life? The answer lies with young children. Maine’s future prosperity rests squarely on the well-being and success of its youngest children.
. . . → Read More: Invest Early for 2020 Building the Foundation for Maine’s Future
By Tim Hilton, on January 9th, 2012% 
From the Bangor Daily News website on January 6, 2012
By Bill Miller and Dan Tremble
As with any new year, 2012 will be greeted with well wishes for a bright and prosperous future. But if you’re part of Maine’s business community, you may not share that sentiment.
Unemployment across the state remains historically high, above 7 percent, with more than 50,000 residents looking for work. And just as troubling, the wellspring of Maine’s work force, our education system, continues to struggle with poor academic performance.
Consider these facts: 68 percent of fourth graders in our state read below grade level. More than 60 percent of eighth graders perform below grade level in reading and math, and more than one . . . → Read More: Early education a sound investment
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