The BELL Project Celebrates the Week of the Young Child

On Wednesday, April 5th, The BELL Project joined the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC) in celebrating Work Together Wednesday as part of the Week of the Young Child. The day focused on cooperation and teamwork, which aligns perfectly with the BELL Project's mission. The Week of the Young Child is an annual event that highlights the needs of young children and their families, as well as the programs and services that meet those needs.

 Each day of the week is dedicated to a specific theme designated by NAEYC, and organizations plan and implement local events to celebrate. The BELL Project brought together several organizations at the Lucien Blackwell Community Center to celebrate children and foster relationships between Early Childhood Education programs, Shelter Staff, and the agencies that support them.

Parents from Families Forward had the opportunity to ask questions of Early Childhood Professionals about all areas of Early Childhood Education, while children from Families Forward and Brightside Academy enjoyed a variety of activities, including a guest storyteller, a karate class, an art activity, and an interactive puppet show. This event was just one of three that the BELL Project sponsored around the city during the week.

The BELL Project provides access to early childhood programs for young children who experience homelessness in Philadelphia by connecting housing agencies to local high-quality early learning programs. They advocate on behalf of young children experiencing homelessness, facilitate opportunities to connect the local early childhood education and shelter systems, and provide technical assistance to shelter staff on ways to enhance common spaces where young children stay and play.

NAEYC sums up Work Together Wednesday with the following: "Working together makes us stronger together, and that means the impact we make can be monumental." The BELL Project agrees with this sentiment and thanks the representatives from various organizations that participated in the events, including Families Forward, Project HOME, Parents As Teachers, Early Learning Resource Center, Elwyn, Wonderspring Early Learning, Acelero Learning, COTRAIC Early Head Start, Spark/PHL Pre K, Action Karate Mt. Airy, and Mlanjeni Magical Theater.
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We appreciate all those who participated in this event and those who continue to support early childhood education programs for young children experiencing homelessness in Philadelphia.
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