February

Any parent who has ever looked for child care knows how stressful and time consuming it is. That’s not surprising given that you’ll be entrusting your child to another person, often a complete stranger. About 44% of new mothers return to work within the first 3 months of giving birth and 64% return to work within the first year, thus requiring child care. Despite such high numbers, there are few child care resources made available to new moms and parents. So where do you look?

The hardest challenge is not knowing where to begin. Many turn to Google, or to friends living in their area. But every family is different and has its own specific needs, whether it’s budget, hours, teaching philosophy, or some other specific service they need for their child.

The following is a guest post from the Smithsonian Early Enrichment Center (SEEC), a museum-based early childhood program for children aged 2 months - 6 years of age and offering workshops (http://www.si.edu/seec/community) for local families.

Today’s families embrace all that the DC metropolitan area has to offer. At any given time, there are festivals, classes and fun activities that cater to families. The Smithsonian, one of DC’s most encompassing (and completely free) resources, is no exception. Over the course of the last two decades, museums have begun to offer more programming for children and families. As the national spotlight has focused on the benefits of quality early childhood education, the Smithsonian is working hard to accommodate this audience in meaningful ways. The Smithsonian Early Enrichment Center or SEEC, as it is known, is nestled in the Smithsonian campus with locations at the National Museum of Natural History and the National Museum of American History. Since 1988, SEEC has been incorporating museums into their early childhood curriculum and we are working with other Smithsonian staff, educators and parents across the globe to encourage early learning in museums.