OUR STORy:
Early Childhood Matters was founded by director Rebecca Walsh in 2010 as a way to connect with parents and share her knowledge from over twenty years’ professional experience in early childhood education.
ECM Director Rebecca Walsh, pictured with her three children.
After becoming a parent herself, Rebecca had two realizations. First, she found herself immensely grateful to have cultivated a strong understanding of child development through teaching. Her many years working as a preschool teacher allowed her to contextualize challenging parenting moments and understand the root of difficult child behaviors from a developmental perspective. At the same time, Rebecca acknowledged that parenting was far more difficult than she had imagined! As she became aware firsthand how wonderful-and humbling-the work of parenthood could be, Rebecca saw the value of sharing the wisdom and skills she had gained in the field with parents directly.
Rebecca began offering parent workshops and facilitated play groups, where parents of young children could learn from an experienced teacher and connect with a community of peers in a supportive environment. Early Childhood Matters provides tried-and-true strategies from experts in the field of child development, equipping parents with a strong foundation of tools to approach the challenging moments of parenting with empathy, confidence and humor. Each year, we connect with hundreds of families in the Bay Area and beyond through parenting workshops, parent/child facilitated playgroups, school-based presentations, and private consultations.
““Rebecca’s classes have been a foundation for my parenting. Not just the content, but also a caring, knowledgeable (wonderful!) person who is available to answer your questions. That personal support is invaluable as a parent. She truly cares about children and their development and is a wealth of experience and information.”
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