Daycare benefits children

A new study by the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development shows that early, higher quality childcare contributes to improved academic success down the road.

The study shows that children who received high-quality daycare before entering kindergarten had better vocabulary scores and experienced fewer disciplinary problems than children who did not attend daycare.

Many studies already show that preschool and daycare programs are beneficial for children. Local child care providers said they have taken note.

"Our first priority is just to make sure that they think it's an exciting place to be, and are really pumped up and eager to learn the information," Athena Huffman of the Princeton Children's Center in Lawrence said.

The study appears in the March/April issue of Child Development.