Sharon’s Early Care and Education Program, located in Helper, is a carefully designed child-centered educational and child care program. The program provides child-directed experiences with a mix of child and teacher activities.
This program was created by Sharon Miller, the owner and operator. Miller was the recipient of last year’s Utah PFCCA’s Provider of the Year award. She earned a bachelor’s degree in psychology and has attended nearly 900 hours of additional early childhood training. She has over 18 years in early childhood work experience.
Furthermore, Miller is a proud participant of the Family Child Care Quality Project and is the recipient of the TOP Star award, She serves on the Child Care Quality System subcommittee and served on the Child Care Licensing Board of Utah. Her renowned program can be found on the Care About Child Care website.
“The program was opened, keeping the importance of quality early childhood experiences in mind,” Miller said. “90% of a child’s brain development occurs before age five. [The program is] centered around the National Association for the Education of Young Children’s (NAEYC) guidelines for a developmentally appropriate environment to meet the needs of the developing child with the goal of promoting healthy early childhood education.”
Adding to her list of accolades, Miller was recently announced of the Terri Lynne Lokoff Child Care Foundation (TLLCCF) Teacher Award winner for 2020.
The TLLCCF is a nonprofit 501c3 organization that is dedicated to ensuring that early care and education is improved upon. The organization’s focus is to improve the quality of programs that care for and educate children from birth through age five, enlisting and enlightening others to do the same along the way.
Each year, the TLLCCF honors and rewards early education teachers who are dedicated to excellence with the award. The award acknowledges the critical role of child care teachers in providing quality early care and education.
The foundation selects 50 child care teachers each year from throughout the nation. From there, a committee of national early childhood educators, as well as carefully chosen experts, review and score the applicants, selecting winners that exemplify quality early childhood education. The award then funds projects within the program that are designed to enhance the educational, social and emotional benefits for the children in their care.
While the award is traditionally presented in a ceremony in Pennsylvania, the 2020 event was cancelled and replaced with a virtual celebration, which is the way that Miller was able to accept her award. Thanks to the award, an outdoor STEM/nature area has been added to Sharon’s Early Care and Education Program.
