MATTOON Tonya Reynolds was the guest speaker at a recent Kiwanis Club of Mattoon meeting.
Reynolds is a teacher with the Prevention Initiative Birth-3 Program with the Mattoon Community Unit School District 2. The program promotes bonding with families of children from birth to 3 years of age and assists with prenatal care and parental education.
According to Reynolds, about 75 percent of language skills are learned in the first three years of life, making those formative years very important. They are also important in determining positive or negative social and emotional development. The program is funded by the Illinois State Board of Education.