UW Child Development Lab

A beautiful evening spent together! We loved seeing our CDL families connecting, playing, and enjoying time together outdoors. These moments of community are what make the Child Development Lab such a special place. Thank you to everyone who joined us!

The Child Development Lab at 100: Celebrating a legacy of helping children and families thrive UW–Madison is celebrating 100 years of the School of Human Ecology’s Child Development Lab, one of the first university-based preschool laboratories of its kind in the U.S. The state-of-the-art facility, located on the UW–Madison campus …

We are celebrating 100 years of the CDL on October 17th, 2026!

If you plan to attend, please complete the attached RSVP form by September 17th. We are excited to see you all at this fun, family-focused celebration, where we will reflect on the past and envision the future of the Child Development Lab.

Do note, however, that t-shirt orders are due in the online portal by September 4th!

RSVP: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSc-M_DkOhUlXWHhJg2X6nspMMHaRApd0qhliJz6kIiUd5Shfg/viewform

T-Shirt Order Link: https://www.companycasuals.com/UW-ChildDevelopmentLab/start.jsp

Other CDL 100 Celebration Events: https://childdevelopmentlab.wisc.edu/cdl-100/

Save the Date! (RSVP to come)

Celebrate 100 Years of the Child Development Lab, October 17th, 2026!

As we gear up to celebrate 100 years of the Child Development Lab, please mark your calendars for October 17th, 2026. Together we will honor the past & celebrate the future of the CDL, recognizing all the people who’ve made this possible. Please note that we will later post a link to RSVP for those who plan to attend.

When?
Saturday, October 17th from 10:00am - 12:30pm

Who's Invited?
Past and present CDL Families, Teachers, Admins, UW Students & HDFS Faculty, as well as the current School of Human Ecology community, Friends of the CDL, OCCFR, and other campus partners.

What?
A celebration of 100 years of the CDL, including: CDL 100 T-Shirts, a performance by the UW Band, family-friendly activities, birthday cake & Babcock ice cream, and perhaps even an appearance from Bucky!

Where?
Weather allowing, this celebration will take place outside on the hill in front of Nancy Nicholas Hall, with indoor spaces available in case of bad weather. The CDL will host an open house that morning, and partygoers will also have an opportunity to experience "The Science of Human Thriving: Celebrating 100 Years of the Child Development Lab" exhibit in the Nancy M. Bruce Center for Design and Material Culture.

Summer Fun☀️

Despite all the stormy weather this past week, there have been many opportunities to get outside and play in the sunshine!
From sidewalk chalk and water play to climbing trees and exploring the beyond, the CDL has been doing it all!

💛 🎊 Happy Retirement Malika! 🎊 💛

This past week, we celebrated Lead Dragonfly Teacher Malika Guend's retirement after 26 dedicated years with the Child Development Lab.
While we will miss Malika dearly, we are so excited for this next chapter of her life, and we are beyond grateful for the time we had with her and the connections that she made with CDL staff, children, and families over the years!

Congratulations Malika!🎉

🌸🧺We had a blast at this year's Spring potluck!🧺🌸
Thank you to all the CDL staff, students, and families who came out to make the night so special!

🤍❤️🎓Congratulations 2026 CDL Graduates!🎓❤️🤍

We are so proud of all of you and all that you have accomplished! While we will miss you all, we will cherish the time you spent with us.

The kids worked hard this week to create Bucky Badger garlands and congratulations posters to send you off in style!
We wish you all the best and more in your future adventures!

❤️✏️Happy Teacher Appreciation Week!✏️❤️

We are so grateful for all of our wonderful, passionate, kind, caring, and loving teachers. We cannot thank you enough for all that you do every day to have such a profound impact on the lives of children and families.

We showed our love and appreciation for our teachers with a week full of treats and goodies!

Our themed appreciation days included:
Monday: Muffins & Yogurt Parfait Bar
Tuesday: Tasty Treats
Wednesday: Pizza Lunch
Thursday: Build Your Own Trail Mix
Friday: Teacher Gifts & Donuts + Coffee with Families

A huge thank you goes out to all of the lovely families who made these celebrations possible this week! ❤️

🐳🐶Field Trip to the UW Vet School🐶🐳

We had the pleasure of visiting the UW Veterinary School this week! Classrooms either strolled or hopped on the 80 bus for a quick ride over to the school, where they met CDL parents Tatiana and Leandro to learn more about animals and the work they do at the vet school.

We got to see a real whale eyeball, several animal skeletons, including Sally the Giraffe, and learn about dogs and how we can help care for them when they are sick. We are so grateful to Tatiana, Leandro, and the Vet School for having us. We had a wonderful time!