Workshop Descriptions

The Developing Child

The Developing Child – Infants and Toddlers
This workshop explores the developmental milestones and theoretical principles that support infants and toddlers in their developmental journey. Through this ages and stages approach, participants will identify about opportunities and classroom strategies to further a child’s development in each developmental domain.

The Developing Child – Preschool Age Children
This workshop explores the developmental milestones and theoretical principles that support preschool age children in their developmental journey. Through this ages and stages approach, participants will identify about opportunities and classroom strategies to further a child’s development in each developmental domain.

The Developing Child – School Age Children
This workshop explores the developmental milestones and theoretical principles that support school age children in their developmental journey. Through this ages and stages approach, participants will identify about opportunities and classroom strategies to further a child’s development in each developmental domain.

Brain Wonders for Child Care
New brain research has changed the thinking about its role in child development. This workshop lays the groundwork for translating research into classroom strategies.

Psychosocial Development of Young Children
This training will focus on the development of social skills and challenges that caregivers face with children during certain developmental stages. Views of different theorists will be discussed. Strategies for the use of this information in the classroom with children and their families will be addressed.

Attachment, Separation, Individuation
An essential part of children’s growth includes their development of healthy attachments to the important adults they have contact with across multiple environments. Attachments allow children to grow, separate from their caregivers and form positive identities. Participants will discuss how attachment principles apply to the teacher-child relationship as well as how to support children with problematic attachment histories.

From Risk to Resiliency
Participants are introduced to risk and resiliency theory and will explore social emotional development from birth through age five. Upon completion of the workshop, participants will have teaching strategies and activity ideas to enhance social skills of young children in the classroom.

Supporting Children’s Communication Skills
This workshop will identify how children develop communication skills. Participants will learn strategies to encourage the development of communication skills in the classroom. Upon completion of this training, participants will be able to identify warning signs in children who may have communication disorders and learn how to make appropriate referrals.

Keys to Inclusion
Including children with disabilities in child care programs requires adaptability and sometimes “out of the box” thinking on the part of child care providers. Depending on the needs of the children, modifications may have to be made to environments, activities and routines. This session uses case studies to develop a systematic way of looking at modifications that should be considered to enable children to attend child care programs.

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Teaching and Learning

The Daily Program: Schedules and Routines
This workshop spotlights the two major components of a daily program. Using a hands-on approach, participants will explore their own daily schedules and activities and identify new strategies to support a workable daily program.

The Daily Program: Transitions
This workshop focuses on the transitions, often a challenging part of the daily program. In this workshop, participants will explore transitions activities and identify new strategies to support a workable daily program.

Curriculum Connections
Through this workshop, participants will learn how to identify if a curriculum is developmentally, culturally, and linguistically relevant for the children at their center. Participants will have the opportunity to explore a variety of different curricula and their related philosophies, develop an understanding of the principles of effective curriculum, and evaluate their own curriculum to identify strengths and areas for improvement.

Building Self-Esteem in Young Children
Misbehavior in children is oftentimes attributed to feelings of worthlessness and anger based on low self-esteem. Strategies for enhancing self-esteem in children and staff will be addressed. Participants will learn about characteristics in children that show high and low self-esteem. Trainers will also spotlight interactions from caregivers that build self-esteem in children.

Reframing Discipline Part I: Doing the Groundwork
This workshop provides a vivid and engaging way to examine several attitudes that make it difficult to use discipline sensitively and effectively. Participants will explore their own attitudes and beliefs that may be affecting how they engage with children and help them break the cycle of simply reacting to or putting out fires in the classroom.

Reframing Discipline Part II: Connecting with Every Child
When children feel valued, accepted and understood, they are more likely to cooperate with adults This video based training will present a variety of techniques for preventing behavior problems through building relationships with even sometimes "difficult to engage” children

Reframing Discipline Part III: Understanding Difficult Behavior
This video based workshop will focus on reading the messages that misbehavior is most often communicating. Caregivers will learn useful strategies for dealing with difficult behavior stemming from unmet needs, a lack of skills and being mismatched to the classroom environment (home)

Developmentally Appropriate Guidance
Positive discipline only occurs in classrooms that have prepared for potential problems. In this workshop, participants will discuss how to prevent most behavior problems from occurring in the first place and how to positively handle the challenges that do arise. Participants will also explore their values relating to discipline, punishment and guidance.

Helping Children Manage Their Anger and Aggression
This workshop will focus on the aggressive behaviors children exhibit in the classroom, the possible reasons behind these behaviors, and safe ways children can express their feelings. Trainers will indicate ways to reduce stress in the classroom, therefore prevent anger problems.

Responding to Children with ADHD
This workshop will provide an overview of the symptoms of ADD and ADHD in children as well as intervention strategies that can be implemented in the classroom (home).
*This training may be extended to include Fetal Alcohol Syndrome and the effects of prenatal drug exposure on children if requested.

The Development of Emotional Intelligence and Responsibility
By participation in this workshop, the participants will gain increased knowledge and understanding of the
development of Emotional Intelligence and its importance in relation to behavior.

Positive Discipline
Anyone that serves as a primary care giver for a young child needs understanding, methods and techniques for managing behavior. By participating in this work shop the participant will deepen their understanding of Positive Discipline. They will gain insight and effectiveness in managing children's behaviors by examining some of the most effective positive discipline methods which include: guidelines for effective discipline, the use of “I” messages, the one minute reprimand, the one minute praise, and the use of logical consequences.

From Understanding to Action: A Framework for Behavior Management
By participation in this workshop, individuals will gain understanding of and skills in behavior management. They will be offered ideas on how to avoid or prevent challenging situations before they happen.

Music and Movement for Early Childhood Settings
This hands-on interactive workshop will explore developmental and social benefits of creating experiences for children that include music and movement. Participants will be provided guidelines for choosing and using music and learn strategies on how to incorporate it into classroom curriculum.

Rhymes, Rhythms, & Fun
Rhyming songs, syllable clapping, and grouping objects according to how their names begin can all be used to draw children’s attention to the sounds of speech and to promote phonemic awareness. This lively session is designed to increase caregivers repertoire of “language-play games”.

Math Mania: Math Across the Curriculum
In this workshop, participants will explore how both structured and unstructured learning experiences can be enhanced with mathematic manipulatives. Participants will learn how to assess their classrooms to identify materials, which allow children to explore and learn about math.

Beyond Numbers: The Benefits of Math in Children’s Development
This workshop examines four basic elements that are fundamental to all math learning for young children: connections, problem solving, reasoning, and communication. Participants will learn strategies to support the development of math skills in young children.

Science in the Early Childhood Classroom
Through this workshop, participants will understand that science for young children builds on the idea that young children develop their knowledge of scientific concepts through participation with others in activities that allow them to play, experiment, and solve problems. This workshop will help early care and education staff to understand how to promote young children’s awareness and experimentation with scientific concepts through fun and interactive activities.

The Importance of Play in Young Children’s Development: Exploring Art, Blocks, Pretend and Outdoor Play
A child’s brain development is promoted through the many types of play. This workshop will focus on how to arrange the environment and plan for play as well as engage in some hands-on activities. This workshop can be tailored to spotlight a specific area of play.

Designing the Physical Environment for Optimal Learning Opportunities
This workshop introduces participants to a step-by-step approach to designing physical spaces by applying Christopher Lowell’s seven layers of interior design to early childhood classrooms. The ‘before’ and ‘after’ pictures of the rooms demonstrate how aesthetically pleasing environments optimize learning opportunities for children by enhancing their play, social interactions, and preventing behavior problems before they become disruptive. Participants will get a chance to explore how their individual personality influences their individual preference for room design and furniture arrangement.

Enhancing Literacy Skills in Children
In this workshop, participants will explore the stages of language development and literacy skills in young children. Participants will be introduced to a variety of classroom strategies that can be used to support the development of these skills in children.

From Babbling to Books
Learning to read is a developmental process. As a teacher, you need to know the sequence of reading development, be able to recognize a child’s stage of development and understand how to support, encourage and celebrate a child’s accomplishments.

From Scribbles to Name Writing
Often, the first word written by young children is their name. This module will help caregivers to understand the task of learning to write names as a developmental process that is both appropriate and fun for young children.

Learning About Letters and Words
In order to learn how to read, children must know a lot about letters and words, how they work and what they represent. This module will explore what children need to know and what adults can do to help them become literate.

Reading to Children
Children should have shared reading experiences each and everyday. In addition to reading aloud to children, child care providers should also develop book reading strategies that actively engage the children. This workshop will introduce providers to a variety of models and strategies for sharing books with children.

Exploring Children’s Literature
This workshop will provide caregivers with strategies for using literature as a tool for facilitating literacy and content knowledge. Participants will explore ideas about how to develop a collection of books that reflects a wide variety of topics; they will learn how to introduce children to different types of literature (e.g., science, social studies, math concepts, multi-cultural understanding, how to do and make things, learning more, and fiction), and they will become aware of how to use literature to help learn and support a variety of skills (e.g., predicting, confirming, word recognition).

Writing with Kids
Early writing experiences provide children with opportunities to learn the key aspects of literacy such as print awareness and the function of print. This session will assist caregivers in planning writing centers for preschool age children.

Making Books with Children
There is probably no better way to interest children in reading than helping them make their own books. It is easier to write (you make your own marks) than it is to read (you have to decode someone else’s words) and making books with children lets them recite their own words even before they can read.

Kids as Authors and Illustrators
In addition to providing children with opportunities to capture their ideas on paper, children should be encouraged in their emerging role as authors. This session will focus on using children’s stories as literature.

Libraries, Book Nooks, and Book Corners
This workshop will help early care and education staff understand how an appropriately designed library and/or reading area can support the curriculum and enhance literacy skills in young children. Staff will be able to choose developmentally appropriate books for young children and create enticing literacy environments.

Sharing Books with Children
Children should have shared reading and story-telling experiences each and every day. Child care providers must not only read out loud to and share stories with children, but also develop book reading and story-telling strategies that actively engage the children. These experiences can support curriculum themes and integrate specific learning objectives that support development. This workshop will introduce providers to a variety of strategies for sharing books with and telling stories to children.

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Building Child and Family Relationships

Building Relationships with Families
The essential aspects of “good customer service” and building relationships with families will be discussed. Participants will examine why it pays to please and learn how to communicate positively with families and establish necessary professional boundaries. Strategies for informing parents about the difficult behavior of their children will be addressed through role-play and discussion.

Behavior: What We Need to Understand
Through participation in this training, participants will increase their understanding about the behavior of children. They will gain skills in the observation of behaviors. Participants will also develop a deeper appreciation of the adult's role in a child's behavior.

Creating Culturally Responsive Classrooms
This workshop examines various definitions and aspects of culture. Participants attending this workshop will A culturally responsive child care or early childhood classroom acknowledges the presence of culturally diverse children and the need for these children to find relevant connections among themselves and with the activities they engage in throughout the day. This workshop will offer participants the opportunity to: explore the factors that contribute to one’s culture; identify key elements to culturally responsive child care; and learn strategies for being responsive to the diverse learning and care needs of the children they serve.

Issues Related to Loss, Separation, and Grief in Young Children
This workshop will explore feelings and behavior children may exhibit after experiencing a loss or separation. How to help children and their families to cope with tough times will be discussed. Children and divorce, death/dying, and multiple placements will be the main topics of discussion.

Creating Safe Havens
The Safe Havens Training Project is a three-part, video-based training series that examines the issue of community violence. It looks at the kinds of violence our children are witnessing, its effects on their development, and what we as teachers, parents, and community members can do to respond to our own need and our children’s need for safety.
Part 1: The violence that children see
Part 2: The Power of our relationships
Part 3: The need to be heard

Children and Trauma
Children are affected by trauma on a daily basis. Each child has characteristics that influence his/her response to stressful events. This workshop will discuss how to create a safe and nurturing environment in the classroom and how to help children to express difficult feelings. The training will also address signs and symptoms of Post-Traumatic Stress Syndrome and resiliency characteristics.

Talking to Children about Disabilities
Children are naturally curious about their world. They ask many questions. Sometimes the questions are difficult to answer. This workshop provides practical guidelines for child care providers to answer children’s questions about disabilities.

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Administrative Nuts and Bolts to Providing Child Care

Stress Busters: Recognizing and Relieving Stress
Working in the field of child care often creates stressful situations for staff. If these day to day stressors are not address, staff can become burnt out with their jobs. This fun and interactive workshop explores signs of stress and factors that contribute to feeling of stress. Participants will learn strategies that will build coping skills in order to alleviate stress.

Child Care and the Americans with Disabilities Act
This workshop will offer participants the opportunity to learn about the requirements of the ADA (Title II and Title III) that apply to child care programs. As part of this process, participants will review their own program policies, procedures and practices to ensure that they comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act and consider a plan to examine a program for consistency with the ADA.

Welcoming all Children
Children arrive at child care programs with a variety of abilities and developmental skills. The diversity of abilities and skills presents both challenges and benefits for providers, children and families. This session provides opportunities for providers to examine their beliefs about creating caring communities that include children with disabilities, and to begin to identify strategies for success.

Child Abuse and Neglect: Indicators and Prevention (Understanding Typical Sexual Development of Young Children)
This workshop will provide an overview of the signs and symptoms of child abuse and neglect. Staff will learn how to communicate with children and families about sensitive topics and promote “safety” for children. Participants will also learn about the sexual development of children, how to respond to issues related to sexuality and when to be alerted to symptoms of suspected sexual abuse.

Child Assessment in Support of Learning
This workshop will improve the quality of child care programs by informing administrators and providers about the purpose of child assessment, ways to conduct child assessment and the use of assessment in planning program activities. The discussion will include the role of parents in the assessment process.

From Hiring to Handbooks
This workshop addresses the need to recruit, hire and retain staff to provide quality care in early childhood programs. Specific suggestions and procedures discuss the importance of seeking and selecting staff the match the philosophy, skills and knowledge needed by each program. The areas of continuous recruiting, interviewing and selection of candidates in compliance with fair employment practices are addressed.

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Leadership - Moving Beyond Management

Exploring Effective Leadership Styles
True leaders come in all shapes and sizes. Some are outgoing and charismatic; others are quietly influential. This workshop explores the concept of leadership in the context of early childhood education. It looks at the multifaceted role of the director and the skills and competencies needed to nurture leadership at all levels of an early childhood program to strengthen continuous quality improvement.

Advocating for Children in Child Care
This workshop examines how child care and early education professionals can become informed about issues affecting the well-being of the children they serve. Participants will learn how their voice and simple actions can become part of a larger collective on important issues and they will be offered strategies to connect with their local and state representatives.

Creative Fund Raising for Child Care Centers
This workshop offers strategies to creative and fun ways to raise extra money for child care providers. Participants will be encouraged to discuss past activities and challenges faced with raising extra funds. Grant writing tips are also offered to support providers in seeking out formal sources of funding.

How to Reward Staff Without Breaking the Bank
This workshop examines work environment factors that support retention of committed, satisfied and motivated staff. Participants will then be offered strategies and suggestions on how to reward staff without breaking your center’s budget.

Center Operations: Risk Management
This workshop will improve the quality of child care programs by informing administrators and providers about the purpose of child assessment, ways to conduct child assessment and the use of assessment in planning program activities. The discussion will include the role of parents in the assessment process.

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