Session 1 – Whole Group Attends
Building Lessons using “La Banana”
(English offering/Spanish translation available)
- Description: This session will focus on the use of Colorado Early Learning & Development Guidelines paired with a children’s book, “La Banana”, to create engaging learning activities for young children. Participants will be guided through the process of building curriculum. There will be tablework and sharing of creative ideas.
- Competency Domain: Teaching Practices
Session 2
Creando una comunidad autorregulada de estudiantes: Estrategias en un salón de Tools of the Mind
(Spanish offering/English translation available)
- Description: En el panorama educativo actual, existe un creciente reconocimiento de la importancia de fomentar la autorregulación en el preescolar y kindergarten. Al desarrollar estas habilidades, los niños y niñas pequeños pueden volverse más conscientes de sí mismos, autodirigidos y comprometidos con su aprendizaje, lo que conduce a un mejor rendimiento académico y un mayor éxito en la vida. En esta presentación, exploraremos las estrategias y prácticas descritas en el artículo “Creación de una comunidad autorregulada de estudiantes” de la Dra. Deborah Leong, la Dra. Elena Bodrova y Barb Wilder-Smith, publicado en la revista Principal Leadership. Discutiremos los principios clave que subyacen a la autorregulación y la metacognición y los pasos prácticos que los educadores pueden tomar para promover estas habilidades en sus aulas. La presentación comenzará discutiendo los conceptos de autorregulación y funciones ejecutivas, incluyendo cómo la autorregulación afecta el comportamiento y el aprendizaje y el proceso de desarrollo de la autorregulación. Discutiremos cómo incorporar estrategias que todos los educadores puedan usar para promover la autorregulación, como aumentar el uso del lenguaje por parte de los niños, ayudar a los niños a aprender a aprender y construir una cultura de andamiaje entre pares. Por último, hablaremos de los beneficios de crear una comunidad autorregulada de alumnos, tales como un mejor rendimiento académico, el aumento de la atención y la motivación, y el aumento de la resiliencia y la adaptabilidad de los estudiantes. Al asistir a esta presentación, los educadores comprenderán los principios subyacentes de la autorregulación y las estrategias prácticas y adecuadas para promover estas habilidades en sus aulas. Se irán con un conjunto de herramientas de estrategias y recursos que pueden utilizar para crear un entorno de aprendizaje más solidario y comprometido para todos los niños.
- Competency Domain: Child Growth, Development and Learning
Early Childhood Trauma: Part 1
(English offering/Spanish translation available)
- Description: Many early childhood educators are likely to encounter young children in their care impacted by difficult circumstances and events, either as ongoing or unique situations. The impacts often ripple throughout their early years, teens, and even adulthood. Adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) known to cause trauma may include abuse and neglect, violence in the home, joining a new family through adoption or foster care placement, separation from a parent or caregiver due to divorce or military deployment, the death of a parent/caregiver, natural disasters, a health crisis, economic or food insecurity, and experiences related to COVID-19. Trauma research demonstrates that all types of traumas can undermine children’s abilities to learn, create healthy attachments and supportive relationships, and follow classroom expectations (NCTSNSC 2008). Further, trauma has negative behavioral, emotional, neurobiological, and developmental repercussions throughout children’s schooling and their adult lives. In this training, you will learn more about what you can do in your classroom to support trauma-sensitive environments for teachers and children.
- Competency Domain: Social-emotional Health and Development Promotion
Serious Fun: Nurturing Creativity with Young Children
(English offering/Spanish translation available)
- Description: Children have big ideas. When given the tools and the time, they will be able to express themselves in ways they might not be able to with words. Creativity happens when children learn how to solve problems, how to cooperate and collaborate with others in play, and being creative fosters abstract thinking in young children. These are skills they will need for the rest of their lives. In this training we talk about what creative expression means, what creativity can look like in the classroom and how to talk to families about the creative process. We will also take some time to be creative!
- Competency Domain: Child Growth, Development and Learning
Children’s Health and Safety
(English offering/Spanish translation available)
- Description: Unavailable at time of publication.
- Competency Domain: Health, Safety and Nutrition
Cozy Corners and Classroom set up: Crafting the Perfect Early Childhood Environment
(English offering/Spanish translation available; this session will be held on campus at Ed Beatty Room 245)
- Description: In early childhood education, the learning environment plays a pivotal role in shaping young minds and fostering holistic development. A well-structured environment and the inclusion of cozy corners are not just decorative elements but essential components that influence children’s emotional, social, and cognitive growth. This session aims to dive into the crucial aspects of why the environment and cozy corners are of paramount importance in early childhood education. Key Topics to be Discussed: Setting the Stage for Learning: Understanding how the physical environment, including lighting, colors, and arrangement, can significantly impact a child’s emotional state and willingness to engage in activities; Cozy Corners: Safe Spaces for Emotional Regulation: Exploring the concept of cozy corners and their role in providing children with a sense of security and comfort, which is essential for emotional regulation; Stimulating Cognitive Development: Analyzing how a well-structured learning environment can enhance a child’s cognitive skills, including problem-solving, creativity, and critical thinking; Promoting Social Interaction: Discussing the ways in which a carefully planned environment encourages collaboration and socialization among young learners, fostering important social skills; Supporting Individual Learning Styles: Addressing the importance of creating an environment that accommodates different learning styles and preferences, allowing each child to thrive; The Role of Natural Elements: Recognizing the significance of incorporating natural elements like plants and outdoor spaces into the environment to foster a deeper connection to the world.
- Competency Domain: Teaching Practices
Be the Change: If You Want Something Different, Do Something Different
(English offering/Spanish translation available):
- Description: Imagine a day where children’s needs are being met, staff are content, and challenging behaviors and situations are supported in a responsive and nurturing manner. What would that mean for your day, your program, your children and their families? I wonder… This session will explore evidence-based Pyramid Model Practices that support positive social emotional relationships for children and adults in their lives. We will share strategies in each of the Pyramid Model tiers (Effective Workforce, Nurturing and Responsive Relationships, Supportive Environments, Targeted Social Emotional Supports, and Intensive Interventions) that bring about positive change at the programmatic level.
- Competency Domain: Professional Practices
Session 3
Estrategias efectivas para el manejo de momentos claves en clases de Preescolar
(Spanish offering/English translation available)
- Description: La autorregulación es una de las habilidades más importantes para el éxito escolar ya que promueve habilidades subyacentes que le permitirán a los estudiantes afrontar los retos académicos y socio-emocionales de la escuela primaria de manera más efectiva. En esta sesión se discutirán los componentes de la autorregulación, se reflexionará sobre los retos para apoyar su desarrollo, y se compartirán ideas y ejemplos de los salones de Tools of the Mind. “¿Cómo apoyan las rondas infantiles, canciones o las reglas de clase el desarrollo de la autorregulación? ¿Tiene algún impacto en la autorregulación la manera como se organiza el salón de clase? En nuestra sesión, daremos respuesta a estos y otros interrogantes con ideas prácticas.”
- Competency Domain: Child Growth, Development and Learning
Early Childhood Trauma: Part 2
(English offering/Spanish translation available; Part 1 is not required to attend this session but is recommended)
- Description: Many early childhood educators are likely to encounter young children in their care impacted by difficult circumstances and events, either as ongoing or unique situations. The impacts often ripple throughout their early years, teens, and even adulthood. Adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) known to cause trauma may include abuse and neglect, violence in the home, joining a new family through adoption or foster care placement, separation from a parent or caregiver due to divorce or military deployment, the death of a parent/caregiver, natural disasters, a health crisis, economic or food insecurity, and experiences related to COVID-19. Trauma research demonstrates that all types of traumas can undermine children’s abilities to learn, create healthy attachments and supportive relationships, and follow classroom expectations (NCTSNSC 2008). Further, trauma has negative behavioral, emotional, neurobiological, and developmental repercussions throughout children’s schooling and their adult lives. In this training, you will learn more about what you can do in your classroom to support trauma-sensitive environments for teachers and children.
- Competency Domain: Social-Emotional Health and Development Promotion
Elevating Early Childhood Free Play with Meaningful Questions
(Spanish offering/English translation available)
- Description: In early childhood education, free play is a cornerstone of learning and development. It offers a unique opportunity not only to foster higher-order thinking skills but also to deepen children’s knowledge. This presentation aims to provide participants with practical strategies to infuse rigor, stimulate higher-order thinking, and deepen knowledge during free play sessions.
- Competency Domain: Teaching Practices
Why Should I Read to the Children?
(English offering/Spanish translation available; this session will be held on campus at Ed Beatty Room 245)
- Description: How can I spend quality time with my child? What are the benefits of reading and implementing simple follow-up activities?
- Competency Domain: Child Growth, Development and Learning
Diversity, Equity and Inclusion + Early Childhood: How Does it Work?
(English offering/Spanish translation available)
- Description: This presentation will give a birds’ eye view on how diversity, equity and inclusion work can be applied to early childhood learning and development, with a focus on how oppression contributes to toxic stress and can affect people for the duration of our lives. We will connect systems to daily life and emphasize key takeaways for immediate use.
- Competency Domain: Family and Community Partnerships
How to Open a Small Business and Key Steps on Managing It
(English offering/Spanish translation available)
- Description: Steps to open a small business and key steps to maintaining it.
- Competency Domain: Professional Practices
Session 4
Young Gifted Students
(Spanish offering/English translation available)
- Description: Early identification of gifted and talented students is essential to unlock their full potential, address their unique needs, and prevent the negative consequences of overlooking their abilities. Participants will gain understanding of the basic characteristics of young, gifted students, their social emotional needs and obtain strategies and recommendations on how to identify them and support their optimal development.
- Competency Domain: Child Observation and Assessment
Biting, Screaming and Crying…OH MY!
(English offering/Spanish translation available)
- Description: Come join us as we discuss these and other developmentally expected behaviors that can be challenging for those who care for infants and toddlers. Utilizing Pyramid Model strategies, we will demonstrate how caregivers can be proactive and responsive to decrease challenging behaviors in their classrooms. This session will include video practice on how to conduct child observations to better understand the meaning of challenging behaviors of infants and toddlers, how to interpret infant cues, and strategies to support social-emotional skills. We will also reflect on how our experiences and perspectives can affect how we respond to these behaviors and how we can support our own well-being and reflect on our perspectives to provide appropriate anti-raciest/anti-bias individualized responses. Lastly, we will provide resources for partnering with families to improve communication and increase culturally responsive practices.
- Competency Domain: Health, Safety and Nutrition
How to Open a Small Business and Key Steps on Managing It
(Spanish offering/English translation available)
- Description: Steps to open a small business and key steps to maintaining it.
- Competency Domain: Professional Practices
Love ‘Em or Lose ‘Em: Getting Good People to Stay
(English offering/Spanish translation available)
- Description: When managers are asked how to keep good people, many immediately respond…” With Money” Research suggests that 89% of managers truly believe it’s about money. The truth is…you matter most. If you are a manager at any level, you actually have more power than anyone else to keep your best employees. In this training we are going to talk about who’s responsibility it is to keep staff and how much it actually costs to lose staff. We will talk about the current research on what staff are saying about why they stay with us. We will also talk about some staff retention strategies based on the same research.
- Competency Domain: Professional Practices
Creating Play Settings for Outdoor Learning on a Budget
(English offering/Spanish translation available)
- Description: Creating a high-quality outdoor learning environment doesn’t have to break the bank. Learn ways to activate and improve your outdoor space through low-cost, high-impact changes. Participants will gain inspiration and ideas that they can implement in their own spaces by creatively using affordable materials to support children’s play. “Creative Play Settings for Outdoor Learning on a Budget” is a 1.5-hour training. Certificates will be issued for the training. *Previously named Affordable Play Settings in Outdoor Learning Environments.
- Competency Domain: Teaching Practices
Introduction to Inclusion and Universal Design
(English offering/Spanish translation available)
- Description: Let’s take a walk through the basic principles of Universal Design (UD) and Universal Design for Learning (UDL). This professional learning opportunity will explore simple modifications to physical learning spaces, designing flexible lesson plans, and supporting active participation by children of all abilities. We’ll also learn about the numerous free resources available through the Colorado Early Learning: Universal Design & Inclusion Project. Participants will be able to • Identify 5 features of universally designed spaces that promote inclusion and learning. • Demonstrate understanding of the 3 principles of universal design for learning as it relates to an early learning environment. • Apply 3-5 low-cost, low-tech adaptations to promote participation for children with disabilities. • State 3 free resources to support the application of UD and UDL in early childhood environments.
- Competency Domain: Child Observation and Assessment