News

November 5, 2020

Early Literacy Virtual Conference

Are you interested in learning actionable strategies for teaching the five pillars of reading, especially in distance and hybrid learning environments? Join Learning Ally on December 4, 2020 for the “Early Literacy Virtual Conference.”

About

Join Learning Ally on December 4 for a full day of early literacy professional learning featuring keynote speakers Kai-leé Berke and Barbara Steinberg, in addition to 12 other experts. By attending, professionals will:

    • Discover actionable strategies for teaching the five pillars of reading, especially in a distance or hybrid learning environment.
    • Understand the milestones in early literacy development so you can better meet the needs of all your students.
    • Learn what it means to be intentionally anti-biased and culturally relevant when teaching literacy in a diverse classroom.
    • Connect with the experts and other educators to share first-hand experiences to drive lasting change in your teaching practice.

Registration

To register for the conference, visit the Learning Ally website. Attendees will be able to earn up to 16 Continuing Education (CE) hours live or on-demand through January 31, 2021.

News

June 4, 2020

Anti-Racism Tools

As caregivers, community members, and early childhood educators, we have a responsibility to ensure each child, family, and caregiver is safe from racism and discrimination and has equitable opportunities to thrive.

In order to do this, we must begin with ourselves. Set aside time in your day to do a personal inventory. What thoughts, feelings, and behaviors have you contributed to upholding systems of racism? What assumptions are you making? What actions or inactions have you taken that contribute to systems of oppression?

Next, consider your family and your friends—what behaviors, statements, or jokes have gone unchecked? What actions or inactions have you taken within your interpersonal relationships that have contributed to an unsafe community for our black and brown children, neighbors, and colleagues? How might you begin to lead by example within your own family or community?

Anti-racism work is something that has to be attended to in an ongoing way. In order to support you in this work, we have compiled the following resources. Note that this list is not exhaustive.

Resources for Adults

Resources for Educators

Resources for Discussing Racism and Violence with Children

Children’s Books

Resources for Social/Emotional Development

News

April 24, 2020

Don’t Look Away: Embracing Anti-Bias Classrooms

Are you looking to better understand and embrace anti-bias and anti-racist teaching approaches in your early learning classroom? Join Iheoma U. Iruka, Stephanie M. Curenton, and Kerry-Ann Escayg on April 28 for their webinar “Don’t Look Away: Embracing Anti-Bias Classrooms.”

About

In this webinar, the lead authors of “Don’t Look Away: Embracing Anti-Bias Classrooms” call all early education professionals to lean in as “sheroes” and “heroes” in the lives of children. The goal of this webinar is to ensure that participants understand and embrace anti-bias and anti-racist teaching approaches by creating affirming culturally-rich classroom environments that protect children from psychological trauma and heals them from the inside out.

Participants will learn how institutional racism is visited in the early childhood space and the roles of implicit bias, microaggression, and white privilege in undermining the excellence and learning of minoritized Black and brown children and for those who teach them. Participants will also learn about several tools and strategies.

This webinar will be of interest to pre-k through elementary teachers, school and district leaders, coaches, trainers, and child care providers, owners, and administrators. Time for questions will be provided.

Registration

To register and learn more, visit the event webpage.