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March 3, 2020

Unifying Framework for the Early Childhood Profession

Join the Power to the Profession Task Force, either in person or online, on March 9 to learn about the Unifying Framework as professionals come together to build a movement to advance a unified, diverse, equitable, and effective early childhood education profession.

About

Power to the Profession is a national collaboration to define the early childhood profession by establishing a unifying framework for career pathways, knowledge, competencies, qualifications, standards, and compensation. Informed by community input and feedback, the Power to the Profession Task Force has reached a consensus on a shared framework to advance the early childhood education profession.

Join the Task Force in person or online on March 9 to celebrate the profession’s shared commitment and the release of the “Unifying Framework for Early Childhood Educators” and the “Professional Standards and Competencies for Early Childhood Educators.” If joining by live stream, consider organizing a watch party with your fellow early childhood educators and allies! Visit this page for watch party tips.

RSVP

To RSVP, visit the event registration page.

More Information

For questions or more information, email p2p@naeyc.org.

*Information provided by the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC)

News

February 11, 2020

Promoting Infant and Toddler Social and Emotional Development

Are you interested in learning how to better support children’s social and emotional development? Join Trying Together for our online course, “Promoting Infant and Toddler Social and Emotional Development.”

About

This online session will explore the questions: “What is social and emotional learning within infants and toddlers, and why is it important?” Participants will be provided with positive social-emotional opportunities for infants and toddlers and develop skills necessary to build a solid foundation for very young children. Course instructors will discuss how to support very young children to form secure relationships with others to ultimately be able to focus and learn in their day to day experiences. Also, skills and techniques will be provided to engage with infants and toddlers to teach them to feel good about themselves while developing confidence and self-control.

Three hours of PQAS and/or Act 48 credits will be offered.

    • Core Knowledge Competencies (CKCs): K1.9 C2 and K2.2 C2
    • Keystone STARS Alignment: SQ. 3.4.4

Timeline

This online course will be available from March 9 through March 30, 2020. Please note that this event listing is not a day-of, in-person event. Once registered, course instructors will provide further information on accessing the course.

Registration

To register for this course, complete the form below.

 

More Information

For questions or more information, contact Jasmine Davis, Professional Learning Program Manager, at 412.567.3933 or jasmine@tryingtogether.org.

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January 3, 2020

Supporting Young Children’s Brain Development Through Music

Early childhood professionals are invited to attend “Supporting Young Children’s Brain Development Through Music” to gain knowledge on how to intentionally use music in their day-to-day work with children to support development.

About

This webinar will discuss the ways in which music participation in early childhood naturally supports the brain development of infants, toddlers, and preschoolers. Developmentally appropriate music activities can be an enjoyable and easy way for educators to support the development of important structural changes, neurological processes, and cognitive skills during this very active time of development. Attendees will learn about recent research, gain a deeper understanding of music’s impact on the developing brain, and gain musical tools and interaction ideas that support young children’s development.

This webinar is suited for pre-k through elementary grade level teachers. Time for questions will be provided.

Registration

To register for this webinar, visit the event webpage.

*Information provided by edWeb.net

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Setting the Stage for Early Literacy

Setting the Stage for Early Literacy” is chock full of fun, just-right activities that build oral language and early reading and writing skills. Amy Mascott and Allison McDonald break down the hows and whys of early literacy into bite-size pieces to help busy teachers support their youngest learners’ individual development without pushing them too hard. Participants will leave with ideas for creating a literacy-rich environment; literacy activities for whole-class, small-group, and independent learning; strategies for building an effective home-school connection; and much more.

This webinar is suitable for child care, pre-k, and kindergarten teachers. Time for questions will be provided.

Registration

To register for this webinar, visit the event webpage.

*Information provided by edWeb.net

News

December 13, 2019

2019-20 Carton 2 Garden Contest Receiving Entries

Are you interested in building or enhancing your school garden? Evergreen Packaging and KidsGardening.org are hosting the sixth national Carton 2 Garden Contest!

About

The Carton 2 Garden Contest is open to public and private schools, with contest winners selected based on their implementation of an innovative garden creation featuring creative, sustainable uses for repurposed milk and juice cartons. Schools can get started by collecting at least 100 empty cartons from homes, the community, or their cafeteria. After gathering the cartons, schools design and construct purposeful garden items and structures using them. For ideas, view last year’s winners.

Eligibility & Entry

Carton 2 Garden is open to all K-12 public and private schools in the United States. Schools do not need a garden to participate. Pre-k classes located at schools serving additional elementary, middle, and/or high school grade levels may also enter the contest. With this, all entries must document and share their gardening experience through an online entry form and submission of up to 10 photos.

To be eligible for the grand prize and specialty prizes, entries must also include a video link (under five minutes) that tells the story of the project in its entirety. View the Entry Form Checklist. Every student that appears in photos or videos must have an accompanying signed parent release form submitted with your entry. The form is also available in Spanish.

All entries must be submitted by midnight on Wednesday, April 1, 2020. Click here to access the online entry form.

Awards

Fifteen entries will be selected to receive award packages for their efforts, including:

    • one grand prize winner who will receive a prize valued at $5,000;
    • four winners, selected for exemplary demonstration in the following specialty areas: Carton Act in the Garden, Environmental Stewardship, Health and Nutrition, and STEM; who will receive a prize valued at $2,000 each; and
    • ten winners (five middle/high schools and five elementary schools) who will receive award packages valued at $1,000 each.

More Information

To learn more about the Carton 2 Garden Contest, visit the Kids Gardening website.

News

December 11, 2019

Early Language and Literacy Chats | Winter Sessions

Join the Pennsylvania Office of Child Development and Early Learning (OCDEL) and Early Intervention Technical Assistance (EITA) this winter to discuss hot topics around early language and literacy development. From January through March 2020, 3o-minute chat sessions will be hosted on the second and fourth Friday at 8:30 a.m and repeated at 1:30 p.m. Participants will gain access to resources to share with families and use in their classrooms and centers. PQAS credit hours and infant/toddler hours available.

Available Dates

    • January 10, 2020: Those First Words
    • January 24, 2020: Conversations with Kids
    • February 7, 2020: Books, Books, Books!
    • February 21, 2020: Print is Everywhere
    • March 6, 2020: Sounds All Around!
    • March 20, 2020: Celebrating Dual Language Learners

More Information

For more information, visit the event Padlet page.

*Information provided by the Pennsylvania Key

News

December 10, 2019

Early Language and Literacy Chat

Join the Pennsylvania Office of Child Development and Early Learning (OCDEL) and Early Intervention Technical Assistance (EITA) this winter to discuss hot topics around early language and literacy development. From January through March 2020, 3o-minute chat sessions will be hosted on the second and fourth Friday at 8:30 a.m and repeated at 1:30 p.m. Participants will gain access to resources to share with families and use in their classrooms and centers. PQAS credit hours and infant/toddler hours available.

Available Dates

    • January 10, 2020: Those First Words
    • January 24, 2020: Conversations with Kids
    • February 7, 2020: Books, Books, Books!
    • February 21, 2020: Print is Everywhere
    • March 6, 2020: Sounds All Around!
    • March 20, 2020: Celebrating Dual Language Learners

More Information

For more information, visit the event Padlet page.

News

Personal Bias in the Multicultural and Multilingual Child Care Setting

WIDA Examining Personal Bias in the Multicultural and Multilingual Child Care Setting” will define multiculturalism and multilingual learning and bring participants to a level of awareness about bias in society. It will expose ways in which our culture contains subtle and obvious biases. Participants will reflect on their own level of awareness and how it changed due to classroom activities. Part I: This workshop will define multiculturalism and help participants understand how to incorporate and celebrate true multiculturalism within the classroom.

Participants will identify the parts of their curriculum that need work and change in order to remain anti-biased. Participants will develop an action plan for each area of their curriculum that will allow them to implement changes immediately.

Learning Objectives

Upon completion of this course, learners will be able to:

    • examine personal bias about their community, cultures, and personal lives;
    • recognize how to embrace a variety of cultural and linguistic backgrounds from a strengths-based approach; and
    • plan changes in curriculum and practice to reflect learning experiences from the training.

Registration

To register and learn more, visit the PD Registry website.

More Information

For questions, please contact Annie Skamangas-Scaros at 412.608.2594 or ecetacademy@gmail.com.

For more educational courses like this, please visit our Course page.

*Information provided by the Pennsylvania Key

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December 9, 2019

Introduction to the ASQ3 and the ASQ:SE 2

By attending “An Introduction to the ASQ3 and the ASQ:SE 2,” participants will learn how to use the ASQ3 and ASQ:SE 2 as screening tools for children ages 3 months to 5 years. This session will provide information on how to administer and score the screener and share results of the screener with families. Resources for making referrals to additional services will be included if needed.

Learning Objectives

Upon completion of this course, learners will be able to:

    • define and discuss the benefits of developmental screening;
    • describe features of ASQ-3 and ASQ:SE-2;
    • score ASQ-3 and ASQ:SE-2;
    • understand the importance of sensitive communication of screening results; and
    • discuss the process for referring children to appropriate agencies.

Available Dates

To access this course, use the links below or enter the event ID on the Pennsylvania PD Registry website.

More Information

For questions, please contact Annie Skamangas-Scaros at 412.608.2594 or ecetacademy@gmail.com.

*Information provided by the Pennsylvania Key

News

Linking Standards, Curriculum Framework, and Assessment

Attend “Linking Standards, Curriculum Framework, and Assessment” to learn more about curriculum and assessment, and opportunities to link the two to Early Learning Standards. The event will discuss how to apply assessments to curriculum and to all key learning areas in a program. PQAS hours offered.

Learning Objectives

Upon completion of this course, learners will be able to:

    • identify the guiding principles of the Early Learning Standards;
    • develop curriculum to promote the key learning areas;
    • utilize information from assessment to aid in curriculum development; and
    • apply ELS indicators to the existing program curriculum.

Registration Dates

To register and learn more, visit the PD Registry website.

PD Registry Event ID: 308422

More Information

For questions, please contact Annie Skamangas-Scaros at 412.608.2594 or ecetacademy@gmail.com.

*Information provided by the Pennsylvania Key