In this episode of The Preschool Podcast, we're revisiting our first-ever Preschool Podcast episode from July 2016! Ron Spreeuwenberg has the pleasure of interviewing Debbi Sluys the Director of Growing Together Family Resource Centre in Blenheim, Ontario. Debbi discussed what has changed in early childhood education since she first started in the field. And what has made Growing Together such a successful organization, in particular, the progressive culture that encourages discussion, learning, leadership, and a sense of community.
In this episode of The Preschool Podcast, we connect with “The Systems Queen” Andrea Dickerson on child care systems and how directors and owners can use an organized approach that results in consistency every time. Andrea explains how her systems can benefit anyone in the child care space regardless of their experience while delivering consistent results every time.
In this episode of The Preschool Podcast, we chat with Stephanie Bennett, inspirer of all things curious and Co-Founder of The Curiosity Approach. Stephanie discusses the philosophy behind The Curiosity Approach and how educators can include elements of Montessori, Reggio, loose parts, and natural elements in their classroom to encourage a naturally curious child.
Music plays an important role in children's development. It helps create a secure attachment in very young children and can help older children express themselves through free movement, making music, and singing. In this episode, we chat with Maryann Harman from Music with Mar on how educators and parents can support children's learning, and why it's so important to help with other areas of development.
Connect with Mar through her YouTube, website, and Instagram!
In this episode, we interview Meghan Fitzgerald, Chief Education Officer of Tinkergarten, a program that supports parents and educators with play-based learning at home. We talk about how to set children up for success when returning to a post-quarantine life where social distancing is the norm, reframing the idea of developmental regression, as well as how to cope with the stressors of parenting and educating young children during this time.
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Teaching and coaching might sound like the same thing, but they can actually be quite different in their approaches. In this episode, Constant Hine from Horizons In Learning explains how she uses transformational coaching to help ECEs bring the best out of themselves, who can then go on to do the same for the children in their care!
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In this episode, Tessie Ragan from Perfect Start Learning joins us to shed some light on the unique advantages and challenges of providing child care to military families in a home. Without many of the resources available to larger centers and restrictions specific to military providers, Tessie has many lessons of resourcefulness and perseverance that all child care providers can be inspired by.
To learn more about Tessie's program, visit https://www.perfectstartlearning.com.
In the 45 years since Council for Professional Recognition was founded, A LOT has changed in the field of early childhood education. The Council's CEO, Dr. Valora Washington, joins us in this episode to discuss these advancements and ongoing efforts to support early childhood educators in their professional development, including the Child Development Associate Credential.
To learn more about the CDA Credential and how it can help your career, visit https://www.cdacouncil.org/
Are kids really 'misbehaving' or are we simply setting unrealistic expectations for them? In this episode, Rae Pica returns to the podcast to discuss her new book, "Acting Out!: Avoid Behavior Challenges with Active Learning Games and Activities," and provide actionable techniques for you to use to harness children's natural behavior into activities that will make everyone happy.
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Onboarding a new employee isn't just a quick tour of your center and calling it a day — it starts from their first interview and takes anywhere from 6 months to a year to get them fully assimilated into their new environment. In this episode, Carla Rogg, President of ProSolutions Training, explains how to properly onboard a new teacher so they are happy — and stay that way!
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Episode #129 - Physical fitness in an early childhood setting is key to supporting cognitive and affective development from birth to five. What can you do as an educator to structure a space that encourages preschoolers to move while learning? In this episode, John Ozmun, Professor of Physical Education at Indiana Wesleyan University and founder of Preschool Athlete, explains physical development in the frame early education and shares some practical tips on how to create a classroom environment that supports it.
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Episode #128 - Creating an equitable classroom environment for young children regardless of their socioeconomic background can be challenging. How can you ensure that your classroom is a safe space for every child under your care, especially if you work with families that are living in poverty? In this episode, Kenya Wolff, Director of the Willie Price Lab School at the University of Mississippi, talks to us about the common misconceptions that people have of families living in poverty, steps educators can take to create a more mindful preschool classroom and why it is important to advocate for policies that support low-income families.
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Episode #127: A multicultural classroom is becoming an increasingly common thing in this day and age. How would you create a classroom that helps families from different cultural backgrounds encourage the development of positive self-identity in young children? In this episode, Zeynep Ercan, Associate Professor in Early Childhood Education at Rowan University in New Jersey, offers some strategies to support immigrant families in matters such as the retention of their mother tongue, sharing their culture with the preschool community and building leadership in young children as ambassadors for their home culture.
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Reach Zeynep at ercan@rowan.edu
Episode #126: Making your voice heard when advocating for young children and families can be challenging given the divisiveness of opinion in the current political climate. How would you navigate a space where “alternative facts” or “fake news” is touted in mainstream media and disseminated through social media? In this episode, Cathy Grace, Co-Director of the Graduate Center for the Study of Early Learning at the University of Mississippi gives her two cents on how to engage with different levels of advocacy, staying true to the facts and why geography specific needs can have a huge impact.
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Reach Cathy at cwgrace@olemiss.edu
Episode #135: We are always trying to provide our little ones with quality outdoor time, but this is usually just a small part of their day. What would it look like to take this to its most extreme and provide a preschool that is ENTIRELY outdoors? Yes, you read that right — 100% outdoors, all year long. In this episode, Tiny Trees Preschool’s Rachel Franz explains what outdoor preschool looks like, the benefits it provides, and efforts underway to create proper licensing to bring the outdoors to more families across the world.
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Episode #124: While most people would agree that they would like all children to be properly included in the classroom, it takes careful attention and practice to successfully integrate children with special needs into the preschool environment. Early childhood educators play a crucial role in this important stage of a child’s development. The way that they treat a child with special needs will influence the way that their impressionable classmates will act towards them for years to come. In this episode, Associate Professor of Special Education, Pamela Brillante, shares why it’s so important to properly include special needs children in the classroom and provides practical tips on how to do so.
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Episode #123: In this episode, Julie Travaglini, Education Program Director at Allegheny Land Trust, teaches us how to incorporate nature into early education classrooms. From risk-taking to motor skills to empathy, nature can be one of the most effective - and least expensive - teaching tools available. Plus, since we need nature to survive, it’s crucial to get the next generation excited about nature from an early age. Learn how in this week’s episode of the Preschool Podcast!
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Episode #122: In this episode, educator, author and consultant Amy Alamar joins us to show how Reflective Practice can help us become better parents and educators. While it is natural to think about what may have gone well (or not-so-well) at the end of a long day with our kids, turning these thoughts into learnings that we can put into action doesn’t always happen. Avoid making the same mistakes over and over again, and expand on what DOES work, through actionable Reflective Practice techniques in this episode of the Preschool Podcast!
Episode #121: The Impact of Preschool on Low Income Kids. Jennifer Pare, Chief Early Learning Officer at Kidango, joins us to show how much of a difference preschool can make on a child's future, particularly for those coming from low-income households. Learn more from Jennifer's first-hand experience in this episode of the Preschool Podcast.
Episode #120: What Should Montessori Look Like? Margaret Whitley, retired head of the Montessori Academy of London, joins us to discuss all things Montessori. With recent news of Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos providing one billion dollars in funding for children to access Montessori who otherwise would be unable to, it's now more important than ever to understand what a successful Montessori institution should look like. Find out more about Montessori from Margaret in this episode of the Preschool Podcast.
Episode #119: What is Suzuki Early Childhood Education or SECE? Sharon Jones, one of the first Suzuki students in Ontario and the founder and director of the Thames Valley Suzuki School in Ontario delves into this approach of learning music. Research shows that early learners who participated smiled more, were easier to sooth, communicated better and showed earlier and more sophisticated responses to music. Find out more about SECE from Sharon in this episode of the Preschool Podcast.
Episode #118: In this episode, we sit down with Christina Nigrelli, the Senior Director of Programs at the ZERO TO THREE Western Office to discuss the challenges and state of early childhood education in California. ZERO TO THREE works to ensure that babies and toddlers benefit from the family and community connections critical to their well-being and development. California alone is home to more than 1.5 million children under 3 years old.
In this episode we sit down with Simone Davies, a Montessori teacher of nearly 15 years and a mother of 2 children. Simone is the author of The Montessori Toddler and provides free resources for parents on her website, The Montessori Notebook. She has been running a Montessori playgroup for the last 10 years in Amsterdam, The Netherlands. Join us as we dive into all things Montessori!
What is Storymaking and how is it used for oral language development and learning? We sit down with Michelle Kay Compton and Robin Chappele Thompson authors of Storymaking: The Maker Movement Approach to Literacy for Early Learners to learn more about this practice.
What does it mean to inquire? Grownups would say it means to question, to search for information, or to finding out about a topic of interest. For children in an early childhood classroom, the definition is no different. From the time of their birth, children want to know how the world works and actively seek out information. Inquiry-Based Early Learning Environments takes an in-depth look at children’s inquiry. What does inquiry look like in early childhood settings? How does the environment affect children’s inquiries and teachers’ thought processes?