Professional Development
A true educator never stops learning...
As early childhood educators, we have the huge responsibility of providing young children with the highest quality education possible. Providing teachers with the training they need to plan and implement best practices in early childhood education is critical.
As a Trainer for the Maryland State Department of Education, Office of Child Care, I can train your teachers in modern best practices in ECE.
See examples of my currently approved trainings below. If you are interested in training on a different topic, please contact me to discuss!
The Image of the Child, the Role of the Educator: An Introduction to Social Constructivist Teaching
In The Image of the Child, the Role of the Educator, we start with engaging group work as I walk your teachers through a reflection upon their own images of the child. I then provide an introduction to key pedagogical theories in ECE, with concrete examples of each, followed by insights into modern brain research and how it supports the theories of Social Constructivism covered in this training. Within this context, your teachers and I will discuss the role of the educator as helping young children construct their own knowledge, rather than trying to impart knowledge to them. I utilize modern research to stress the importance of intentional, positive relationships in order to accomplish our goals. Through this training, your teachers and I will define their role as educators in alignment with current best practice.
MD Course ID# VE-09162021-01
3 Core of Knowledge Hours: Child Development, Curriculum & Professionalism
Play Based Strategies to Prepare Children for Writing
In Play Based Strategies to Prepare Children for Writing, I begin by describing the hallmarks of a successful tripod pencil grip and outline developmentally appropriate expectations for proper grip acquisition and writing. Using imagery and clear explanations, I will discuss the importance of the tripod grip and strong fine motor skills, the role that stability and core strength play in successful writing, the concept of visual scanning and the role of representation and symbolism in writing, Throughout the training, I provide numerous concrete, play-based strategies to help young children develop all of these skills. Finally, I will describe methods for differentiating the strategies provided, so as to meet the individual interests, strengths and learning styles of children in our classes.
Your teachers will leave with a clear understanding of the keys to learning how to write as well as a long list of simple, fun, effective activities that they can implement in their classrooms to help support the development of this critical skill!
MD Course ID# VE-09042023-01
2 Core of Knowledge Hours: Child Development & Curriculum
Teaching with Intention
In Teaching with Intention, we will use small group work and interactions with materials to demonstrate the importance of planning with intention. This training will provide examples of how to select an intention, and will discuss the importance of observation as a part of the planning and implementation process. Trainees will see examples of types of planning documents as well as examples of how to individualize based on specific needs and interests of the children.
MD Course ID# VE-12292021-01
2 Core of Knowledge Hours: Curriculum
Maryland Trainer Approval ID: CKO-159906