Where: Virtual
Duration: 60 mins
 

In this session, experienced teachers and professional development leaders Melissa Seco and Lesley Pike look at unconventional ways of building coding skills in the early years.

Classrooms right across Canada are including coding in earlier grades for example, the new Ontario curriculum includes coding in Grade 1.

Join us to see how marble runs, patterning and games like sudoku, all promote the skills needed to code!

Where: Virtual
Duration: 60 mins
 

Our outdoor environments are all so often underutilized and looked upon as a space to let children burn off their energy and solely engage in their free play.

The outdoors affords children with opportunities to explore and learn about the world around them and can be viewed as a classroom without walls.

 In this session, we will discover and discuss the possibilities when recreating our indoor learning environment in the outdoors, regardless of the weather.

Where: Virtual
Duration: 60 mins
 

Classrooms right across Canada are including coding in earlier grades for example, the new Ontario curriculum includes coding in Grade 1. In this session, experienced teachers and professional development leaders Melissa Seco and Lesley Pike, will continue the conversation on: 

• How to transition from unplugged coding experiences to plugged coding experiences.
• How to incorporate coding relevant applications, websites, and devices into early years education programs.

They’ll illustrate strategies and techniques with the popular teaching robots Blue-Bot, Bee-Bot, Cubetto and Botley. 

Where: Virtual
Duration: 50 mins

Across Canada, early years educators are embracing the challenge of taking their classrooms outdoors. Iain (LKG Sales Manager) and Bogdan (Director of Marketing) will demonstrate a variety of furnishings for teaching outdoors that harness a child’s natural need to play and explore.

Topics discussed: 

• Explore the world of Outlast by Community Playthings. See what sets these products apart and how they are built to last a lifetime, in all weather conditions.

• Compare various wood options for outdoors, including Outlast’s acytelated wood, Canadian red cedar and other options.
• See examples and ideas for implementing these products in a variety of environments to help take indoor curricular strands - creative arts, math, language arts, science etc. - outside
• Learn sanitization and care tips

Informed by pedagogy and real world examples, this presentation will give teachers, ECE’s, centre managers, principals and administrators practical information for sorting through a variety of outdoor learning products.

Where: Virtual
Duration: 60 mins

How do we support children’s sense of self through a blended learning approach?

Join us for a virtual workshop where we will delve into theory and practical strategies to create an environment of connected and authentic learning.

The presentation will highlight the connection between self regulation and well being and identity, and how we can foster a sense of belonging for our students through holistic approach.

Presenter: Usha Shanmugathasan

Usha was part of Fraser Mustard Early Learning Academy, the all-kindergarten school's first faculty as a Lead Math Teacher creating innovative programs such as Math Studio and Expressive Arts.

Today she teaches JK-1, while pursuing a Masters of Education at OISE/UT in Educational Leadership and Policy

Where: Virtual
Duration: 45 mins

Why wood? Made by nature, wood has so many benefits when used for toys. In this free webinar, Dr. Diane Kashin, RECE of Technology Rich Inquiry Based Research will focus on the developmental and learning benefits of wooden toys and will feature some of our favourites!

Wood speaks to the senses. At a time when families are looking to purchase gifts for children that have meaning and are meaningful, wooden toys provide an alternative to the commercialism of plastics. This session will share Diane’s love of wooden toys! We will learn why wooden toys never go out of style and can be passed down from generation to generation.

Presenter: Diane Kashin, RECE

Diane is a registered early childhood educator in the province of Ontario and retired ECE professor. Diane taught at both the degree and the diploma level for over 30 years. Diane’s doctoral thesis on emergent curriculum was published in 2008 and she has co-written three ECE textbooks, Empowering Pedagogy in Early Childhood Education (2016), Playing and Learning in Early Childhood Education (2019) and Outdoor and Nature Play in Early Childhood Education (2019).

Diane’s areas of interest include emergent curriculum, play-based learning, forest and nature schools, risky play, loose parts, the Reggio Emilia Approach™, and outdoor play. Diane writes a blog to support professional learning in early childhood education: Technology Rich Inquiry Based Research, and has presented workshops and keynote addresses in Ontario, across Canada and internationally. Diane also creates content for online learning courses including, Blocks Build Minds and Bodies and she presents webinars on various topics related to curriculum and pedagogy. 

Where: Virtual
Duration: 45 mins

Want to get started with "unplugged coding" with early years’ children? Not sure what the basics you need are, or how much of each item you need?

In this free web workshop, experienced educators Lesley Pike and Melissa Seco will help you learn a little more about what goes into an unplugged coding kit, and help you get started in creating your own.

Classrooms right across Canada are including coding in earlier grades with the new Ontario curriculum including coding starting in Kindergarten.
In this session, Melissa and Lesley will help you get started with your own coding kit to support no screen coding. With just paper tools, loose parts and a dash of your creativity and imagination, you’ll be ready for your students.

We will also share some things that we have found helpful to have when coding in early grades, based on some of the learning opportunities we've had (aka mistakes!) and how we've learned from them.

Presenter:

Melissa Seco  Melissa has been both a teacher and Instructional Leader in Mathematics/Numeracy (K-8) and Early Years (K-2). Melissa’s main areas of interest include: early years, visual arts, mathematics, STEM, and inquiry-based learning. Currently she is a Grade 1/2 teacher and Digital Lead Learner (DLL), and she occasionally teaches AQ courses at OISE.

Lesley Pike  Lesley is a Toronto based educator who has taught Kindergarten to Grade 6 and worked centrally as a Math Coach for 5 years. She is currently beginning a new chapter in her career this fall by working outside of the classroom in a support role as a Teacher Librarian. Her main areas of interest are math and coding, she also loves looking for new and exciting picture books to use in her classroom.

Where: Virtual
Duration: 120 mins

Social development has always been important in the early years. We want children to take turns and share. Social play is encouraged when children are required to share materials and supplies. This is not without consequence as disputes often arise. The common refrain, “who had it first?”, does not often lead to satisfying solutions. It is time to rethink turn-taking and sharing without sacrificing social development. Ample time to play with individual access to materials will be the new normal. Providing children with socially distant space and individualized sets of materials and supplies does not mean children sitting alone doing “tablework”! Play is paramount and social play is still possible! Children can share ideas, interests and passions without all the tensions that imposed sharing can produce. an era of COVID, how can educators support students well-being remotely and face to face?

Join Dr. Diane Kashin, RECE in this webinar about play-based learning in the time of COVID. Rethinking sharing can lead to new perspectives and possibilities. Products will be featured and suggestions for play invitations provided.

Presenter: Diane Kashin, RECE

Diane is a registered early childhood educator in the province of Ontario and retired ECE professor. Diane taught at both the degree and the diploma level for over 30 years. Diane’s doctoral thesis on emergent curriculum was published in 2008 and she has co-written three ECE textbooks, Empowering Pedagogy in Early Childhood Education (2016), Playing and Learning in Early Childhood Education (2019) and Outdoor and Nature Play in Early Childhood Education (2019).

Diane’s areas of interest include emergent curriculum, play-based learning, forest and nature schools, risky play, loose parts, the Reggio Emilia Approach™, and outdoor play. Diane writes a blog to support professional learning in early childhood education: Technology Rich Inquiry Based Research, and has presented workshops and keynote addresses in Ontario, across Canada and internationally. Diane also creates content for online learning courses including, Blocks Build Minds and Bodies and she presents webinars on various topics related to curriculum and pedagogy.

DURÉE: 1 Heure

Le Coronavirus a complètement transformé les milieux de la petite enfance.

Cet atelier vise à poursuivre notre réflexion sur les adaptations à prévoir, nos attitudes, nos attentes, les possibilités de réaménagement tout en explorant les opportunités présentes dans l’apprentissage en plein air afin de continuer d’offrir un programme de qualité et sécuritaire pour lequel nous sommes reconnus.

En profitant du développement professionnel offert en ligne nous pouvons augmenter nos connaissances, notre efficacité et notre créativité afin de surmonter cette crise.

Présentatrice: Hélène Pouliot-Cleare

Passionnée par l’éducation, Hélène Pouliot-Cleare œuvre dans le milieu de l’éducation depuis plus de 40 ans dans le Centre-Sud-Ouest de l’Ontario, en plus d’animer des ateliers et formations au plan provincial, national et international, en français comme en anglais. Ses conférences abordent une grande variété de sujets liés à la petite enfance, à l’apprentissage de la langue dans un milieu minoritaire, au leadership et à la motivation personnelle.

Where: Virtual
Duration: 20 mins
 

New in furnishings and resources for creating multi-cultural, comforting environments that can reduce anxiety and increase engagement. Therapy dolls, light and reflection, engaging textures, multi-cultural themes, and home-like furnishings to create a calming space. Plus, a new cloud-based app for easily creating classroom visuals for clear communication even in dozens of languages.

Where: Virtual
Duration: 20 mins
 

Check out some popular early years classroom coding robots that don’t need screens. Classrooms right across Canada are including coding in earlier grades, with the new Ontario curriculum including coding starting in Kindergarten. In this session we’ll compare and contrast the features and design of Bee Bot, Blue Bot, Botley, LEGO Coding Express, Cubetto and the new Rugged Robot for outdoors, exploring how they can fit into pedagogical goals. Receive a certificate of completion and enter to win a Cubetto.

Where: Virtual
Duration: 20 mins
 

The original STEM learning resource! Join us for a full course 20 min blocks feast. One of the most essential and foundational learning areas of any early childhood classrooms, this session will fill your plate with the proportional essentials, amuse your bouche with figurines and vehicles and spice it up with bling to inspire creative expression. And we won’t forget about al fresco - blocks outdoors, too.

Where: Virtual
Duration: 20 mins
 

2021 has brought us some delightful engaging new additions to our loose parts collection: colourful, earthy, and even a bit of dazzle. Join us to see what’s new, and some of the unique favourites in Louise Kool’s loose parts collection. We’ll also look at new tables for indoors and out for sorting and exploring, trays, sanitization tips and more.