Interactive Conference Planner now available!

Highlights

What You Can Do to Grow Self-Esteem in Young Children: Strategies That Support Every Child

9:00 a.m.
CC12 AB

Do you work with children who look and learn differently? Do you work with families who have different views about child rearing and daily routines? This session will provide information about how to support each and every family. You will leave with a better understanding of how diversity relates to your day-to-day work and the approaches you can use to help each child see him or herself as capable and successful.

Camille Catlett, University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill

Childcare, Parenting and Childhood Obesity

11:00 a.m.
CC12 AB

This presentation will focus on why children like the foods they do and
how aspects of the home and childcare environment might impact a
child’s risk of obesity.

Julie Lumeng, University of Michigan

Bringing It Home: International Awareness in the Early Childhood Classroom

2:00 p.m.
CC12 AB

Help children to move beyond flags, festivals and food and into an in-depth understanding of the world around them. Kindergarten teachers Meredith Polley and Nora Ryan share their experiences of bringing their travels into the classroom. We will focus on helping students to first understand themselves and their communities. These understandings serve as a basis for comparison and connection to cultures abroad.

Meredith Polley and Nora Ryan, Academy of Global Citizenship

Encouraging Male Involvement in Early Childhood Programs

4:00 p.m.
CC12 AB

Unfortunately, male involvement in early childhood programs tends to be scant. This session will explore the dynamics of male involvement, common roadblocks, and strategies to encourage male participation.

Mikki Meadows, Eastern Illinois University and Jill Bowers, University of Illinois

Workshops by Track

*The following list is not comprehensive and is subject to change. Check back in early November for a complete, searchable list with descriptions.

Administration & Program Operations

• Raising the Bar: Your Staff’s Professional Image
• Set Yourself Up for Success: Marketing Strategy and Business Plan 101

Advocacy/Public Policy

• Creando el cambio social de abajo hacia arriba: su papel como un defensor de los niños y sus familias

Career Development

• One Size Doesn’t Fit All: The Coach’s Role in Individualizing Professional Development for Preschool Teachers

Children & Violence

• Taming Media and Turning On Your Preschoolers’ Minds

Curriculum/Teaching Practices

• 3-4-5-Sing and Thrive!
• Bookmaking Strategies to Support Family and Early Literacy
• Books, Blocks, and Balls
• Bringing it Home: International Awareness in the Early Childhood Classroom
• Building Vocabulary in Preschool Children
• Dancing Feet for Toddlers Through Kingergarten
• Dramatic Play—YES! Support Children in Their Play
• Following Children’s Interests: A PreK Farm Project
• Going Beyond Behavior Management
• ¿Hace musica?
• Joy of Music: Making the Classroom Come Alive
• Literacy Education Through Story Dictation
• Moving Beyond Themes: Facilitating Studies in the Preschool Classroom
• Music Throughout the Day
• Nature Discovery Time
• Phonological Awareness Through Music: Developing
• Pre-reading Skills
• Scien-terrific! Teaching the Scientific Method with Early Grades
• Story Dictation: Developing and Expressing Gender Identity in Early Childhood

English Language Learners

• Accelerate Oral Language Skills in Spanish/English Through the Use of American Sign Language, Songs, and Dance
• Language and Literacy Acquisition: Preschool English Language Learners

Family Child Care

• Creating Inspirational Child Care Environments
• NAFCC Accreditation
• TLC for Babies: A Language Stimulation Framework for Young Parents

Family & Community Relationships

• Building a Bridge Between Home and School
• Building Books, Building Readers
• Chicago Metro AEYC’s Community Gardens Project
• Encouraging Male Involvement in Early Childhood Programs

Fine & Creative Arts

• 3-4-5-Sing and Thrive!

Health, Safety & Nutrition

• Childcare, Parenting and Childhood Obesity
• Early Child Care and Child Obesity: What’s the Connection?
• Lead Poisoning Prevention and Illinois Lead Laws

Language & Literacy

• Bookmaking Strategies to Support Family and Early Literacy
• Language and Literacy Acquisition: Preschool
• English Language Learners
• Literacy Education Through Story Dictation
• Phonological Awareness Through Music: Developing Pre-reading Skills

Math & Science

• Let the Resources of the IDNR Help You Open Children’s Eyes to Nature
• Nature Discovery Time
• Scien-terrific! Teaching the Scientific Method with Early Grades

Preschool (3-5)

• 3-4-5-Sing and Thrive!
• Books, Blocks, and Balls
• Building Vocabulary in Preschool Children
• Dancing Feet for Toddlers Through Kingergarten
• Dramatic Play—YES! Support Children in Their Play
• Following Children’s Interests: A PreK Farm Project

Social & Emotional Growth

• Building Children’s Social-Emotional Skills: A Research-based Approach to Foster Positive Relationships and School Readiness
• Inclusion: Utilizing Multicultural and Anti-Bias Education Goals in the Classroom to Support Diverse Learning Needs
• What You Can Do to Grow Self-Esteem in Young Children: Strategies That Support Every Child

Special Needs

• Entendiendo el proceso de educación especial
• Working with Children with Autism: But How?

Trends/Cutting Edge

• Let the Resources of the IDNR Help You Open Children’s Eyes to Nature
• Using Technology with Young Children for Teaching and Documenting