Sunday, August 9, 2015

Starting Strong Conference

I just returned from attended a three-day conference in Tacoma--the 7th Annual Starting Strong Conference.
It's a conference focusing specially on early learning.  It was a great conference and I'm so excited my boss invited me to join her for it!

A quick list of some take-home ideas for me:
  • Create developmentally appropriate and purposeful math experiences for preschoolers (see Pathway to Numeracy)
  • Preschoolers have a sense of everyday mathematics
  • "Is this a yelling moment or a teaching moment?"
  • Relationships--they're about quantity, quality, and intensity
  • Multi-sensory interaction, with love, nurture, and care leads to learning (example:  Geometry vs. making chocolate chip cookies)
  • Attachment--Secure(trust caregiver; needs are meet), Avoidant (distrust caregiver), Anxious (can sometimes trust caregiver; inconsistent); Disorganized (abuse in the home)
  • Play IS:  voluntary, meaningful, symbolic, rule-governed, pleasurable, episodic
  • The more senses you use the fewer times you will have to teach
  • Eye gaze is extremely important to infants
  • Turn academics into play (example: learn to write name--sign the work you do like artist, authors, etc.)
  • Outside is the best classroom!
  • Technology--anything made by humans (not just electronic devices!)
  • Mind likes discovery and divergent learning; use open-ended manipulative such as blocks, water, sand, paint
  • Revisit activities/manipulatives again and again and again
  • Learning is a social experience; we learn how to learn from others
  • Science needs to be D.I.R.T.Y.  Daily discovery, driven by inquiry, relevant and real, tactile teamwork, appropriate for young children
  • Integrate literacy throughout curriculum; not in isolation
  • We need to build a culture of caring, a culture of competences, and a culture of excellence
  • Help child learn to problem solve through their senses
To Read List
The Mindful Brain
I Love You Rituals
A Moving Child is a Learning Child
Powerful Interactions
125 Brain Games for Babies
Why Love Matters
Play (Stewart Brown)
Gardening with Young Children
I Believe...What Do You Believe?

Websites
Alliance for Childhood
Zero to Three
ilabs.uw.edu
Priceless Parenting

1 comment:

Kathy Slattengren said...

Thanks for sharing what you learned at the conference! Your teachers and parents are welcome to print any of these free charts: http://www.pricelessparenting.com/chart-for-kids