Registration for workshops & videochats closes 2 hours before the event.

"Embedding Academics in Play-based Learning Environments" VIDEOCHAT
with Debbie Reilly
Wednesday, Sept 17th, 3:00-4:00 PM (ET)

Join Debbie Reilly for a conversation on developmentally appropriate play, the definition of play, and what “academics” look like throughout the early childhood classroom. Participants will leave with a better understanding of the underlying skills found in each classroom center, as well as practical ideas to implement immediately. This videochat will help you satisfy administrations’ objectives and parents’ inquiries while honoring your beliefs and understandings of early learning.  This session is meant for teachers of children 3 and up. 

BIO: A career changer in her late 30s, Debbie Reilly found a home working in early childhood education. She taught nursery school and kindergarten for thirty years in private schools and, upon retirement, started teaching a course to undergraduates majoring in early childhood education at Hunter College. She has given other presentations for TBS and worked in person with two of their school partners. Debbie’s passion is advocating for active, playful, experiential approaches to learning and working to stop the pushdown mentality plaguing our early childhood environments.

"The Atelier of Taste: Discovering a School’s Garden Project" VIDEOCHAT
with Rosalba Bortolotti
Tuesday, Oct 7th, 3:00-4:00 PM (ET)

Join Rosalba Bortolotti as she explores how working with children in a garden setting can open up inquiries that foster connections with nature, deepen relationships, and encourage environmental responsibility. This project inspired meaningful conversations, creativity, and community-building among children, families, and educators. 

BIO: Rosalba is an accomplished pedagogist with a deep background in education and pedagogical research. With a degree in Early Childhood Education and a major in Psychology, she began her career in 1994, which sparked her lifelong exploration of the Reggio Emilia approach. She has since traveled to Reggio Emilia for research and shares her knowledge as a part-time faculty member in the School of Early Childhood Education at Seneca College. As a pedagogical leader, Rosalba owned a private nursery school that also served as a learning lab for other educators. For over 29 years, she has offered her expertise and guidance to various educational institutions and professionals. She provides her leadership through live workshops, webinars, Acorn Studio live broadcasts, and has released a podcast featuring interviews with different educational organizers from the U.S. and Canada. An advocate for the intentional use of materials, she encourages educators to think about their purpose, moving beyond simple consumption. This philosophy extends to her work on The Acorn Mini Books, a new series of mini books centered on creativity, imagination, and curiosity from the experiences and encounters collected over time at Acorn School. (closed in 2015) Rosalba is also a certified Play Worker from the UK, a certificate she obtained in 2015, and has dedicated time to the study of outdoor learning with nature. A writer and researcher, she is a contributing author of a chapter on the rights of children and a co-author of an upcoming book on food pedagogies and seasonal recipes. She continues to be an active member of the Pedagogist Network Ontario and volunteers as the chair for the York Region Nature Collaborative, continuing her work with different communities of teachers.

"Transforming Classroom Culture Through Intentional Words of Kindness" VIDEOCHAT
with Annabelle Baylin and Karen Levenberg
Thursday, Nov 13th, 3:00-4:30 PM (ET)

Daily intentions, special words of kindness and empathy, that can be visualized and physicalized, form the foundation of this social/emotional framework developed by Karen Levenberg and Annabelle Baylin. As an extension of a daily mindfulness routine, teachers select special words (intentions) based on observations and values that they want to cultivate in the classroom, establishing a classroom culture with a shared set of moral principles: generosity, integrity, persistence, gratitude. Each word is defined, modeled, discussed during morning meeting, and put into action over a two-week period. Throughout the school year, this set of words creates the container for children to take action to make their world a kinder and fairer place.

In this workshop, Karen and Annabelle will share video footage of their PreK classroom conversations, videos of children speaking about the intentions, and lead the group through their mindfulness practice and intention conversations. They will also share how they incorporate this language and values throughout the school day and reflect with participants on what intentions they might incorporate into their own classrooms. Lastly, they will speak about how they shared this work with families and how they supported parents to also use the language of the intentions at home. 

BIO: Annabelle Baylin has taught pre-K through first grade at schools in New York for 10 years and works as a literacy professor and educational consultant. She enjoys bringing mindfulness into the daily routines of the classroom, facilitating an emergent curriculum, supporting early literacy, and having conversations about social justice with children. Annabelle holds an MSEd in early childhood general and special education from Brooklyn College and a BA in mindfulness in education from New York University.

BIO: Karen Levenberg is an Early Childhood Education Consultant. She was a classroom teacher for 17 years, teaching at the Blue School in Lower Manhattan for 10 years. Prior to teaching, she helped initiate early literacy Even Start programs in public schools in administrative capacities. Karen holds an MSEd in early childhood education from Brooklyn College, an MPH in public health from Hunter College, and a BA in studio art/art history from Oberlin College.

If you previously attended a videochat and need a certificate of participation,
you can request one here.