Join us to learn inclusive strategies for supporting children in engaging and sustaining play with toys and their peers in the classroom. Participants will learn strategies for (1) environmental arrangement and toy selection to promote engagement, play, and responsive interactions (2) facilitating child-led play in the classroom (3) embedding supports for communication and positive peer interactions during play. Presenters will share classroom examples and videos of practices in action, as well as classroom visuals and implementation supports (reflection and action planning tools, tip sheets, materials to share with families). Participants will engage in guided action planning and case based learning to support application to their classroom settings.
Presented by
Shannon Core
Doctoral Student
University of Washington
Jenny Baumingham is a Researcher and Inclusion Specialist at the University of Washington Her work centers on high quality practices for supporting each and every child in early childhood settings, with a specific focus on social-emotional skills, challenging behavior, and early language development.
Taydi Owens
Doctoral Student
Vanderbilt University
Presentation Outcomes:
Early learning happens through responsive interactions during play and routines in toddler classrooms. Thoughtful environmental arrangement paired with strategies for supporting children’s play, communication, and connections with their peers can have an important and meaningful impact on all children’s classroom experiences and development. The targeted audience for this presentation are childcare practitioners, coaches, and leaders who work with toddlers and their families in classroom and group care settings. This presentation focuses on supporting educators in understanding the development of play across the toddler years, and in noticing and honoring all the different ways that children may choose to play, in order to be more responsive partners in the classroom. The strategies presented are evidence based, designed to be used during ongoing routines and activities with pre-existing materials, and specifically designed to be used in classroom settings serving children with and without disabilities. We will share examples of how the strategies can be implemented classwide, while still attending to individual differences and allowing for differentiation.
Learning Objectives:
Analyze classroom toys, materials, and layout of play areas to identify intentional opportunities to promote toddler's play, communication, and positive peer interactions through environmental arrangement
Describe 4 key strategies for engaging in child-led play that is responsive to individual toddler’s strengths and preferences
Develop an action plan to embed at least one new communication or positive peer interaction support strategy into play.
