Join WestEd’s early childhood experts at the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC) Annual Conference, November 6–9, 2024, held in Anaheim, California.
Each year NAEYC convenes early childhood educators from around the world to connect, collaborate, and learn together. The Annual Conference is designed for all early childhood professionals, including classroom teachers, center directors, administrators, and leaders who prepare, mentor, and support early childhood professionals.
This year’s conference theme is One Vision, Many Voices: Shaping Early Education Together.
Add WestEd sessions to your conference calendar and visit WestEd’s Program for Infant-Toddler Care booth (#827), where you can meet our team and learn about our publications, professional learning opportunities, and research.
Follow WestEd on LinkedIn and on Facebook to share your insights from the conference!
WestEd Sessions
Wednesday, November 6
Session: Advancing Team Synergy: Coaching Team Membership in Early Childhood Education
Time & Location: 12:00 p.m. – 2:30 p.m. / 263AB, Anaheim Convention Center
Presenters: A. Keith Young (AKYConsulting) and Tamarra Osborne (WestEd)
This workshop is uniquely designed for instructional coaches and directors in early childhood education. This session is a gateway to mastering teamwork and collaboration, which is crucial for nurturing young minds. Gain unique skills in coaching adults to be effective team members. Key features of the workshop include the following:
- Insightful research: Learn about traits vital for educators in team settings, such as flexibility and emotional stability.
- Interactive strategies: Explore practical steps like setting effective meeting norms and forming communities of practice.
- Conflict management: Equip yourself with tactics to handle challenging group dynamics and embrace diverse educational philosophies.
- Change mastery: Delve into managing the change process and understanding adult learners’ characteristics.
- Relationship building: Learn to repair and strengthen professional ties within your educational team.
- Practical exercises: Engage in interactive activities, including team meeting analyses and prioritizing of coaching strategies.
This workshop is not just a learning experience; it’s an interactive platform to exchange ideas and develop practical skills for enhancing team collaboration, ideal for educational leaders who aim to foster a positive and productive environment in early childhood programs. Elevate your team’s dynamics, encourage professional development, and lead with renewed insight and confidence.
Friday, November 8
Session: This Never Gets Easy: Talking with Families About Developmental Concerns
Time & Location: 10:00 a.m. – 11:30 a.m. / 213D, Anaheim Convention Center
Presenters: Jenine Schmidt (WestEd) and Jamie Michaud (WestEd)
This interactive workshop will introduce attendees to the Collective Impact Model for Part C Child Find (CIM-C). CIM-C supports early care and education providers in rural and Indigenous communities on the use of developmental screening tools to identify and refer families to appropriate supports. Community partners include child care providers, Early Head Start and Head Start teachers, state and military base early intervention service providers, child welfare staff, and medical practitioners.
Our team developed an approach to training and professional development specific to the selection and use of screening tools by using culturally responsive language to introduce the purpose of developmental screening to families, engaging in difficult conversations when discussing potential concerns, and connecting families to different services.
This session will explore strategies and talking points specific to developmental screening and communicating results and suggested next steps. It will provide lessons and guidance to ground conversations in child development, decision trees, templates, and talking points developed and used by the CIM-C’s project partners representing communities across the United States and its territories that can be customized for local use, and opportunities to practice describing the purpose of different screening tools, analyzing “mock” results, and describing options based on screening information.
Session: What High-Quality Math Learning and Family Engagement Looks Like for Black Preschoolers and Their Families: Lessons Learned from Interviewing Black Families
Time & Location: 1:00 p.m. – 2:30 p.m. / 207B, Anaheim Convention Center
Presenters: Ashli-Ann Douglas (WestEd)
Research underscores the importance of strong foundational mathematics skills for academic success. This session presents Black parents’ perspectives on high-quality mathematics learning and family engagement practices designed to prepare Black children for success in kindergarten.
Session: Joyful Reading and Creative Expression: How Educators and Families Can Support Children’s Language and Literacy Development Through Culturally Affirming Read Alouds, Social and Emotional Development, and Creative Expression
Time & Location: 3:00 p.m. – 4:30 p.m. / 261A, Anaheim Convention Center
Presenters: Steven Hicks (Sacramento County Office of Education), Pamela Spycher (WestEd/Regional Educational Laboratory West), and Julie Montali (Sacramento County Office of Education)
In this interactive session, participants will engage with the Joyful Reading and Creative Expression: Planning Guide, designed to support interactive read alouds using culturally affirming storybooks, oral language development, social and emotional growth, and creative expression through play, writing, and the arts in pre-K–first grade. Joyful Literacy also promotes family engagement with homeschool/early childhood program activity guides in English and Spanish.
Participants will be provided with free resources to cultivate joy, creativity, wellness, and literacy development with young children. Attendees will also learn how to use the tools to enhance language interactions using their own favorite books. Five IES What Works Clearinghouse practice guides focused on effective early literacy instruction will serve as the primary evidence base for the presentation.
Participants will leave with the skills and knowledge to begin transforming teaching and learning with students and relationships with families beginning Monday morning. Grounded in the science of language and literacy development, Joyful Literacy is a partnership between the Institute of Education Sciences’ Regional Educational Laboratory West of the US Department of Education; the Sacramento County Office of Education; and the California Department of Education.
Participants can earn 0.2 CEUs for this session.
Saturday, November 9
Sesión: Estrategias Bilingües en Contexto Cultural: Este Taller Se Basa en El Programa Para El Cuidado de Bebés Y Niños Pequeños
Time & Location: 9:30 a.m. – 10:45 a.m. / 202B, Anaheim Convention Center
Presenters: Edilma Serna (The Program for Infant-Toddler Care/WestEd) and Consuelo Espinosa (The Program for Infant-Toddler Care/WestEd)
Este taller será interactivo y le permitirá obtener ideas y estrategias acerca de la crianza cultural y lingüísticamente sensible para aplicar en su propio contexto, ya sea un programa de cuidado infantil en el hogar, un proveedor en el hogar (familia, amigo y vecino), o un maestro en un programa de cuidado infantil.
Los participantes explorarán estrategias y técnicas sobre cómo reforzar el valor del bilingüismo en los niños de cero a tres años. La implementación y práctica de estas estrategias y técnicas apoyará el desarrollo de una base temprana en los infantes.
Meet-and-Greet
Visit WestEd’s PITC booth to meet and talk with the developers of the PITC Curriculum and the PITC PARS Instrument and Subscale Guides available in English, Spanish, Simplified Chinese, and Traditional Chinese.
Where: Exhibit Hall (booth # 827)
When:
- Wednesday, November 6: 5:00 p.m. – 7:00 p.m.
- Thursday, November 7: 10:00 a.m. – 1:00 p.m. & 4:00 p.m. – 5:00 p.m.
- Friday, November 8: 10:00 a.m. – 7:00 p.m.
General NAEYC Exhibit Hours
- Wednesday, November 6: 5:00 p.m. – 7:00 p.m.
- Thursday, November 7: 10:00 a.m. – 6:00 p.m.
- Friday, November 8: 10:00 a.m. – 6:00 p.m.