Collins Hill, Duluth, Peachtree Ridge
Conference for Early Learning Educators
Collins Hill, Duluth, and Peachtree Ridge Clusters
Gwinnett Building Babies’ Brains invites you to our Impact Lab Conference, a professional learning opportunity for early childhood educators serving the Collins Hill, Duluth, and Peachtree Ridge cluster areas. We are excited about connecting our early learning community, sending you home with some great resources, and celebrating all you do for Gwinnett’s learners!
THE DETAILS
Who: Collins Hill, Duluth and Peachtree Ridge Cluster elementary schools and early learning centers
Where: Hosted at Peachtree Ridge High School
When: Saturday, September 28, 2024 from 8:00am-1:00pm
Enjoy $100 and swag for attending in addition to countless free resources and teaching tools for participants. Bright from the Start credit is available for participation.
Meet our Keynote Speaker
STACY LORD
Building Babies' Brains In Gwinnett: The Importance of Early Learning and Brain Development
The first five years of a child’s life are a remarkable period of rapid brain development. During this critical window, the quality of experiences significantly impacts how the brain forms connections, shaping a child’s future learning, behavior, and overall well-being. In this session, we delve into the science behind early brain development and explore why these formative years matter more than any other time in life.
Gwinnett’s commitment to early learning extends beyond research and statistics. It thrives on collaboration, partnerships, and community engagement. In this session, you will hear about a transformative community initiative, Gwinnett Building Babies’ Brains, that unites stakeholders, including parents, educators, local organizations, and community members. Together, we are building a foundation for ensuring that every child has the opportunity to thrive in Kindergarten and beyond.
Speaker Bio:
Stacy Lord serves as Coordinator for Early Learning and School Readiness for Gwinnett County Public Schools. In this role, she champions early learning initiatives across the district, working to ensure that all of Gwinnett’s early learners are ready to thrive in Kindergarten and beyond. Stacy also serves as a lead facilitator for the community collective, Gwinnett Building Babies’ Brains, fostering awareness and collaboration among educators, parents, and community partners to support Gwinnett’s early learning community.
With over 22 years of dedicated service in education, Stacy has held various positions within Gwinnett County Public Schools, including elementary school teacher, instructional coach, and assistant principal. Her experience and commitment to early learning give her the opportunity and joy of helping to shape the future Gwinnett.
Break Out Group Information
1
Aligning Learning Standards Pre-k to K: Bridging GELDS with AKS and GKIDS
Have you ever wondered how to ease the transition from Pre-K to Kindergarten? Join us for a learning session where you will have an opportunity to examine the Georgia Early Learning and Development Standards (GELDS), GCPS’ Academic Knowledge and Skills (AKS), and Georgia Kindergarten Inventory of Developing Skills 2.0 (GKIDS 2.0) to gain an understanding of how student learning aligns from pre-kindergarten settings to kindergarten classrooms. Participants will have an opportunity to look at Georgia Early Learning and Development Standards (GELDS) for 4-year-olds and GCPS Academic Knowledge and Skills (AKS) for kindergarten side-by-side to gain an understanding of how student learning aligns from pre-kindergarten settings to kindergarten classrooms.
2
Integrating Vocabulary into Read Alouds
This presentation will outline methods of using books to increase vocabulary skills with early learners. Strategies that educators can utilize to make read alouds more impactful will be discussed, including how to select appropriate vocabulary rich books and how to promote acquisition, retention, and generalization of skills.
3
Multisensory Literacy Instruction: Birth - 5
Teachers will learn research and strategies to support multisensory literacy instruction for students ages birth to five. Multisensory instruction taps into a child's natural learning style, helps the student focus better, and remember what has been taught. This session is geared towards all educators that want to unlock the power and fun of multisensory activities to help all children build reading readiness skills.
4
Play with a Purpose
The objective of this presentation is for early learning educators to know and understand the different types of play and the importance of playing with a purpose. We will accomplish this by diving into recent brain research on play, the importance of adult engagement during play, the different types of play and what they look like and how play aligns with both early learning and kindergarten standards as well as the developmental progressions.
5
The Trauma Resource Institute’s Community Resiliency Model (CRM)®
The Community Resiliency Model (CRM)®’s goal is to help to create “trauma-informed” and “resiliency-informed and -focused” communities that share a common understanding of the impact of trauma and chronic stress on the nervous system and how resiliency can be restored or increased during this skills-based approach. CRM trains and educates community members about the biology and neurophysiology of trauma, stress and resilience as well as teach simple biologically based wellness skills, which can help re-set and stabilize the nervous system.
6
Social Emotional Learning Basics & Strategies for Early Childhood Education Environments
Social and Emotional Learning (SEL) is the learning process that helps children develop skills to understand and manage their emotions, maintain healthy relationships, resolve conflicts, make responsible and good decisions, and efficiently deal with life challenges. Research shows that SEL develops “emotional intelligence,” which has a great impact on our overall success in life. “Emotions” may seem to be outside the realm of academic learning, but a focus on SEL in the classroom provides children with the skills they need to manage themselves and learn critical problem-solving skills. This in turn contributes to their wellbeing and supports academic success. This SEL workshop will help ECE teachers and administrators with general approaches and practices to facilitate social and emotional learning in the classroom
7
What Is the Problem? Practical Strategies for Teaching Social Skills & Problem-Solving in Preschool
In this session, participants will explore how to model specific personal/social skills for resolving conflicts during play using a Problem Solving Kit based on the Pyramid Model. The learning is geared toward all educators, administrators, and support staff of students ages 3 through 5+.
8
The Brain Game (For School Leaders)
This session, geared toward school leaders, is an immersive session featuring a game all about the brain! This experience is designed to deepen your comprehension of the crucial impact of early life experiences on brain development. You will explore the factors that foster healthy development, identify potential obstacles, and uncover far-reaching societal implications. Additionally, discover a powerful opportunity to learn about the GEEARS P-3 Leaders Fellowship. Don't miss this chance to expand your expertise and network with fellow early education leaders in Gwinnett.
Our Sponsors
Register To Attend The Impact Lab
Join us as we continue to make a positive impact on our early learning community!
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Still have questions? Reach out to our planning committee below!
