GENERAL WORKSHOPS

Create THINKING Classrooms

   Children know a great deal about the world, and have hypotheses about how items and events relate. But they often make accidental or illogical connections.  We want them to make meaningful connections between items - to understand how items relate to each other. But what if they have no experience with an item? A thought provoking workshop is guaranteed.

Why are there so many delays in children’s development? And what do we do?

    In this practical workshop, Dr Barron will help us understand what’s happening. An overview of a series of motor, visual, and auditory assessment protocols for teachers will be presented.  Most important, follow up classroom activities will be suggested.

DUST OFF THOSE SENSORIAL MATERIALS: A LIBERATION WORKSHOP

    This workshop will give you so many innovative ways to think about using the sensorial materials that you’ll never find them dusty again.  And if YOU see the possibilities, so will your children.

Now you see it, now you don’t: RECORDINGKEEPING in early childhood classrooms

    We see what we notice. We remember bits and pieces. This workshop will present a comprehensive record keeping system that begins with daily notes, has a system that enables you to understand what you’ve noticed, and flows into reports and conferences.

LANGUAGE / LITERACY WORKSHOPS

OPENING THE DOOR TO LITERARY LANGUAGE

Dr Barron spotlights a key ingredient in a young children’s language environment –– writing. Beginning with oral language, she will present an overview of typical development in writing. She will also present strategies for including writing in classrooms and in homes –– right from the beginning.

USING FAIRY TALES AND NURSERY RHYMES TO SPARK WRITING

This workshop emphasizes the role of sharing stories (both real and fictional) and retelling nursery rhymes and fairy tales to children’s literacy development. Practical ideas will be shared.

Creating a literacy stew in your classroom: Supporting young children’s literacy development. 

To make writing as omnipresent as talking, everyday classroom activities should be fully utilized to generate spontaneous writing activities. This workshop will explore naturally occurring events in the early childhood classroom—conversation, dramatic play, the use of manipulatives, drawing, delivering message notes, and reading aloud—and how these events can be used to support children’s writing.

Stop the emphasis on phonics! It is NOT the way to go.  Instead a balanced literacy program is what is needed. 

There’s more to reading and writing than phonics.  In fact, sound/symbol work can even be detrimental!  So what are those skills, abilities, and attitudes that lead to reading and writing?

The workshop will describe, from a Montessori perspective, the key areas identified by researchers: oral language (vocabulary and uses of language), concepts of print, phonemic awareness, fluency, visual-perceptual skills, and comprehension.  Teacher practices will be shared: creating literacy-rich, print-rich physical environments, ways of reading aloud with a focus on print concepts, how to include lots of oral language (story-book extensions & dramatic play), targeted phonological skills development, and the support of emergent (pretend) reading and writing..

ADMINISTRATIVE WORKSHOPS

LET’S PARTNER WITH PARENTS

Have you been trying to educate your parents?  I bet it’s not working!  Do parents hang out in your classroom at drop off time?  Why not?  Come prepared to hear how parents can really be your partners, educated partners! A lively discussion is guaranteed.

FACULTY EVALUATIONS

Self-assessments are the way to go!  And self-assessments in teams (6-10 teachers) are even better. And self-assessments followed by goal setting are the best.  We’ve been doing group faculty evaluations for over 30 years .. and it works!   Learn how to put this process in place.

Montessori Consulting Group

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