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Here's the latest news from The Long Island Pre-K Initiative, your source for
expert training and useful resources:
www.nassauboces.org/pre-k
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Have you considered mailing yourself to students' homes? All you have to do is "get flat"
We all know that your students are really missing you these days. But have you considering mailing--or even hand delivering--yourself to those boys and girls? A "flat" version of yourself, that is.
Paper doll-style teachers are a pandemic twist on
Flat Stanley, a cutout boy who has been around since the mid-90s. The project named after him was designed as a literacy project. Kids were to send Flat Stanley to someone, in hopes of getting a letter or souvenir back.
These days teachers on Long Island and around the U.S. are sending out bitmoji versions of themselves as a way to sustain relationships with their students during remote learning. The practice may have started with a teachers' Facebook group last month. Now all you have to do is search your preferred social media using the hashtag #flatteacherproject and you'll find plenty of examples. Some teachers ask students to send them photos, like a Long Island boy who recently took his flat teacher to Montauk (photo below). Others have specific instructions for activities involving their flat self. But mainly, they're a fun way to connect.
We Are Teachers collected flat teacher ideas from around the U
.S.,
click here
to see photos.
Need help figuring out how to get started? The Bored Teachers
website offers a basic how-to, including how to make a flat pet to accompany you.
Flat teachers are even getting TV coverage.
Click here for an interview with a North Dakota first grade teacher about her project. (One twist; she uses her own head shot on a bitmoji body.)
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YOUR (VIRTUAL) CLASSROOM
These two resources offer new ideas for every day
For parents and educators running out of ideas, here are two places to look for daily inspiration:
The Early Literacy Calendar from New York Reads offers fresh songs, stories and activities every day. For example, today there's a song to sing about jungle animals, a
narrated storybook,
Could Be Worse
, and a link to a National Geographic website about tigers.
Scholastic's
At Home Learning site
offers 20 days of themed activities for Pre-K & K. Day 3, for example, is focused on life cycles and animal babies and includes a narrated read-aloud in English or Spanish,
Is Your Mama a Llama?
. Day 17 features learning about cleanliness. The highlighted story is
Harry the Dirty Dog
and related science activities include making bubbles. The site also includes 20 "Play Starters," designed to get kids moving in purposeful ways, such as counting how many times a balloon can be batted back and forth.
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CORONAVIRUS CONCERNS
Here's what worries pediatricians about children and this pandemic
From missed immunizations to child abuse to developmental impacts, children's doctors have a lot on their minds these days, according to pediatrician Perri Klass,
writing for the New York Times. They're concerned that children aren't getting vaccines that protect them against measles, whooping cough and other diseases. But they're also wondering what problems are being missed because parents are afraid to visit the office or the ER. "Because there's a pandemic doesn't mean there are no other diagnoses," one doctor told Klass.
Developmental issues are also on their minds--especially issues related to what we're going through. One pediatrician worries that toddlers will learn that we should be afraid of other people, for example. And then there are the most vulnerable youngsters, in low-income households with families under intense pressures. "These are the children who will need systematic help to come back to where they need to be educationally," says Klass.
Read more.
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What have you learned about remote learning? The Long Island Pre-K
Initiative will be continuing to offer online professional development in June, July and August. We're interested in best practices, lessons learned and local resources to support early educators. Please let us know about your experiences in early ed, Pre-K or K, and what you may have to share or recommend: email
prek@nasboces.org
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PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT DURING A PANDEMIC
Wondering about re-opening? Using technology to connect with families? Leading in a crisis? We've got you covered
Navigating COVID-19: Free conversations with experts
We rounded up some of the most knowledgeable people in our region to help guide
you in these challenging times. Most of the May sessions are already full, but there is still space in afternoon and evening sessions during June. Topics are:
- Maintaining Family Connectedness During COVID-19
- Engaging Families Through Technology: Planning for the "Next Normal"
NEW! "Something is Different" 2.0: Getting Back to Business
Whether or not you participated in an earlier "Something is Different" webinar, you are invited to register for a new two-hour discussion with the experts from Long Island's QS2 Training and Consulting. The sessions will examine self-care; trauma response for staff; helping families return to "normal;" what social distancing might look like when programs re-open...and more. Choose one of these three dates:
Date: Friday, May 22, 2020
Time: 10:00 a.m. to 12 noon
Date: Thursday, May 28, 2020
Time: 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m.
Date: Friday, May 29, 2020
Time: 10:00 a.m. to 12 noon
NEW! Virtual Dine & Discuss: Leadership During a Time of Crisis
Date: Thursday, May 28, 2020
Time: 9:30 a.m. to 11:00 a.m.
This moderated panel discussion offers leaders and emerging leaders the opportunity to explore the challenges we are facing now--and to consider what may be coming down the road. The four panelists will share their perspectives:
- Michael Zisser, former CEO of a nonprofit social service agency
- Cheryl Hurst, developmental specialist and play therapist
- David Hymowitz, FEMA certified master trainer, crisis counseling
- Danielle Paige, child care executive director.
Moderator will be Sherry Cleary, executive director of the New York Early Childhood Professional Development Institute, which is sponsoring the event, along with the Long Island Leadership Initiative and the Buffalo Leadership Initiative.
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FOR PARENTS
This new "warmline" supports parents of young children
You've heard of "hotlines" that offer 24/7 assistance in a crisis. Now Long Island has a "warmline" that answers non-emergency questions about babies' and young childrens' development, especially in this time of heightened stress. It's a service of the Institute for Parenting at Adelphi University. Parents can call 516-515-1948 to get information in English or Spanish.
Visit the website to learn more.
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About Us
The Long Island Pre-K Initiative is a collaborating partner in the state-funded Regional Technical Assistance Center, which supports Pre-K and early childhood education on Long Island. The other collaborating partners are the three Long Island BOCES, the Child Care Council of Nassau, Inc., the Child Care Council of Suffolk, Inc. and the Family Leadership Network.
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NASSAU BOCES
71 Clinton Road, Garden City, NY 11530-9195
Phone: (516) 396-2220 Fax: (516)-396-2355
www.nassauboces.org
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