Instructor: Jessica Swalley

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Classes by this Instructor


Arranging the Early Learning Environment

The arrangement of the physical environment is a vital part of any program. Gather ideas for helping staff use the arrangement of space and materials to meet the developmental needs of young children.
September 22-28, 2025, Online

Arranging the Family Child Care Space

Learn ways to set up and organize your space, both indoors and out, to meet the needs of the children in your care.
September 8-14, 2025, Online

Authentic Assessment - Infants / Toddlers

Gather ideas for using assessments to enhance learning in your early childhood setting. Discuss how to use observations to create developmentally appropriate learning experiences for infants and toddlers.
December 8-14, 2025, Online

Autism & Communication Strategies

Learn specific visual strategies and communication systems designed to help caregivers support children with Autism.
July 14-20, 2025, Online
December 1-7, 2025, Online

Autism & Positive Behavioral Supports

Improve your ability to help care for and educate young children with Autism as you concentrate on learning specific behavior and guidance strategies.
July 7-13, 2025, Online
November 17-23, 2025, Online

Behavior Strategies for Children

Children with special needs often display behaviors that appear inappropriate and disruptive. Learn specific strategies to guide children toward a more appropriate response.
September 15-21, 2025, Online

Being Outdoors - Infants / Toddlers

Spending time outdoors is a valuable experience for even the youngest children. Gather ideas for making outside time one of learning, enjoyment, and exploration.
September 22-28, 2025, Online

Building Supervisory Relationships

Discuss the challenges commonly faced when supervising others. Gather ideas for managing friends, family, men, women, and a variety of generations in the workplace.
October 20-26, 2025, Online

Caring for Children in Mixed Age Groups

Providing child care for mixed age groups can be a great challenge. Planning and organization can be the key to having an effective and appropriate program for children of various ages. Includes DIY classroom ideas.
September 15-21, 2025, Online

Children & Autism Spectrum Disorder

What is Autism? Explore ways to provide developmentally appropriate care and education techniques for working with young children with Autism.
July 7-13, 2025, Online
November 10-16, 2025, Online

Children & Sensory Processing Disorders

Children with Sensory Processing Disorder, also known as Sensory Integration Dysfunction (SID), have trouble organizing information coming in through their senses. Explore the characteristics of children with sensory processing issues and examine strategies for assisting these children in the early childhood setting.
July 21-27, 2025, Online
December 8-14, 2025, Online

Children & Speech & Language Disorders

Become familiar with factors influencing speech and language development and discover ways to support children with special needs as they develop communication skills.
October 20-26, 2025, Online

Children - Oppositional Defiant Disorder

Young children are often seen as defiant when they are tired, hungry, or upset. However, there are a growing number of children who exhibit defiant behaviors at other times and more frequently. You will learn the symptoms, causes, and classroom strategies for helping young children with Oppositional Defiant Disorder.
July 21-27, 2025, Online
December 8-14, 2025, Online

Children Who Are Gifted & Talented

Young children who display gifts or talents in particular areas benefit from having responsive caregivers who can meet their needs in the child care setting. Discover ways to identify each child's gifts and talents and to individualize curriculum for students in the early childhood setting.
November 3-9, 2025, Online

Creativity with Infants / Toddlers

Discuss the importance of creativity in infant and toddler development. Explore ideas for early art activities and other ways to encourage creativity throughout your early learning environment.
September 8-14, 2025, Online

DAP - Beyond the Basics for Directors

Discuss the guidelines of a developmentally appropriate program and examine excellence in the administration of an early learning program.
July 7-13, 2025, Online
November 10-16, 2025, Online

Effective Communication for Directors

Do you communicate effectively with your staff? Discover practical ways to communicate and connect with the families of children in your childcare setting.
September 8-14, 2025, Online

Encouraging Professionalism

Help staff grow in their commitment to your program and the field of early childhood education by encouraging professional attitudes and behaviors. Provide your staff with the knowledge and assistance they need to provide the best possible experiences for children and families.
October 6-12, 2025, Online

Ethics in Early Childhood Education

Explore the NAEYC Code of Ethical Conduct while considering how this position statement impacts the actions of both you and your staff.
November 3-9, 2025, Online

Families of Children with Special Needs

Share information and connect with the families of children with special needs.
September 8-14, 2025, Online

Family Child Care Policies & Contracts

As a small business owner, you should have contracts and policies in place that help you communicate with families. Explore the components of effective contracts and policies, as well as the pitfalls to avoid.
October 20-26, 2025, Online

Family Communication - Infants / Toddlers

Discover ways to foster good communication with the families of infants and toddlers. Discuss ways to incorporate information shared by families into the early learning setting.
November 3-9, 2025, Online

Finding & Keeping Families

Gather ideas for simple and inexpensive marketing techniques that will help attract families to your program. Ideas for communicating with existing families and getting them involved will also be shared.
October 6-12, 2025, Online

Inclusion of Children with Special Needs

Become familiar with ways to include children with special needs in the child care setting. Identify the definition of special needs, learn about guidelines for working with children with disabilities, and gather ideas for making adaptations to curriculum, activities, materials, and equipment.
September 22-28, 2025, Online

Infant / Toddler Classroom

Explore strategies for encouraging meaningful interactions and gather tips for creating a successful infant toddler environment.
October 20-26, 2025, Online

Leadership Strategies for Behaviors

Designed for center administrators to discover how to help staff use an evidence-based framework to address children's social and emotional development and challenging behavior.
July 14-20, 2025, Online
December 1-7, 2025, Online

Lesson Plans & Resources - Infants / Toddlers

Lesson plans are an important component of any high-quality early learning environment. Review the components of successful lesson plans and discover available resources and creative ideas geared towards young children.
November 10-16, 2025, Online

Open & Maintain Family Child Care

Discover how to open your family child care, including balancing time and money, regulatory entities, and resources.
September 22-28, 2025, Online

Planning & Routines - Infants / Toddlers

How do you plan for a successful day with infants and toddlers? Discover ways to plan developmentally appropriate days and create effective schedules and routines for your learning environment.
September 15-21, 2025, Online

Positive Guidance for Infants / Toddlers

Explore what it means to create a foundation for positive social interactions during infancy. Discuss factors that influence behavior and review tips for handling difficult toddler behaviors.
December 1-7, 2025, Online

Responsive Caregiving - Infants / Toddlers

Examine the value of relationships in the infant and toddler early learning setting while discussing the importance of secure attachments.
October 6-12, 2025, Online

Survival Skills for Center Directors

Become more comfortable in the job of Child Care Center Director by discovering key elements of a center director's job. Identify strategies for making the job more enjoyable while becoming a more effective leader.
July 21-27, 2025, Online
December 8-14, 2025, Online

Temperament & Observation - Infants / Toddlers

Investigate various temperament traits and how to observe them in children. Discover ways to use this knowledge to build positive relationships with infants and toddlers and to plan effectively.
November 17-23, 2025, Online

Time & Money Management for Directors

Learn how to effectively manage your resources, as well as those of your childcare center. Explore the topics of budgeting, fundraising, collecting fees, delegating responsibilities, dealing with paper piles, and much more.
July 7-13, 2025, Online
November 17-23, 2025, Online

Train & Motivate Your Staff

How do you make meetings and trainings for your staff more fun and meaningful? Discover inexpensive ways to encourage and motivate your employees.
September 15-21, 2025, Online

Young Children & Anxiety Disorders

You will be introduced to the concept of anxiety disorders and developmentally typical anxiety. Discuss the three major anxiety types seen in young children, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), Separation Anxiety Disorder (SAD), and Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD). Signs and symptoms for each sub-type and strategies for helping children will be shared.
July 14-20, 2025, Online
December 1-7, 2025, Online

Young Children Who Are Highly Active

Young children are naturally energetic, but why are some children highly active? Discover reasons for high activity levels, and what you can do to help guide and support children who consistently exhibit impulsive, distracted behaviors.
October 6-12, 2025, Online