Early Childhood Ireland's Podcast

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In this episode we have a conversation with two passionate educators about children thriving outside in nature. Johanna Davis and Mary-Ellen O'Sullivan, from Seedling Nature Schools in Limerick share their experiences of children developing self-regulation and a value for the environment in their outdoor setting. 

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Muireann Ranta, from the South East Technological University joins us for this episode of Early Childhood Ireland's podcast. We discuss how we can encourage children to develop a sense of wonderment about the natural world from their very earliest days and how this sense of wonder supports education for sustainability. The resource developed by OMEP Ireland, called Sustainability for the Start, that Muireann refers to, can be found here 

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Early Childhood Ireland is delighted to have launched our newest member resource, called Eco-Emotions, funded by National Pyjama Day. In this episode of  Early Childhood Ireland's podcast we chat to Learning Strategy Manager, Milica Atanackovic about why we developed the Eco-Emotions suite of resources and webinar series. She also discusses initial finding from on member survey on self- regulations and awareness of sustainability issues in Early Years and School Age Care settings. 

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In this episode we discuss the findings and implications of the recent research carried out by Stranmillis University College on behalf of Early Childhood Ireland. We chat with Dr Suzanne McCartney, from Stranmillis and with Liz Kerrins from Early Childhood Ireland about the study, entitled  The determinants of experiences and outcomes for children and young people in Childminding: A Rapid Review of the Research Literature.
You can read the Executive Summary here
And you can read the full report here 

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In this, the first episode of our new season, we tease out the 4 Asks for Children to Elevate Early Years and School Age Care to the Status of Primary Education which are at the centre of our Budget 2025 Submission. We are delighted to be joined by Frances Byrne, Director of Policy at Early Childhood Ireland. We discuss the importance of a sustained and sustainable workforce, effective planning and how good family leave builds strong and connected families and communities.  You can read the full submission here. 

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In the final episode of the series shining a light on children's rights, we chat with Prof. Emer Ring, Dean of Education at Mary Immaculate College. We discuss the elements we need to think about as we  seek to develop a shared understanding of what inclusion means for us as early childhood educators and how that lens has evolved and changed over time.  Emer also talks about the Reggio Emilia approach to special rights. She refers to the final evaluation of phase one of the Leadership for INClusion in the Early Years (LINC programme) 2016-2020 and you can read that report here . 

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Continuing our series on Children's Rights, in this week's episode we talk to Dr Sheila Long, from South East Technological University about Global Citizen Education. We discuss what Global Citizen Education is and how we can support this in settings. 

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Tuesday,  11 June 2024 has been designated as International Day of Play, recognising and celebrating that play is a fundamental right for children.  In this bonus episode of Early Childhood Ireland's podcast, we asked Prof. Nóirín Hayes, from Trinity College Dublin for her views on what play is and why it is fundamental for children. 

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In this new series of Early Childhood Ireland’s podcast, which focusses on Children’s Rights, we are delighted to be joined by Prof. Nóirín Hayes, Visiting Professor at the School of Education, Trinity College Dublin. In the episode we discuss what it means to have a children’s rights lens along with why and how children should be active participants in their own education.

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In the fourth and final episode of the OWLET series of Early Childhood Ireland’s podcast we ask our Early Childhood Specialist, DR Christina Egan Marnell some of the questions posed to us about using the OWLET resources. Have you wondered how to use the lullabies if you’re not familiar with the languages of the songs? Tune in to find out!