How often do we give children long, uninterrupted stretches of play, either at home or at school? Unless you are being very intentional about the playtime in your classroom, they probably aren't getting as much as you think.

The term "kindergarten ready" has infiltrated preschool classrooms and perhaps caused us to focus more on the skills that children need to acquire later rather than the skills that they need now. A shift in focus to "preschool mastery" can make a world of difference in how you approach your teaching!

Show Notes:

https://playbeforepencils.com/podcast/

Themes have been a mainstay of preschool programs for decades, but what if they are actually limiting what your students are capable of learning? In this episode we will explore that question and consider how changing your approach to themes has the potential to unlock greater creativity and exploration for the children in your classroom.

Show Notes:

https://playbeforepencils.com/podcast/

The Share Your Journey series will take us into the worlds of early childhood educators at various stages of their journeys. Be inspired as we hear from Anna Crabb, who knew from the age of 19 that early childhood education and advocacy was her calling in life. Anna has created a beautiful child-led program that you'll want to learn more about!

Show Notes:

www.playbeforepencils.com/podcast

Lesson planning in a child-led program looks a lot different than it does in a teacher-led program. It can be an intimidating and confusing change to make. Join me as I walk you through 4 key elements that have helped make my lesson planning a simple and reflective process. 

Show Notes:

https://playbeforepencils.com/podcast/

This week's episode is a follow-up to episode 4, Get Outside, where we learned the benefits of outdoor play. In Episode 6, Kristy DeGraaf is going to teach us the basics of designing our outdoor spaces in order to help us maximize those benefits.

Show Notes:

https://playbeforepencils.com/podcast/

In today's episode I talk with Simon Airey about neurodivergence and how it might affect play in an early childhood classroom.

Show Notes:

https://playbeforepencils.com/podcast

Join me as I chat with Christi Warr of Dirt Learning about the importance of getting children outside.

Show Notes:

https://playbeforepencils.com/podcast/

When parents have high expectations for academic learning in preschool, some of the blame falls on us as educators. If they believe that academic skills taught in a traditional "school way" are what is most important, it's because we have failed to communicate otherwise. Our job is not simply to teach children, it is to educate parents on what effective, developmentally appropriate learning looks like during the preschool years.

Show Notes:

https://playbeforepencils.com/podcast/

Play and academics are perfect companions! In this episode we’ll discuss some of the friction between play advocates and play skeptics and how they can come together to ensure that children are receiving academic instruction in developmentally appropriate ways.  I explain the concept of “back door learning” and why it is such an effective way for children to learn new skills without resorting to the drills that have become so common in preschool programs.

Show Notes

https://playbeforepencils.com/episode-2-what-about-academics/