Literacy begins with embracing the whole child, says Stacy Benge, an expert on early literacy and a proponent of child-led play.  Her mission to help educators approach literacy in a way that builds confident, curious, lifelong learners.

In this podcast, Stacy defines child-led play (and dispels myths about it), including the difference between child-led and adult-led learning.  

Stacy also explains how child-led play develops skills essential to literacy, and go through each of them: language, visual perception, phonological awareness and physical development. 

She recommends 90 minutes of uninterrupted time in which children are completely in control.

"When I was in the classroom, I found that that's when most of my behavior issues released," she says. 

Stacy also describes how listeners can create spaces that promote child- led play and connect all types of play to literacy development!

"Play is that critical piece for that language to develop. I always say a quiet classroom does not produce language," says Stacy.

To learn more about Stacy and her work, visit www.stacybenge.com.  You also can connect with her on Instagram, LinkedIn and Facebook.  

Her book, "The Whole Child Alphabet: How Young Children Actually Develop Literacy" is available for purchase on the Exchange Press website.

Jaime Rechkemmer is the founder of Aim4Impact Consulting and her work in early childhood education includes helping child care centers with QRIS, compliance, professional development, curriculum, assessments, technology and more. She has worked at some of the largest child care organizations in the country, and she chairs the AI and Machine Learning Advisory Board at Watch Me Grow.

In this episode, Jamie shares her tips for how ECE leaders can build loyalty among families. And that includes staffing. 

 "You can't have a conversation about family retention and family loyalty without having a conversation about staff retention and staff loyalty," Jamie says.

Teachers play such a pivotal role in establishing family culture and family loyalty and family retention. And when it comes to creating family loyalty, it's all about culture, experience and connection.

Jamie also walks us through how to not fall victim to the biggest factors why families choose to leave a child care center: concerns about quality of care, communication gaps between staff and families and cost-related issues.

Learn more about Jamie and the work she's doing at www.aim4impact.org!

Heather White is a multi-site owner who is part of The PREP Schools franchise, and she’s a licensed director and speaker. Finding ways to help fellow child care leaders find joy in their jobs and lives is a huge passion of hers.

In this podcast, Heather shares her six professional pillars of child care success and delves into how each matters in being successful in early childhood education and in being happy leading a program.

Those pillars are: mindset, team, systems, marketing, financial and relational focus. And each has a very different, and very important, role in success!

Learn more about Heather and her work at ThePrepSchools.com or shoot her an email at [email protected]!

In this episode, Kelly Matthews and Paula Drew of the Wisconsin Early Childhood Association describe how to create a family handbook for your child care center. This handbook is key to your bottom line, your reputation and ultimately, your business. 

They give the following writing tips:

• Use a consistent font and formatting throughout. 
• Review carefully for correct spelling and grammar. 
• Write in plain language that is easy to understand. Do you serve families who speak languages other than English? If so, invest in getting your policies translated and remember this step every time you update them.  
• Make your documents easy to navigate with page numbers and a table of contents. 
• Ensure they include all state-required policies and reflect every aspect of your programming. 
• Include a "last updated" date so readers know the information is current. 

They also walk through how to organize a handbook and how to avoid the biggest mistakes they see when directors and owners create handbooks.

Want to learn more about the work Kelly and Paula are doing? Feel free to check out www.wisconsinearlychildhood.org or email them at [email protected] and [email protected]. 

And their book, which they wrote with Amy Friedlander, is titled "Build it Strong: How to Make your Child Care Business Thrive from Start up to Retirement." It's available in English and Spanish and is for child care center leaders and those doing home care. 

Mr. Ty, the Childcare Whisperer, has the answers to your child care questions! Among the questions he answers in this podcast:

How can you encourage middle management to not be friends or overly friendly, causing a divide between teachers?

How can I encourage staff to take initiative and feel empowered in their roles while maintaining consistency in classroom practices?

As a new owner taking over a center that has a tarnished reputation and frustrated staff, how can I get community and staff buy-in?

What kind of incentives can I give staff that might be low cost, like a jeans day or an extra planning block? (Mr. Ty says don't do either and send staff home early when they need it!)

Listen in as Mr. Ty answers more questions that you need to know to run a successful child care business!

Dr. Nermeen Dashoush is the chief learning officer of MarcoPolo Learning, the award-winning global developer of educational products and instructional resources, and she's also a clinical associate professor of early childhood education at Boston University.

In this episode, she shares her insights about how early childhood education programs can use videos in their classroom to supplement lesson plans. She explains the appropriate length for videos in classrooms, as well as the importance of showing videos that are developmentally appropriate. 

She also gives examples of how videos give context to learning to help children understand topics, and how videos aid in lesson retention through visual storytelling.

An integration between Procare Solutions and MarcoPolo Learning offers educators a way to improve teaching practices and support quality teacher-child interactions in the classroom. 

Check out our blog on how to integrate math into daily routines and how MarcoPolo Learning builds foundational math skills.

Learn more about how the MarcoPolo Learning integration with Procare works and get started today!

Michele Schmitt is the senior director of government relations and business development for Procare Solutions. In this role, she meets with legislators and other stakeholders in early childhood education to advocate for the industry and stay on top of what's happening in government, both at the federal and local levels, in policy and proposals.

In this episode, Michele breaks down a recent visit to Capitol Hill and gives an update of what child care center leaders and families should be paying attention to in the coming months.

She also explains initiatives happening in different states to come up with solutions for needed funding and delves into how shared services can help child care providers run their businesses.

For more information on what grants and resources are available in your state, check out the Procare Solutions state resources page  to see what options you have for funding help!

In this important episode, Jon Pollock, chief product officer at Procare Solutions, and Kathlyn McHenry, director of state policy and government relations at the Early Care & Education Consortium, share their expert insights on the latest business trends and legislative updates. 

Many of their insights draw on the findings of the 2025 Procare Child Care Business Trends Report. Jon and Kathlyn discuss important trends in ECE in areas including enrollment, staffing, software and what's happening with government policy, both federally and at local levels!

For example, Kathlyn explains the trend of states picking up ideas for helping care centers from each other, creating a domino effect. And the idea of property tax exemptions is another idea being looked at.

Want to know more about the report's findings? Get your free copy here!

"You cannot be a director if you don't have a vision," says Mr. Ty, the Childcare Whisperer who is the president of The Childcare Agency, a popular motivational/keynote speaker and an early childhood education teams coach.

In this podcast, Mr. Ty shares his tips from his years of experience working in ECE, including what he sees as problems that must be fixed. On that list: Putting a Band-Aid over a problem instead of looking at a long-term effect,
we put a bandaid over things instead of looking at the long term and thinking a goal can be achieved without a strategic plan.

"You have to plan to be excellent," Mr. Ty says. "So therefore, when it comes down to your goal, you have to sit down and write it out."

Check out his podcast for more tips on better communication with your staff, including paying attention to your body language when you speak with them.

To learn more about Mr. Ty and the work he does, email his company at [email protected] or visit his website: www.theempowerment.agency.

He is also active on social media, including on TikTok, Facebook and Instagram!

The Child Development Associate CDA credential, better known as the CDA, is the most widely recognized credential in early childhood education. It is an important  part of career advancement in the field, but many talented teachers do not have the certification.

In this podcast, Sammantha Boyle, a curriculum manager at Procare Solutions, breaks down step-by-step what the CDA is and how to earn it.

 She also describes how child care center directors and owners can support their staff as they work toward this goal and how the CDA Pathway from Bertelsen Education, a Procare Solutions company, can help!

Learn more about the CDA Pathway here!