Ontario

Framing our Future: Kindergarten Summit

Building from the four foundations of Decent Work from the Ontario Early Childhood Sector Decent Work Charter, we seek to explore together opportunities to address the challenges that exist in the Kindergarten Program. Participants will engage in multiple workshops that each involve facilitated dialogue to inform a shared vision of how we frame a future of Decent Work in the Kindergarten Program - what do we need to get there and how can we work together?

“As leaders in our communities we will champion practices that promote and sustain decent work, and will join with our community partners, sector networks, associations, policymakers and funders to generate collective actions that expand decent working conditions.”

Ontario Early Childhood Sector Decent Work Charter

Workshops

• All Are Welcome Here. Danielle Matthew, RECE
• Conflict Resolution. May Joliffe, RECE, Principal, Rockwood Consulting
• Exploring the connection between mentoring and quality of practice. Anne Hepditch, RECE, Manager, Quality & Capacity Building Children’s Services Division; City of Toronto & Dr. elaine Winick, RECE, Professor, School of Early Childhood, George Brown College.
• Inclusivity: What it means to Early Childhood Educators Working in Kindergarten Programs. Ashley Shirley, RECE & Jane Henriques, RECE
• Key Components of Effective Teacher-ECE Collaboration. Dr. Sandy Youmans, Adjunct Professor, Queens University
• The Kindergarten Partnership: From Vision to Action. Natalie Crisante, OCT, Early Years K-3 Student Achievement Consultant, HWCDSB & Maria Agro, RECE, Field Placement Specialist and Part Time Faculty, Mohawk College
• The Kindergarten Program: A Shared Partnership. Marie Poss ECE Coordinator, Fanshawe College & Lorraine Purgret, ECE Coordinator, Fanshawe College
• Use your Words; Advocate, Respond and Represent. Liv Iatridis, RECE & Kara Long, RECE
• Positive Professionalism. Diego Olmedo, RECE, ETFO Local President, TCDSB; Professor, Seneca College
• Public sector expansion of early childhood education: The role of public jobs to promote decent work. Emis Akbari, Atkinson Centre for Society and Child Development, Professor and Coordinator, School of Early Childhood, George Brown College.
• Focus Group: Assessment and Collaboration in Today's Kindergarten Classrooms. Dr. Christine Romain-Tappin, PhD Candidate, Queen’s University and Full-Time Faculty, Loyalist College. View the recruitment poster here.

Registration: 8:00 am

Opening speaker and introduction: 8:30 am

Continental Breakfast and Lunch included

The Kindergarten Summit is an initiative of the Professional Pay and Decent Work project. We are grateful to the Atkinson Foundation for their continued support.

Many thanks to the AECEO's project partners, the Ontario Coalition for Better Child Care and The Atkinson Centre for Society and Child Development and our event partner, George Brown College's School of Early Childhood.

Child minding can be made available on a limited basis. Please contact info@aeceo.ca to enquire.

Flyer for posting may be downloaded HERE.

Cost

$45.00 - General registration

$35.00 - AECEO/ OCBCC member registation

The Oral Tradition of Ojibwe storytelling maintains a continuous relationship with 40 000 years of Land-based Knowledge of living in harmony and balance with Mother Earth and each other. Since the mid 20th century, storytelling through pedagogical documentation has emerged from Reggio Emilia, Italy as a way to build relationships in early learning. The intention for the day will be to explore the relationships between these different approaches to storytelling as they relate to the Land as our first teacher.

In keeping with Ojibwe protocol, our day will begin with Opening Ceremony and Traditional Storytelling by Gokoomis (Grandmother) Jacque(line) Lavalley, Marten Clan, Shawanaga First Nation. Following that Traditional Opening, we will take a walking tour exploring and documenting the story of the Land currently in the care of the Mississaugas of the Credit and Kortright Centre for Conservation.

After lunch, a panel of pedagogical leaders including Suzanne Axelsson from Sweden, Dr. Mary Elizabeth Picher from Storypark, Nicole Comrie-Bain from St. Veronica Children's Centre, Brenda Simon from Natural Curiosity and Hopi Martin who is studying the relationship between Ojibwe methodology and Ontario Early Years Pedagogy (How Does Learning Happen?) will discuss Land-based pedagogical documentation using the online platform of Storypark.

Our day will end with a Closing Ceremony led by Gokoomis Jacque Lavalley.

Also featured -- Natural Curiosity (whose pedagogy will be featured throughout the day) will have a booth set up throughout the day. Parentbooks will be selling books from Reggio Children, children's books and other relevant publications. Rosalba Bortolotti, consultant and pedagogist will be sharing documentation panels.

All proceeds from the day will be going to the Land as First Teacher Fund designed to make conservation lands accessible to urban Indigenous children and their families by helping with transportation costs, honorariums for Elders and Knowledge Keepers, and other material costs that support Land-based Indigenous Education.

Learn more about the event here.

For online ticket click here.

About this Event

Whether this is your first baby, or you have multiples finding childcare can be a challenge.

Join us for a information session on the options for childcare, shared experiences from peers and resources.

Things that will be discussed include:

- Types of childcare 

- Navigating Toronto Subsidy

-Drop-in childcare locations

-community connection/babysitting trades.

CHILD MINDING IS AVAILABLE ON SITE - If you are bringing your littles please select a child ticket so we can follow up about ages. The kids will be guided in a creative/art activity.

TTC Tokens availble to participants that need support with travel.

If you have any questions please e-mail: gabrielle(at)birthmarksupport.com

For more information and to register please click here.

About this Event

This workshop is being hosted by the ETFO Halton DECE Status of Women Committee AND the Professional Learning Committee.

"This workshop is intended to provide members with the opportunity to critically reflect on how our identities impact our practice, to consider how student identities and their lived experiences inform CRRP and to develop an understanding of the structure and content of the new ETFO booklet, Culturally Relevant and Responsive Pedagogy".

Location: 475 North Service Road East, Oakville. (ODLC Hall / Galaxy 707)

Time: Arrival between 4-5pm. Dinner will be at 4:30pm and the workshop will begin promptly at 5pm.

**Please note this event is open for ETFO Halton DECE local members ONLY.**

For more information and to register please click here.