Praxis Early Childhood Education

This we stand in solidarity with workers around the world. Specifically, within the Early Childhood Education sector, where workers are under-appreciated, under-paid, and have few protections in place. Here's to a united front of ECE workers ✊

Another great read by The Sprawl about how we can encourage parents and children to change how they commute to school and reap the well documented benefits of walking and biking.

We need to rethink how we plan our cities, and in a car-centric city like Calgary and a province that has not prioritized localized school attendance, it's not going to be easy, but it IS possible, and important. Our students deserve it, and we will all reap the benefits.

Walking to school should be easy. Why is it so hard? | The Sprawl Change is slow in a city built for cars.

For those wanting to get involved, there is a rally across Alberta on April 2nd to protest the curriculum draft in its current form.

We will be at The McDougall Centre in Calgary, but if you are in Edmonton, Red Deer, Grand Prarie, anywhere with a public school... Please show up and have your voice heard and speak up for public education in Alberta before it's too late. Hope to see you there!

https://www.eventbrite.ca/e/ditch-the-draft-protest-tickets-291365440877?fbclid=IwAR0qxsZv_2L06-js4xLrMlHo-0tTlAWkfOMRX6heft0BLq9v1RXZbnZO_uU

Ditch the Draft Protest It's time to stand together as Albertans to protest the 2021 draft curriculum by showing our government it's time to DITCH THE DRAFT!

For those who are not versed in reading curriculums or feel overwhelmed at grasping what the proposed curriculum entails: this is a good start for parents, grandparents, aunts, uncles, etc... that breaks down some of the big problems that subject matter experts and teachers have outlined.

One of the most frustrating parts about this curriculum is that they left out experts when writing it, and have ignored the feedback of those experts and teachers after they released it.

Please get involved in whatever way possible to let your MLA's and School Board Trustees that you do not support the curriculum and that we need a massive overhaul and more consultation before implementing it.

Saturday morning listening. Absolutely loving this episode from The Sprawl. Diving into the difficult work of creating anti-racist classrooms with the incredible organization Culture Commons.

We as educators and parents need lean into, not shy away from, difficult and vulnerable conversations with kids about race. Children as young as 2 observe physical differences, and it’s on us as parents and educators to dive into those questions and differences and the only way we can do this is to do the anti-racist work ourselves.

Educators, if you want to work towards creating a truly inclusive and equitable classroom, not just pay lip service to the idea or keep doing the same empty and tokinistic multicultural practices that are prevalent in our field… if you feel overwhelmed by these conversations with the little ones in your life, or find yourself dismissing their questions because they are inappropriate or uncomfortable… Please check out https://culturecommons.weebly.com for resources.

Let’s work together towards disrupting systemic racism in education, and make safe spaces for children to ask uncomfortable questions and enter into the difficult conversations.

If you were unable to attend the informational seminar on the curriculum hosted by University of Alberta, they have released the video of the discussion. Don't miss this opportunity to learn more about the curriculum. Go to the bottom of the page and click 'watch video'. The opportunity for people to let the government know what they think about this curriculum is running out. Please get involved!

Crash Course on the Draft K-6 Curriculum: Part 1 Crash Course on the Draft Curriculum: Part 1Mathematics, Social Studies, and MusicExperts from the University of Alberta’s Department of Elementary Education...

It's not too late to register for this "crash course" on the new curriculum draft being hosted by University of Alberta. Tonight's session is on Mathematics, Social Studies, and Music.

If you will be impacted by this new curriculum in any way (read: any Albertan) and are wondering what is in it, please register and learn more. We need as many people as possible to understand what is going on with such an impactful decision.

Register here:
https://alberta-curriculum-analysis.ca/crash-course-on-the-draft-curriculum/?fbclid=IwAR0F3cnKZVi56_PvUfI4WqeLV5kZMTb64wq-vCX96ft7FB2Bdm87v6g2JfU

“Crash Course” on the Draft Curriculum – Alberta Curriculum Analysis “Crash Course” on the Draft Curriculumby AdminFebruary 18, 2022February 19, 2022Fine Arts, General, Kindergarten - Grade 6, Language Arts, Mathematics, Physical Education & Wellness, Science, Social Studies The Department of Elementary Education in the Faculty of Education at the University of A...

“We are built to play”

Just finished listening to this excellent podcast by Andrew Huberman about play. We bang the drum about play regularly, but a great take away from this podcast is that the benefits of play extends to adults as well; specifically in the realm of neuroplasticity. This podcast goes deep into the science behind play and it’s benefits, and how we as parents, educators, and adults in general can reap the multi-faceted benefits of play.

Join us as we take on the challenge to engage in low-stakes play for at least 1 hour a week!

As it stands now, there are only three more opportunities to have your input on the government's proposed curriculum that is supposed to be implemented in September.

We cannot stress this enough, but the consequences of this are going to be far reaching and last for decades. Please get involved and attend a session, let your MLA's know what you think, and let other Albertan's know what is going on.

Please go to:
https://www.alberta.ca/curriculum-have-your-say.aspx

and fill out the survey, register for a session, and get involved. Before we know it we will wake up and this will have been pushed through. Don't miss your chance to get involved in any way you have the capacity for.

Parents, educators, and concerned Albertans... If you are interested in learning about the draft curriculum that the current government is moving forward with, these are two great opportunities to hear from curriculum experts at University of Alberta as they dissect the draft. If you have questions about what is in the new curriculum, this is an excellent opportunity to get educated on it, and make an informed decision on whether you support it or not.

We cannot stress enough that a complete overhaul of our public education curriculum will have cascading impacts for decades to come, so please get informed and involved!

“Do albertans still want a public education system?… Do we still have this as a societal value? Because if we do, we are undermining it and breaking it, and people need to get loud”
- Andrea Willman

An interesting conversation between curriculum experts, administrators, teachers present and past on the proposed curriculum that dives into specific issues with the draft curriculum, with the consultation process, where we stand as a province on public education, and what we can do to fix it.

The Breakdown - Episode 4.06 - Curriculum Panel with Albertans Reject Curriculum Draft

An excellent, nuanced read from nprEd

Another reason to push for a non-academic approach to Early Childhood Education. Students who took part in a decade-long research study were found to be more "school-ready" when entering Kindergarten, but struggled as they progressed throughout the subsequent grades.

Play-based learning, especially in the early years is proven to give children the tools they need to learn, to engage with learning in creative ways and have critical thinking skills. This is way more important than memorizing concepts; and we need to embrace this in our approaches to preschool, kindergarten, and beyond.

https://www.npr.org/2022/02/10/1079406041/researcher-says-rethink-prek-preschool-prekindergarten?fbclid=IwAR30JFnjSd4S_aD5B89onqusMMeEXpKiP2ApDZg9zDgs4OBQosWuIdONYKo

A top researcher says it's time to rethink our entire approach to preschool A long-term study of a statewide preschool program tracked students through the sixth grade and found those who attended prekindergarten falling behind.