CRE ATING M IN DFU L COM M U N ITIE S
SATURDAY
JANUARY 23rd
2016
8:30am - 5:00pm
MONTGOMERY
COUNTY
COMMUNITY
COLLEGE
Science Center
TO REGISTER:
www.pddimensions.org/SocEmConf
WWW.PDDIMENSIONS.ORG/SOCEMCONF
Registration Closes JANUARY 20 th
6 PQAS HOURS | ACT 48 Credit | Registration Fee: $21
HOST
SCIENCE CENTER
REGISTRATION
8:30am
C R E AT I N G M I N D F U L CO M M U N IT I E S
The theme for the 4th Annual
Educating the Heart Conference
is Creating Mindful Communities.
In an effort to meet the social and
emotional needs of the whole child,
this year’s conference is structured
to provide practical resources, tools,
and strategies for teachers, directors/
administrators, and parents.
Each attendee can select a track (teacher, director/administrator, or parent)
and attend sessions tailored to your everyday social and emotional
experiences with children. Early childhood and school age teachers will
receive strategies and techniques to use within their classrooms that promote
effective brain based interventions, resiliency building, mindfulness, positive
interactions and relationship building. In order to expand this impact beyond
the classroom, the directors/administrators track will include community
building opportunities and program resources to initiate resilient connections
between the community and center environments. In recognizing the
importance of parents as partners, we will provide parents with resources
and strategies that build children’s resiliency, create emotionally healthy
home environments, and develop networks of support to grow as a family.
WELCOME
DANCE & KEYNOTE
9:00am
MORNING SESSION
10:30am
LUNCH | RESOURCE FAIR
& MINDFUL MINUTES
12:30pm
CALL TO ACTION
2:00pm
AFTERNOON SESSION
3:00pm
CONFERENCE ENDS
5:00pm
EVERYONE WHO REGISTERS:
•
Lunch
•
6 PQAS Hours
•
Act 48 Credits
•
Electronic Access to all
Conference Handouts/
Materials
•
Free Mindful Minutes
Activities during
Lunch/Resource Fair
1313 Morris Rd. • Blue Bell, PA 19422
SPONSOR
TO REGISTER:
ONLINE: www.pddimensions.org/SocEmConf
REGISTRATION FEE: $21
DEADLINE: January 20th
REGISTRATION INCENTIVES:
EARLY BIRD REGISTRATION: Anyone who registers
between December 1 & December 31st receives
5 FREE ADDITIONAL RAFFLE TICKETS.
QUESTIONS: Call 610.617.4550, opt. 4
Beneficial Insurance Services
SESSION INFORMATION
KEYNOTE SPEAKERS
FATHER JEFF PUTTHOFF, SJ
morning keynote
Father Jeff Putthoff has worked in Camden, NJ since 1997. He is the founder of Hopeworks ‘N
Camden, a youth technology portal using the technologies of web site design/development,
Geographic Information Systems (GIS) and Salesforce to work with youth ages 14-23 in
Camden, New Jersey. Under Father Jeff’s leadership, Hopeworks has impacted over 3,000
youth, providing more than 450 youth jobs, 2,500 college credits and helped more than
250 youth begin college. Father Jeff has been recognized on several occasions for his youth development. He is
currently studying at the University of Pennsylvania for a degree in Organizational Dynamics and a certified AKRI
Consultant. He has been a Jesuit priest since 1998 and joined the Jesuits in 1985.
ECE & SA Teachers:
Creating Mindful Classrooms
Helping Children Learn Self Control
PAT HESS
In these sessions, Early Childhood and School Age Teachers
will receive practical strategies to support resiliency building,
mindfulness, interactions & relationship building, and social &
emotional health within their classroom setting.
JAN MICHENER & HILLARY HESS
AM | PRESCHOOL/SA
This workshop will include centering through breathing and mindfulness techniques,
creation of agreements for creativity, team building activities and creative collaborative
problem solving. Time at the end will be used to share how the activities can be used in the
classroom to foster social emotional learning and peaceful classrooms.
WENDY WEINGARTEN
call to action
Dr. Veirdre Ridgley-Jackson, Director of Professional Development Dimensions, believes all
children deserve the best education available. This is why she has committed her professional
career to the education, training, and development of professionals who work with children. She
has a Master’s degree in Elementary Education and a Doctorate in Educational Leadership and
Innovation. She has almost 20 years of diversified experience as an entrepreneur, education
professional, and community activist within the areas of education, family development programming, community
collaboration, and organizational leadership. In recognition of expertise in the field, she was named the 2010
Professional Development Champion by the Southeast Regional Key and a member of the class of 2007 Philadelphia
Business Journal’s 40 under 40. Through her experiences with Trauma Awareness and Competency Development,
the Resiliency Approach, and Positive Behavior and Intervention Strategies, she has harnessed her passion for
building resilience and strength in youth, families, and educational professional.
AM | ALL AGES
PM | PRESCHOOL/SA
Participants will examine the need for active, physical play on a daily basis and gain an
understanding of how this play promotes physical and social and emotional development.
Additionally, participants will be challenged to confront their pre-conceived notions
about rough and tumble play and why it is a necessary part of early childhood learning.
Boys Will Be Boys!
PAM SCHAEFER
Mindfulness: Finding Moments of Joy
and Ease in the Midst of Our Busy Lives
DR. VEIRDRE RIDGLEY-JACKSON
Big Body Play
JOANNA LACORTE
Cultivating a Caring Creative Classroom
AM & PM | PRESCHOOL/SA
Develop tools and approaches to help children behave in appropriate ways. Learn ways to
remove the barriers to learning and help children make up for their deficit of self-control.
Recognize the importance of relationships and how caring adults can support socially
rejected or withdrawn children develop friendship skills.
PM | ALL AGES
Come explore how classrooms designed by women might not match the developmental needs
of boys; explore how male and female brains are wired differently and develop differently; and
whether challenging behaviors in boys may be typical development for them.
Mindfulness, the practice of fully experiencing each moment with an open, nonjudgmental
stance, can enhance feelings of satisfaction and well-being, whether parenting, teaching or
supervising colleagues. Join us to learn two practical mindfulness tools to help slow down
and find calm and appreciation in ordinary moments. Prepare for a hands-on experience!
Bouncing Back: Helping Young Children Build
Resilience in Socio-Emotional Contexts
“What Did You Do in School Today?”: Fostering SelfReflection through Documentation and Mindfulness
“I miss my family.” “She won’t let me play.” “I can’t do it!” Every child experiences challenges,
and negative emotions. Teachers can help young children learn to overcome frustrations,
manage feelings, and connect with peers. Learn strategies to build resilience in young children!
LAURA OGBURN & JORDAN FOLEY
AM | PRESCHOOL/SA
Self-reflection is a key aspect of our classroom practice and a part of every facet of learning
that happens among our students. We will share some of our practices that lead to reflective
thinking: the processes and environments that foster it, and how it plays in a typical day.
Grief and the Younger Child
CLAIRE DREXLER & LOIS HARRIS
AM | ALL AGES
This session will focus on a young child’s perspective on death and dying based on
developmental, personal, and familial factors. Participants will have the opportunity to
interact and explore strategies to support children faced with grief.
JARROD GREEN
PM | ECE
Peaceful Environments for Positive Nap Times
KRISTIN KUNKLE
PM | ECE
In this session teachers will explore practices to support peaceful and safe napping experiences
for young children. This workshop provides foundational knowledge on DHS regulations and
best nap & sleeping practices. We will also reflect on the needs of children as they prepare
to rest, taking into consideration the impact of trauma and stress. Participants will practice
mindfulness activities and come away with tools and strategies to help children relax.
[SESSIONS CONTINUE ON NEXT PAGE]
SESSION INFORMATION
Parents and Caregivers: Creating a Mindful Home
In these sessions, parents and caregivers will have the opportunity to look at how they practice
mindfulness and self-care in order to support healthy home environments. Participants will receive
strategies on how to foster self-resiliency, emotional intelligence, and mindfulness in their children
which can lead to positive behavior and enhanced relationships between caregiver and child.
The Road to Resilience:
Raising Resilient Children
MARCY WITHERSPOON, MSW, LSW
The Heart Full Home
HILLARY HESS & JAN MICHENER
AM
Children are not born resilient – we have to build that skill. This
workshop will explore mindfulness-based parenting strategies
that might be useful in the parental role of building resilience
and supporting the emotional intelligence of our children. These
techniques are brain-based and can be easily integrated into the
parent “toolbox.”
Calm in the Midst of Chaos
ERIN CONNOLLY
AM
Learn tips and tools to tap into mindful activities beginning with
Back to Basics in Self Care: Breathing Techniques and movement
to build/strengthen a continuous calm state of being. Also learn
to calm self with the rippling effect to calming those around you
during chaotic times.
Fatherhood Engagement &
Its Effects on Child Development
In these session, directors/administrators will receive
strategies and tools to create organizations that support
the social and emotional health of their families and staff.
Additionally, presenters represent a variety of community
resources that can help support centers and schools in their
mission to address the needs of the whole child.
This session will create the opportunity to look through the eyes of a father and
a child. We will examine the role fathers play in the development of our children.
We will understand the role and responsibility of fatherhood and how it affects our
children, our families, our community and our schools as a whole. This workshop
will give a clear understanding on how important it is to our children to maintain
fatherhood involvement and how to help fathers become more inclusive.
JOEL AUSTIN
HOPEWORKS YOUTH HEALING TEAM
Stress Therapy
PM
Participants will discuss the origins of stress and how it affects
each person differently. Additionally, a closer look at how our
environment can impact our levels of stress will be explored along
with strategies and practices to counteract these free radicals and
create a stress free atmosphere in our own homes.
AM
Asset mapping investigates strengths present in the community, and focuses on the
capacities of residents and institutions. Using resident surveys and community café
conversations along with web based data collection planning groups find resources
that can support their efforts. The workshop will include an overview of café process
and resources.
Creating Environments Where Families Thrive
RIJELLE KRAFT
PM
Our sessions effectively educate individuals on the necessity and importance of
trauma informed care. You will be able to listen deeper to clients and understand
what happened to someone rather than what is wrong with them. Need tools?
Hopeworks ‘N Camden uses tools to manage emotions. Come and learn how!
Strengthening Communities
through Asset Mapping
KAREN SHANOSKI
AM & PM
Want to Avoid Drama? Learn About Trauma!
PM
This presentation will include a brief discussion of parenting
styles, and parenting strategies that promote healthy attachment
and maintain healthy limits to reduce child anxiety. Self-care
techniques will be introduced and practiced to understand the
importance of modeling healthy behaviors for our children. Active
listening, relaxation strategies and the importance of mindfulness
will be highlighted to promote a compassionate environment for
self and others.
DEREK HOPKINS
Directors/Administrators:
Creating Mindful Centers
AM
The Strengthening Families™ Protective Factors Framework includes five factors
that, when robust in families, promote healthy outcomes for children. Participants
will explore these factors and the everyday actions workers take that create an
environment conducive to building strong families. Practical strategies and tools to
support families will be discussed.
Using Mindfulness to Empower
Work in Challenging Environments
LAURA HINDS
PM
With competing responsibilities and needs in the work place it can become
challenging to listen to the signs and symptoms our bodies give us. This
presentation will examine how we impede our own successful coping, health and
positive outcomes by ignoring the information that our bodies and minds provide. It
will explore tools and strategies to sustain energy, focus, and sanity during the work
day, while guarding against burnout, compassion fatigue and secondary trauma.