Workshops • Consults • Talks • Presentations
Workshops, talks, and presentations are important experiences that remind, inspire, and deepen educational practice*. Consultations are also wonderful ways to foster change within a defined period of time. Over the years, I have developed and given workshops, talks, and presentations in a variety of formats to audiences across the country. Each one is crafted with intention and attention to detail.
* If you wish to adapt any of these into a professional development experience for your own school, center, or early childhood space, email Ron with the title(s) or topic(s) you are interested in!
How can documenting the relationships that are unfolding within our spaces reveal new threads along which we can follow children in communities of care? What can we learn from children?
Invited keynote, Alliance for Early Childhood Summit, Chicago, 2024
Frames photography as a component of holistic, meaningful assessment that honors children’s lived experiences, their right to play, and helps educators develop a nuanced eye toward childhoods.
Originally given at the NAEYC PLI, June 2022, Cleveland
In this session, we wondered: What can we learn about children’s social and emotional development through play? What do children already show us that they know, and how can we support them further?
Webinar given at the HiMama Early Learning Summit, January 2022
What is the role of small groups in young children’s experiences in early care contexts? Considers children’s learning more holistically, the cultivation of relationships, etc.
Professional Learning Module for CDRC Peel, Mississauga, ON
Using the Languages of Encounter Framework, explores some of the what, why, and how of documenting natural spaces with children in ways that center agency within and connection to nature.
Originally an invited workshop at In Bloom Conference, Boston, 2023
This session explores reflective practice and invites teachers to view themselves as competent, curious researchers. What can reflection reveal and/or uncover about our pedagogical identity?
Originally given at the NAEYC Annual Conference 2021
For parents and educators seeking simple ways to create welcoming environments for young children. This mini workshop considers some key elements of a space that supports children’s sense of safety and belonging.
An original Childology mini-workshop
Considers parallels between pedagogical documentation and ethnographic fieldwork, encouraging educators to adopt new eyes to the daily experiences unfolding in the lives of children.
Originally given at Natural Start , 2021
Considers the ways that children are creating, sustaining, and expanding peer cultures through their daily play. Uses a case study of children’s hero-villain play to explore these concepts.
Originally given at Natural Start 2021
A close-up portrait of children’s lives in a forest preschool. This talk explores the centrality of play and the potential it holds for building robust community and connection to the natural world.
Invited talk given at the IPA USA Speaker Series, October 2021
A look at the pillars of anti-bias education and how these intersect with the exploration of identities in early childhood contexts. Divided into three modules that center pillars of anti-bias education.
Originally for Nova Scotia College of ECE, Halifax NS
How can play be considered an act of advocacy on the part of children? If play is advocacy, what are children saying? How can we invite other adults to listen? What might we do when tensions arise?
Originally given at Natural Start, 2023
How does walking through the forest contribute to and count as meaningful early science experience? How can an unplanned wander down a side path turn into something intriguing, delightful, and stimulating?
Originally given at the National Science Teaching Association, 2021
Who are you as an educator? What does it mean to teach? Where are you making connections in your community and living into your mission? This workshop explores these questions and more.
Originally for Newtowne School, Cambridge MA
Infants and toddlers are often overlooked in spaces and settings of early care, creativity, and community. This session considers ways to support educators in deepening practice.
Originally given at NAEYC Annual, November 2023, Nashville
How can you use the materials in your everyday environment in ways that inspire young children to engage and explore in new and deeper ways? Where might you begin, today, with what you have?
Originally given at Abeona House, New Orleans, LA
A workshop on documentation that encourages educators to identify the central features of their documentation practice as it currently exists and to explore the power of documentation.
Originally given at Abeona House Child Discovery Center, New Orleans
Risky play, despite its impressive and exciting nature, can leave educators feeling uncomfortable or worried. How can we make space for safe, informed, and meaningful risks?
Originally given at the Growing With Children Conference, April 2022
This session explores children’s brief yet powerful responses to the simple question: What do you want your teacher next year to know about you? How might children’s voices inspire shifts in our daily practice?
Originally given at NAEYC Annual, November 2023, Nashville
What can a child’s drawings and emergent writing, scrawls, scribbles, and mark-making processes reveal about the general connections they are making to the natural world?
Originally given at the National Science Teaching Association, 2021