Child Care; Parent & Family Involvement; Parent Education; Professional Development; Professional Development
Status:
Active
Year Started:
Administered By:
Arkansas State University Childhood Services
Description:
"Making First Experiences Count" is a series of three 2-hour workshops focusing on early brain development, essential experiences for the early years, and activities that promote positive growth and development. Through a combination of lecture, small group discussion, and role play activities, participants learn about the “Eight Essential Experiences” that young children need for healthy development.
The training is specific to parents, providers and other interested persons and is offered in community settings upon request. The sessions focus on recent brain research and various activities and books that support development and encourage parents to take an active role in the development of their child.
Arkansas State University (ASU) Childhood Services also makes available two additional training modules to accompany the "Making First Experiences Count" series. Both of these modules target parents and early childhood providers and focus on learning activities that parents can do with their children beginning in infancy and going through the preschool years. One module focuses on the Essential Experience Language-Rich Social Interactions and is designed to help participants understand the beginnings of literacy. The other module focuses on Sensory-Rich and Novel Experiences and is designed to help participants understand the importance of early math and science understanding, thinking skills, and problem solving.