02/27/14 — Child care conference Saturday

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Child care conference Saturday

By From staff reports
Published in News on February 27, 2014 1:46 PM

The annual Wayne County Child Care Conference for child care providers will be held Saturday at Wayne Community College, offering a variety of learning opportunities as well as training credit.

Sponsored by WCC and The Partnership for Children of Wayne County, it runs from 8 a.m. until 3 p.m. The program features breakout sessions and keynote speaker Kim Hughes, founder of Conscious Connections, a behavior management and educational consulting firm serving teachers, child caregivers and parents.

She will speak on "The Intentional Teacher: Caring and Daring to Do What's Best for Our Children" from 8-9:30 a.m.

The topic is a timely one, said Jodi Baker, WCC public services department chair and a conference organizer.

"Intentionality is something we have preached for a long time but it is coming back to the forefront," she said. "Everything we do should not happen haphazard. It should be intentional."

Ms. Hughes will also lead a workshop session on "Five Steps to Self-Regulation in Children." In addition to being one of nine Loving Guidance Associates in the world certified by the company of that name, she is a Conscious Discipline Certified Instructor serving the national level and has authored articles in multiple publications, including Young Children and Early Childhood Education Journal.

She has also developed curriculum for Sesame Street's Global Grover Project and PBS' Danger Ranger Series and delivered customized training and coaching services to clients in public and private school settings, multiple chapters of the Association for the Education of Young Children, Head Start groups, colleges and universities, and education foundations.

Following her address, breakout sessions will run 9:45-11:15 a.m., 11:45 a.m.-1:15 p.m., and 1:30-3 p.m. Lunch will be provided from 11:15 to 11:45 a.m.

More than two dozen topics will be covered, including using everyday items to create learning materials, providing active play and understanding female bullies. Participants can attend up to three of the 90-minute sessions. Each workshop provides 1.5 hours of training credit, for a total of six hours if all are attended.

For a complete schedule and list of sessions, visit www.pfcw.org under the Events and Activities tab or call 919-735-3371, ext. 227.

Registration is $30 in advance and $35 on-site. It includes lunch, a tote bag and opportunities to win door prizes donated by vendors.

The public may also attend the conference at the same admission rate. Registration is not required to just visit the vendors.