Building Community Page by Page

Hey, Play Advocate.

All April, I am focusing on what I believe to be the fundamental, baseline component to facilitating a major movement in early childhood education: Community.

Each week, I will share with you one of the most influential ways I have built a community over the years at my in-person nature play program. Every year I see the influence of these things grow more and more. Please, share with me which of these was helpful, or additional thoughts on building a community that has worked for you! We are a hive mind, and sharing is beneficial for everyone.

👌 Community Building Tip #3

Invite & Host Guest Readers!

In years past, in programs long-ago we would have "Community Helpers" week. During this week we would schedule visits from local firefighters, police, doctors, nurses, etc. One year, I got to thinking- this is fun, and informative but kind of surface level. The kids wanted more, I wanted more... so I got to thinking.

For our birthday celebrations, we invited the celebrated child to select a book from home or our classroom library that their special person (a parent, sibling, teachers, aunt, etc.) would read aloud on their special day. I quickly noticed that the children were riveted by a new voice telling a familiar story. Visitors were elated to share these tales and special moments with whole group. The feeling of connectedness was palpable.

This community building element is simple, straightforward and easy to organize with a simple signup sheet. (Feel free to include this as a part of the enrollment / onboarding process!) There are many ways to work this into your program. Incorporate at birthday celebrations, have a "reader of the month", or centralize the visitors around your place-based and project-based learning. Are the children super engaged in learning about all the bugs that are emerging this Spring? Invite an entomologist to read a favorite bug book. We LOVE Carol Diggory Shield's The Bugliest Bug. It's a classic in our cohort.

Caps For Sale! Read aloud with prompts makes memorable experiences that put movement and play FIRST.

Lifelong Learning Corner: a place for professional development.

Check out Mollie von Kampen, a fellow play-advocate and lover of all children books. Mollie offers up some fantastic resources for educators on her website. She has some freebies to share with you all around playful literacy. Mollie's ability to create play invitations centered around beautiful picture books with positive messages is one of a kind. Check out what Molly has to offer today!