What do Toilet Paper & Tissues have to do with Community?

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 (and the world) which of these was helpful, or additional thoughts on building a community that has worked for you! We are a hive mind, and sharing our combined knowledge and experience is beneficial for everyone.

👌 Community Building Tip #4

Keep A Running List.

Full transparency - I never asked for help, until this year.

True story.

I felt I HAD to hold all the moving pieces in order to hold up the appearance of a successful and functional director, teacher, and human in the world. I honestly thought if I told someone that I needed something, it meant I was dropping the ball somewhere else.

Nothing could be further from the truth.

Every day, families would ask in passing, in emails, and in text messages, "What do you need? How can we help the program out?" I would thank them kindly and share that we were "all set" and promised to loop them in when a new need arose. Guess what, I never circled back.

The lesson here? Let your program needs be the boomerang.

We are a never-ending stream of love and support as we care for these amazing people's children. They trust us with the most precious thing in their lives. We show up with open arms, minds and hearts for these children every day. Families WANT to help in any way they can. So- why not let them? Let these contributions be the way they send love and support back our way. Real talk- it will make life easier on our end (save time shopping, save money on amazon shipping...).

So, this fall as we entered another year of programming, I took a deep breath and (uncomfortably) leaned into my growing desire to be fully transparent. We posted a running list of "needed items" on our community calendar by the entrance to our program house. Items range from toilet paper, dish/hand soap, and bird seed to hand and toe warmers, maple syrup, oatmeal, and much more. We've gotten all the things... sometimes anonymously... and it feels good to everyone.

With 7 weeks left of programming, I now know that it truly does take a village to make a community THRIVE. I have learned to lean more lovingly into asking others for help with the "little things"- because after all, as you we know - the little things ARE the big things.

In addition to keeping the running list on the community calendar and white board, I include it in my monthly cohort email. This has been super helpful, and successful in keeping our supplies topped off, and providing a way for families to give back to a program they love and want to see thrive.

Nature Play Cohort Members enjoy a tasty snack, totally provided by community members.

Lifelong Learning Corner: a place for professional development.

My newly revamped course: You are a Great Observer is LIVE! I've taken my mini course and breathed new life into it! This course is chock FULL of so much gorgeous content. Each lesson will take you from stepping into play to stepping out with ease and confidence. You'll be trusting not only yourself as an educator but also building a deep level of trust with the children in your care. Get ready to make way for play and truly honor the work of the child as you witness the MAGIC of uninterrupted play.