Free Webinars

Child Care Aware Parent Network webinars are presented by child care experts to give you information about high-quality child care and other topics that are of interest to you. They are designed specifically for busy parents, grandparents, advocates, and professionals who to learn more but have very little time. Our educational Webinars are always FREE to you!

Upcoming Webinars:

The Children’s Museum Experience: Learning through Play

October 27, 2010

Presenters:

• Jeannette Thomas, Program Officer, Membership, Association of Children’s Museums, Arlington, Virginia
• Susan Harris MacKay, the Center for Children’s Learning, Director, Portland Children’s Museum, Portland, Oregon
• Keith Ostfeld, Director of Exhibit and Program Development, Children’s Museum of Houston , Houston, Texas
• Joseph Olson, Vice President- Visitor Experience, Minnesota Children’s Museum, St. Paul, Minnesota

Completed Webinars - free to view any time!

Is Media the Other Parent? The Influence of Media and Technology on Young Children.

August 24, 2010

Presenter: Rebecca Randall, Vice President of Education Programs at Common Sense Media.

Media and technology are evolving at a rapid pace, affecting young children in both positive and negative ways. Join us to learn about the impact of media on young children and most importantly, hear expert guidance about how to raise and educate children in today’s 24/7 media world.

Rebecca Randall is the Vice President of Education Programs at Common Sense Media, the nation’s leading nonprofit dedicated to improving the lives of children and families by providing the trustworthy information, education, and independent voice they need to thrive in a world of media and technology. Rebecca oversees the implementation of the organization’s Parent Media Education Program and digital Citizenship Curriculum, including the development and facilitation of professional development for educators across the country.

What Parents Need to Know About Over-the-Counter Medicine Safety

July 28, 2010

Presenter Mimi Pappas, Director of Communications & Outreach for Consumer Healthcare Products Association (CHPA)

There are many things you worry about when your child is not feeling well, but figuring out how to safely give medicine to your child should not be one of them. Join us and learn about the latest recommendations surrounding over-the-counter oral cough and cold medicines for children and what parents need to know and look for when reading medicine labels to keep their children safe.

Director of Communications & Outreach for Consumer Healthcare Products Association (CHPA), directs the association’s outreach efforts with external groups and assists in CHPA’s communications projects with the public. In her capacity at CHPA, Pappas helps create and execute campaigns and products for the CHPA Educational Foundation at OTCsafety.org that encourages the safe use of over-the-counter (OTC) medicines.

Resources to Promote Healthy Nutritional Development and Physically Active Kids

June 15, 2010

Presenter Sheleen Dumas, NACCRRA

This webinar covers crucial information about childhood nutrition, obesity prevention, healthy habits, and maintaining physical activity for children in child care. Learn about NACCRRA’s position on national policies that support improving children’s health in child care and gain information on nutritional resources for children!

Our presenter, Sheleen Dumas, recently joined NACCRRA from the Department of Health and Human Services - Child Care Bureau in Washington, DC where she was a Child Care Program Specialist and Federal Project Officer for Healthy Child Care America, a subsidiary of the Academy of Pediatrics. Prior to that, she worked for the Department of Defense in military child care with the Marine Corps. Join us and learn about important information on nutrition resources available to all parents and child care provider.

Is Your Child Care Program Prepared for Emergencies?

May 12, 2010

Presenter: Dr. Beverly Schmalzried, Senior Strategic Advisor, NACCRRA

This presentation will show parents how to ensure their family child care provider or center program is prepared to keep children safe during emergencies. Many different types of emergencies occur in the United States in a year including winter storms, tornados, floods, hurricanes, and wildfires. Child care programs should have a plan for protecting children and communicating with parents when natural or technological disasters or attacks occur. Questions to ask providers will be covered.

Our presenter, Dr. Beverly Schmalzried, is the Senior Strategic Advisor for the National Association of Child Care Resource & Referral Agencies (NACCRRA). She formerly directed the United States Air Force’s worldwide system of child care and youth programs. She currently teaches as a Professor at Milligan College in Tennessee.

Will You Know High-Quality Child Care When You See it?

April 6, 2010

Presenter: Jessica Dahan, Associate Director of Parent Engagement, NACCRRA

Choosing good child care is one of the most important decisions you will ever make for your child. How will you know which child care center setting best meets your family’s needs? How will you assess their quality? Join Child Care Aware Parent Network and our Parent Engagement expert, Jessica Dahan, for an informative session about what you should look for when you choose a child care center or family child care home.

Our presenter works on the Child Care Aware Parent Network, an initiative of the National Association of Child Care Resource and Referral Agencies.

Child Care Centers: At The Center of Your Community

February 16, 2010

Presenter: Mario Small, Author, Unanticipated Gains: Origins of Network Inequality in Everyday Life Mario Luis Small, author of the new book “Unanticipated Gains: Origins of Network Inequality in Everyday Life” as discussed how child care centers support the formation of social networks within a community.

The Flu and You: Information for Parents of Children in Child Care

January 12, 2010

Presenter: Dr. Georgina Peacock

Dr. Georgina Peacock of the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) provides information to better understand the symptoms, prevention and treatment of the H1N1 flu. Learn what your child care facility should be doing to keep your child healthy and receive tips on how to talk about flu prevention with your child’s caregivers.

What Every Parent Needs to Know About Child Care in America (but Might be Afraid to Ask)

November 9, 2009

Presenter: Linda K. Smith

Every year, the National Association of Child Care Resource and Referral Agencies (NACCRRA) conducts research on the state of child care in America, as well as surveys about the perceptions of parents who purchase that care. Looking at the same system through these two lenses reveals a fractured picture of disparity between what parents believe is being done to protect their children while they are in child care and the reality of child care regulations and oversight in our country. Join NACCRRA’s Executive Director, Linda Smith to connect the dots between child care funding, legislation, licensing, regulation, and the ultimate impact on your child’s child care setting. Learn more about how you can begin new dialog about child care quality.

Linda K. Smith is the Executive Director of NACCRRA and is considered one of the country’s leading experts on child care in America. Frequently called upon by the nation’s leading media outlets for interviews and guidance, Ms. Smith spearheads all of the research and public policy efforts at NACCRRA. Prior to joining NACCRRA, as a staffer on Capitol Hill, she worked on children and family issues, including the Child Care and Development Block Grant, the Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act, Temporary Assistance for Needy Families Act (TANF) and the drafting of the Early Care and Education Act. Ms. Smith also served as the Director of the Office of Family Policy for the Secretary of Defense. Smith was the lead policy expert responsible for implementing the landmark Military Child Care Act of 1989, and worked for the United States Army, the United States Air Force, the University of Wyoming and spent five years directing early care and education programs in Montana.

For the Love of Literacy: Six Critical Pre-Reading Skills for Preschool Children

October 13, 2009

Presenter: Kathleen Hayes, Editor, Highlights High Five

Highlights High Five Editor Kathleen Hayes will help you learn how to maximize your “reading together time” and set your preschool child on a joyous path to reading success. You’ll learn what you can do to nurture your child’s natural interest in sounds, letters, and words so he or she will love reading. Kathleen will explain simple steps you can take, beginning when your child is an infant, to stimulate six critical early research-proven reading skills. The session will explore:

• why rhymes and rhyming stories are so important;
• why talking together is key to reading success;
• what children can learn about print and books when you read aloud, and;
• how to make learning about letters interactive, fun, and meaningful.

Kathleen Hayes is editor for Highlights High Five magazine, the newest Highlights for Children, Inc. publication. She began her career as a children’s librarian and later joined the faculty at the Bank Street College of Education, where she taught preschool children at the Bank Street School for Children. She has been a mentor and coach to public school teachers and has taught graduate-level courses in children’s literature, curriculum, art and classroom management.

Ms. Hayes has worked with a number of publishing partners to produce early-childhood curriculum materials and has provided educational consultation to Head Start programs and public school districts throughout the United States. She conducts teacher-training workshops with the International Step by Step Foundation, and implements parent-education programs in Latvia, Azerbaijan, Armenia and other countries of the former Soviet Union.

Hayes co-authored Classroom Routines That Really Work for Pre-K and K Teachers (Scholastic, 2002) and Putting the Children First: The Changing Face of Newark’s Public Schools (Teachers College Press, 2003). In addition, she has written several children’s books for Macmillan/McGraw-Hill and Time for Kids.

Hayes holds a master’s degree in Library Science from the University of Washington and a master’s degree in Early Childhood Education from the Bank Street College of Education.

Click here for the Webinar Q&A.

Child Care, Family, and Work/Life Balance: Share It All. Have It All!

September 29 2009

Presenter: Sharon Meers, Author, Getting to 50/50: How Working Couples Can Have It All By Sharing It All

Through extensive research, Sharon Meers and Joanna Strober, authors of Getting to 50/50: How You Can Have it All by Sharing it All, discovered that kids, husbands, and wives reap huge benefits when couples commit to share equally as breadwinners and caregivers. Mothers work without guilt, fathers bond with their kids, and children blossom with the attention of two involved parents. Sharon will provide real-world solutions for parents who want to succeed in their careers and still be fully engaged with their children; strategies for working mothers facing gender bias in the workplace; advice to fathers new to the home front; and tips for finding 50/50 solutions to deal with issues of child care, money, time, and much more.

Sharon Meers was a Managing Director at Goldman, Sachs & Co. until April 2005, when she decided that it was time to write this book. In her 16-year career at Goldman, in addition to mentoring many women, Sharon co-chaired the Women’s Network in the Investment Management Division, served on the diversity committees of two of the firm’s divisions and developed a mentorship program that linked high-potential women to senior advisors.

Sharon lives in the Bay Area with her husband Steve, a real-estate developer, and their son, age 7, and daughter, age 4. Sharon and Steve founded the Partnership for Parity at the Stanford Graduate School of Business School which supports Stanford’s ongoing work on workplace parity and a similar effort at Harvard University called the Dual-Career Initiative. Sharon also serves on the board of the National Women’s Law Center and on the advisory council of Stanford’s Clayman Institute for Research on Gender and is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations. A graduate of Harvard College, she holds an M.A. in Economics from New York University.

Click here to view the 50/50 Fact Sheet.

Playing to Learn: How Play Enhances Cognitive Development

September 16 2009

Presenter: Dr. David Elkind

Join us to hear world renowned child development expert David Elkind talk about how children learn through play! One of the leading thinkers, researchers and teachers on child development in his generation, Dr. Elkind is frequently heard advocating for the role of play in cognitive, physical, social, and emotional development. This session will explore the role of play in high-quality child care.

Dr. Elkind is currently Professor Emeritus of Child Development at Tufts University. Professor Elkind is best known for “The Hurried Child,” and “The Power of Play: Learning What Comes Naturally.” He’s also appeared on The Today Show, The CBS Morning News, 20/20, Nightline, and the Oprah Winfrey Show, and co-hosted the Lifetime Television Show, Kids These Days. Dr. Elkind currently serves as the Chief Academic Adviser to JustAskBaby.com, a new online video membership service that provides parents a unique baby’s perspective on how to effectively nurture their infant’s potential.

“My Body Belongs to Me!” Keeping Your Child Safe From Sexual Abuse: An Expert’s Advice,

August 25 2009

Presenter: Jill Starishevsky

Jill Starishevsky and “My Body Belongs to Me”

Brain Development: You can easily make a positive difference!

August 5, 2009

Presenter: Deborah McNelis

The brain is an amazing organ that allows each of us to think, feel, learn and act. It is exciting to know how experiences can have a positive impact on the developing brain— and it is not complicated to understand! Join early brain development specialist and award winning author, Deborah McNelis, for an informative session to learn how you can make a positive difference in the connections made among your child’s 100 billion brain cells.

Deborah McNelis

Will You Know High Quality When You See It? How to Assess Child Care Settings

July 22, 2009

Presenters: Niki Smidt and Mujaahida Latif

Choosing good child care is one of the most important decisions you will ever make for your child. How do you know which child care setting meets your family’s needs? How do you assess quality? Join NACCRRA’s outstanding Senior Early Education Specialist and Consumer Education Specialist, Niki Smidt and Mujaahida Latif, for an informative session about what you should look for when you choose a child care center or family child care home.