Diane H. Craft, Ph.D., has known since she was 11 years old that she wanted to be a physical educator and share the joy of movement to others. She earned her doctorate in adapted physical education and taught for many years as a professor in the Physical Education Department at SUNY Cortland. In 1998 she was introduced to the field of early childhood education and realized that there was a need for physical educators to share their knowledge with early childhood educators, matching experts in both areas to serve a need. To that end, she has co-authored four books and given over 335 presentations, staff trainings, keynotes, and webinars across the nation on fun ways to lead developmentally appropriate active play with young children. Today she consults with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention as the subject matter expert on Early Childhood Physical Activity and continues writing and presenting on her favorite topic.

Dr. Craft is joining us this month in Greenbrier as the keynote for the Active Minds Active Bodies Physical Activity Summit! We are so excited to bring her back to Arkansas to share her passion and knowledge with you!

Wellness Corner

Active Bodies Active Minds Physical Activity Summit

Our Active Minds, Active Bodies Physical Activity Summit is coming up this month (June 20-21)! This event is the perfect combination of all of our team’s passions and we would love for you to join us!

On Thursday evening, we will focus on all things self-care and appreciation. Dinner is a Build Your Own Baked Potato Bar with a mindfulness cafe. After dinner will be opportunities to experience yoga sessions, a relaxation room, sound bath sessions, and more. 

Dr. Diane Craft will start our day off on Friday with a keynote address followed by a variety of breakout sessions focused on physical activity. We will round out this day with a make & take session. Breakfast and lunch will be provided for the Friday session. 

There will be a total of 9 hours PDR credit over the course of two days. 

WE HAVE OPENINGS!

Curricula Concepts has openings in the Be Well Care Well program! This opportunity is available at no cost to you! But these spots will fill up fast!

Be Well Care Well program focuses on promoting the health and well-being and supporting early childhood educators in making small, sustainable changes that make a huge difference. We are looking for early childhood programs who are wanting to support their staff's wellbeing as they do the very important work of caring for children.

If you're interested in bringing Be Well Care Well to your program, click the link or scan the QR code below to fill out the Interest Form!

If you want to learn more about the program, reach out to Susanna Creed at Susanna@curriculaconcepts.com or check out the website at bewellcarewell.com!

If you missed this month’s Well-Being Wednesday, you can check it out on our Facebook page or our YouTube channel. We learned so many great things about skincare basics, how to save money while finding the products that work for you, and a super simple “Kleenex test” to see what kind of skin you have!

Check it out:

Facebook link

YouTube link

Announcing: ECE Summer 2024 Resource Showcase

Please join Nemours Children’s Health and Curricula Concepts for the Better Together Family Cafes Resource Showcase! This virtual showcase will highlight the new Spanish version of the Better Together Cafes that can be used by ECE professionals and organizations to support healthy eating and physical activity in ECE settings. 

Better Together Family Cafés: Spanish Version

Wednesday, June 26, 2024 at 2:00 PM EDT(Presentation in English)

Register Here

Miércoles, 26 junio 2024, 3:00 PM EDT (Presentación en español)

Regístrese aquí 

Nemours Children’s staff will highlight the Better Together Family Café materials as an effective family engagement model and introduce the newly released materials in Spanish. Curricula Concepts will share considerations for hosting family cafés in languages other than English, as well as their experiences for hosting family engagement activities and trainings in Spanish.  

Speakers:

Caliste Chong, Nemours Children’s Health

Hannah Press, Nemours Children’s Health

Deborah Blackburn, Curricula Concepts

Child Care Provider Call

Please see the OEC (Office of Early Childhood) provider notes below and the meeting video link.

Meeting Video (Scroll down and click on June 4, 2024 - Child Care Provider Call)

OEC Staff Directory

Town Hall Meetings 

• Tonya Williams and Jennifer Douglas (Assistant Director of Local Leads) will attend town hall meetings starting tomorrow in Northwest Arkansas.
• Town hall schedule (Slide attached)
• Town hall feedback survey (Slide attached)

LEARNS Act 

• Overview
• Implementation Update

Kindergarten Readiness Indicator Checklist for Families

Lori Bridges

• Academic Approval Review 
• CLASS Pilot Phase 1
  • Frequently Asked Questions

Next Child Care Provider Call: July 2, 2024 at 12:00 pm

IMPORTANT REMINDERS!

Curricula Concepts Inc. is offering trainings in person and online via Zoom for families and educators! Go to our Training Calendar to sign up! Have questions or problems with registering for trainings? Contact Deborah at deborah@curriculaconcepts.com!

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"Summertime is always the best of what might be." –Charles Bowden