Curiosity and Wonder of Treasure Baskets: Infant and Toddler Play Explorations Infants and Toddlers explore the world around them with awe and wonder. They explore with a zest for curiosity and exploration. They deserve an environment that supports this natural process of learning. They deserve Play! Creating responsive environments for infants and toddlers is slightly […]
☕Introducing the ECE Play Café – Sound Explorations: Listening, Creating & Discovering Take a 30-minute pause in your day to reconnect, reflect, and spark new ideas in your practice. Join us 12:30–1:00 PM (MST) on the second Tuesday of each month for bite-sized sessions designed to fuel your passion for play and professionalism. Each mini-workshop […]
Observing Play with Intention: Enriching your Skills in Observations with the Emergent Curriculum Approach Ever take the time to sit back and simply observe children playing? The conversations they have, even by themselves. They show curiosity when they are exploring something new. The expressions of satisfaction when they are deep in thought in play and […]
Nurturing Self-Regulation in Early Childhood: Co-Regulation, Connection and Calming Practices for Big Emotions Young children experience big emotions, rapid transitions, and stressors they cannot yet name or manage on their own. This interactive workshop—rooted in Stuart Shanker’s self-regulation approach—helps educators understand the roots of stress behaviour, the difference between misbehaviour and stress responses, and the […]
No Waiting! Get Them Shaking! Exploring and Extending Engaging Transitions I can picture it as clearly as if it were happening right now—children wiggling, climbing, and weaving around one another as we navigate snow pants, jackets, and boots. The scene feels chaotic, overwhelming… and all too familiar. Transitions are hard. Whether it’s the legendary “clean-up […]
The Third Teacher: Creating Responsive Environments to Support Children’s Behaviours Children experience big feelings and have big actions to communicate these feelings with the people around them. It’s important that early childhood educators create an environment that is safe, physically, mentally, and emotionally, for children to learn about these emotions and discover ways to express […]
☕Introducing the ECE Play Café – The Professional Voice: Advocacy, Language & Identity in Early Childhood Take a 30-minute pause in your day to reconnect, reflect, and spark new ideas in your practice. Join us 12:30–1:00 PM (MST) on the second Tuesday of each month for bite-sized sessions designed to fuel your passion for play […]
Playful Planning: Exploring the Planning Process with the Emergent Curriculum Approach Playful learning experiences promote a sense of curiosity, exploration, and confidence, which are what we all strive to achieve when we plan for our early childhood environment and our children’s experiences. One of the most popular and best approaches to achieve this is the […]
Rooted in Care: A Professional Wellness & Advocacy Retreat for Early Childhood Educators When: Saturday, April 18, 2026 Where: Red Deer, AB Time: 8:00 AM - 4:30 PM Welcome to Inspired Minds ECC's very FIRST Educator Wellness Retreat! A Professional Learning Day focusing on YOU! Rooted in Care is a restorative professional retreat dedicated to honouring […]
NEW! Listening to the Land: Deepening Nature Play Through Land-Based and Place-Based Practices This workshop invites early childhood educators to deepen their understanding of land-based and place-based learning as vital components of high-quality early learning. Grounded in current research and best practices, participants will explore how children form relationships, knowledge, and identity through their encounters […]