Back to School with CCEI

I don’t know about you, but my Back to School To Do list was LONG. It took over a week of working each day to rearrange the furniture, set up all the materials, and label everything. All the prep work that goes into teaching before school even starts is incredible! When making my to-do list and planning for the school year, I always find a couple of professional development opportunities that I can complete. Thankfully, ChildCare Education Institute makes those items on my to-do list easy to accomplish! Their catalogue of online courses cover such a wide variety of topics that there is ALWAYS something interesting to learn more about! Best of all, CCEI’s courses fit into your busy schedule accessible 24/7/365. For example: at home, in between filling in your teacher planner and cutting out bulletin board letters (speaking from experience on that one!)

ChildCare Education Institute (CCEI), the industry leader for online professional development, offers courses that cover the latest in everything from technology and STEAM to bullying, attention disorders and more. I have taken two courses through ChildCare Education Institute in the past: SOC103: Gender Bias and Stereotypes and CCEI122: Active Learning in Early Childhood. Recently, I took the course CCEI640: Creating a Multicultural Environment from ChildCare Education Institute, which focuses on the importance of teaching tolerance and compassion — something that I feel like is a prominent topic in today’s educational community. I always work hard to make sure that my students see themselves reflected in the materials and books that I have in my classroom, and teach them about other cultures. That is why I was really excited to take CCEI’s course Creating a Multicultural Environment to learn how to do this better. I was happy to see that teaching about other cultures and having the exposure to other cultures in a classroom is important, but I was surprised to learn that it is even more important to focus on how you teach it to students. I knew right away that I would be learning a lot from this course and that it would be beneficial to my teaching and students for the rest of my career!

This course provided me with so much new knowledge of culture, including great descriptions of the different sublayers of culture and the true meaning of multiculturalism. Through this course, I also learned about “tourist culture” and how this is a common way that multiculturalism is taught — something that I need to be more aware of in my own teachings! One of the most important things that I was able to take away from this CCEI course is the information about anti-bias education and how to create a “non-bias” environment. It was an amazing refresher for me as this new school year begins!

Don’t know where to start with your ChildCare Education Institute journey? CCEI has compiled a list of 10 trending topics that ECE teachers are studying today (that they wouldn’t have 10 years ago) and courses that

 

  • Trauma Informed Care: ECE providers work with diverse groups of students from all walks of life. Statistics show that 26% of children living in America will experience some sort of trauma in their life prior to the age of four. CCEI offers SOC108: Establishing Trauma Informed Practices in Early Learning Environments which focuses on ways to incorporate trauma informed practices into the environment and interactions with children.  
  • Mindfulness: Mindfulness practices can prevent instances of undesired behavior, increase focus and engagement and promote a feeling of ownership and empowerment for children. As an additional benefit, classroom communities tend to be more empathetic and kind. CCEI offers SOC106: The Value of Mindfulness in Early Childhood which explores calming and reflective approaches when working with young children. 
  • Spirituality: CCEI’s CHD109: Supporting Spiritual Development in Early Learning Environments is based upon the work of Deborah Schein, author of the book titled Inspiring Wonder, Awe and Empathy – Spiritual Development in Young Children. The course explores what spiritual development is and why it is important to overall development. Participants will also learn how to create moments within their learning environments that promote spiritual development in young children.
  • Caring for Allergies: Child food allergies are on the rise in the United States and continue to be a public health concern. CCEI’s CCEI119: Food Allergies in the Early Care Setting online course provides an overview of food allergies and basic safety principles to employ in the early care setting. Upon completion of this course, teachers will be able to provide a safe environment for children and staff who suffer from food allergies, identify the eight major food allergens, list the theories associated with the rise in food allergies and identify the importance of food labeling and packaging.
  • Dual-Language Learning: In some areas, non-native English speakers may make up the majority of a classroom. It is important for all early childhood educators to be prepared to meet the challenges of guiding a child toward English fluency while maintaining fluency in (and respect for) their home languages and cultures. CCEI offers CHD102: Dual Language Learning in the Early Childhood Environment to provide early childhood professionals with strategies and tools for helping young children develop language and literacy skills in English.
  • Attention Disorders: CCEI offers courses like SPN102: Attention Deficit Disorders to help child care providers understand the symptoms, subtypes and common treatment strategies associated with attention disorders. 

 

  • Diversity and Inclusion: CCEI’s CCEI640: Creating a Multicultural Environment online training course helps teachers define the goals of multiculturalism, plan and implement an anti-biased classroom, incorporate multiculturalism into learning centers and other classroom activities and promote cooperative social skills in diverse classrooms.

 

  • Bullying in the Classroom: Although bullying has been around for years, today’s teachers are more proactive about reducing bullying. CCEI’s GUI100: Bullying in the Preschool Environment online course helps teachers bring empathy and compassion to the classroom as a way of reducing bullying behaviors. 

As always, I was very impressed with CCEI’s course and I highly recommend you try it today. The website is easy to navigate and find the courses that you need (and want!) to take — they provide very in depth details of each course so that you know exactly what you will be learning! The courses themselves are organized, filled with valuable content, and well paced with mini-assessments after each section. I love CCEI because they are designed for working professionals and there isn’t any fluff in their lessons, they don’t waste your time and its content is highly beneficial. FINALLY, high-quality and accredited professional development made for ECE teachers!  Check out one of their free trial courses for new CCEI users today!

 

Why do I continue to learn through CCEI? ChildCare Education Institute® provides high-quality, online training courses and programs, applicable to those who work in an array of child care settings, including center-based care, Head Start, family child care, prekindergarten classrooms, after school environments and more. Over 150 English and Spanish training courses are available to meet licensing, recognition program, and Head Start Requirements. CCEI also has online certification programs that provide the coursework requirement for national credentials including the CDA, Director and Early Childhood Credentials. CCEI, a Council for Professional Recognition CDA Gold Standard™ Comprehensive training provider, is nationally accredited by the Distance Education Accrediting Commission (DEAC) and is accredited as an Authorized Provider by the International Association for Continuing Education and Training (IACET).

  • 99 percent of students say they would recommend CCEI to others
  • Over 5 million online course hours completed
  • Graduated over 15,000 early childhood professionals from CDA and other certificate programs
  • Web-based coursework, available 24/7/365
  • 30 hours of new content added each year
  • IACET CEUs awarded for completed coursework at no additional cost

So, as we make our way through these first months of school, remember that there is always something new that you as a teacher can learn that will make a positive impact on your students. Also remember that when it comes to teaching today’s learners, ChildCare Education Institute has you covered with courses to keep you in the know!

Happy learning,

[This post was made possible through a paid partnership with ChildCare Education Institute. Though I was paid to share my experience with CCEI, the thoughts expressed are my own]

Leave a comment