SEEC’s Oscars

Posted on March 2, 2017 by Cynthia Raso

2-2 In keeping with the awards season time of year, SEEC held its annual Staff Appreciation dinner recently in order to recognize the hard work and dedication of our entire team. It was also a great opportunity to kick back, relax, and enjoy some time together.

During the course of the evening, we honored six individuals who have really stood out.

Without further ado, the winners are….

Diane Homiak Award

The Diane Homiak Award is a lasting tribute to the memory of SEEC supporter, parent, and employee Diane Homiak. A fund has been established that annually recognizes the commitment, creativity, and contributions made by a teacher to SEEC. sign-me-up

Melinda Bernsdorf, teacher in one of our two-year-old classes, was the 2017 recipient. With numerous nominations from parents, teammates, and colleagues, Melinda was singled out for fostering a creative and inspiring learning environment, her ability to build independence and inquisitiveness in her children, her willingness to share ideas, and the remarkable warmth she brings to everything she does.  Melinda has been at SEEC since 2014 and holds a Bachelors in Psychology. She has a long history of working with children and says she loves how each child has their own individual way of exploring their world.

Rookie of the Year

First year toddler teacher Elizabeth Kubba was celebrated as this year’s Rookie of the Year!  She, too, was recognized for her creativity in the classroom, her dedication to her children, and her level of communication. As an undergrad, she realized that educating and developing young people was her true passion so she went on to earn her M.Ed. in School Counseling from Liberty University. She has been working in special education at the elementary level for the past three years.

Spirit of SEEC

Brooke Shoemaker was celebrated with the Spirit of SEEC Award.  This award isn’t given out every year – it’s only awarded when an educator who reaches across the entire school really stands out, and Brooke truly fits that bill!  She was recognized for her work supporting teachers in all three of SEEC’s sites, her ability to connect with everyone (big and little), and her outstanding work within the Center for Innovation in Early Learning. Brooke serves as the Education Specialist for Pre-K and Elementary programs. She holds an M.Ed. in Early Childhood Education and you will often find her combining her knowledge of young learners with her love for theater.

Team Player Awards

Logan Crowley

Phoebe Cos

Ace Walton

The Team Player is awarded to staff who is recognized by their peers. Infant Educator, Logan Crowley, and Assistant Educators, Ace Walton and Phoebe Cos were selected as this year’s award winners – each goes above and beyond to support his/her colleagues, with warmth, willingness to jump in, and a positive outlook! We’re incredibly lucky to have such supportive and dedicated educators across SEEC!

While these 6 individuals were specifically recognized, we also took the time at our dinner to recognize each and every member of SEEC’s team.  We’re so incredibly fortunate to have a community of educators as strong and dedicated as those working here each day – it’s what makes SEEC the special place that it is – and we know you recognize that, too! An incredible 27 individuals were nominated this year, and we received more than 50 nominations for these talented educators!

A Fresh Take: Back-to-School Books

Posted on September 3, 2015 by Cynthia Raso

It’s that time again! Many of our nation’s teachers are preparing their classrooms for the first day of school and so we wanted to share with you what some of our SEEC teachers are planning to include on their bookshelves this coming fall. Before school ended this past week, I interviewed several of our teachers to get their perspective on back-to-school books and here’s what I learned.

HOMEMADE BOOKS

Many of our infant and toddler teachers lamented that there weren’t a lot of options for their young students. They were opting for making homemade books like the one featured to the right that documents a trip to their new classroom. This group of toddlers will be going to a new center, so the teacher thought it was especially important to have something to ease into a new location. I liked that the book highlighted the children’s feelings and pointed out some exciting new components of the classroom. I guess you could call it an end-of-the-year book, but since it will be with them in their new classroom too it still bridges their experiences and offers them continuity.

Many of our teachers also like to create individual books for their students that include photos of family, special events or things the child likes. These types of books can be a great source of comfort at any time of the year when they need a little extra soothing. They also help classmates learn about each other.

FAMILIAR FRIENDS

At least four teachers said to me that they weren’t necessarily looking for back-to-school books for September. Rather they wanted books with which the children were familiar. Having these books were important because they built in a familiar component that would help their students feel safe and more easily transition to their new teachers and routines. This was especially true of the teachers in our toddler and twos classes. Here were some of their top recommendations.

Chicka, Chicka, Boom, Boom by Bill Martin, Jr. and John Archambault
Good Night Moon by Margaret Wise Brown
Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What do You See by Bill Martin Jr.
The Napping House by Audrey Wood
The Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle

MAKE IT A PROJECT

Our current Kindergarten teacher shared that when she was teaching in Europe she stumbled across the book, Mommy in My Pocket by Carol Hunt Sendarak. She said she fell in love with the book and its story of a little girl who imagines shrinking her mother so she can accompany her to school. In the end, she realizes that she will be fine on her own as she carries the memory of her mother’s hug and kiss.

Our teacher, Cathryn, took the book a step further and had her students bring in a photo of their moms/caretakers and adhered it to the shape of a person. The children were invited to “dress” the body by coloring in clothes. When they were finished, she attached it to a heart, which was then glued on top of a cut-out pocket shape. Finally, she attached yarn to the pocket so the children could wear their “caretaker pockets” like a necklace.

After their project was done, the class sat together and talked. She recounts that she would ask about their feelings or other objects that they might want to bring to school with them.

CELEBRATING INDIVIDUALITY

Many of our PreK teachers said they like to use the beginning of the year to teach about what makes their students special or unique. One PreK-4 teacher praised Tacky the Penguin by Helen Lester for not only honoring everyone’s differences, but also just being silly. Another teacher suggested Ian Falconer’s Olivia because of how it embraces the character’s unique spirit – plus, it doesn’t hurt that the book showcases a visit to the museum where Olivia encounters paintings by Degas and Pollock – a very SEEC moment.

OTHER FAVORITES

Lilly’s Purple Plastic Purse by David Henkes

Though not really about back-to-school, this book features the relationship between student and teacher and introduces children to the concept of having different perspectives.

2. The Night Before Kindergarten by Natasha Wing

This one is for the parents out there! It is a personal favorite that helped both my children transition to Kindergarten.

2. Splat the Cat by Rob Scotton

3. If You Take a Mouse to School by Laura Numeroff

4. Franklin Goes to School by Paulette Bourgeois

DON’T FORGET THE SPACE

Creating a cozy corner, can be as important as the books. Have fun creating a space that is quiet by sectioning it off from the classroom buzz. Use inviting colors, comfortable furniture and include soft, soothing objects. Such a space will undoubtedly help with those first day transitions as well as difficult moments throughout the year.

Hope these give you some fresh ideas! Happy back-to-school.

Ready Set Go

Posted on June 19, 2014 by Cynthia Raso

Post by Betsy Bowers, Director of the Center for Innovation in Early Learning
As another school year comes to a close and we begin to say farewell to the many children who have spent the past 5 years or so with us, it’s hard not to wonder what’s ahead for them. Our educators tirelessly support SEEC students as we help them make sense of the world, love learning and grow into thoughtful young citizens. Over the course of this past year, a group of SEEC educators discussed what our students should be able to do when they leave SEEC.

Focus, persistence and determination.

Critical thinking and analysis.

There’s quite a long list. A few of the things we agreed on were that our students should leave SEEC being able to solve problems, be responsible, take risks, understand their role in the community and their ability to affect change, have compassion, respect and empathy for others, and communicate their ideas.

It’s a lot to ask a 5 year old if they know how to solve a problem or be responsible, because of course they will say, “yes.” We are, after all, working on having them leave SEEC with self confidence so a positive response is expected. Because I wanted to find out if our 5 year olds are entering Kindergarten as independent thinkers, I asked a few of them this more indirect question: “If I told you that five of your friends wanted you to climb up the Washington Monument so that you could jump off, what would you say?” One student gave me an odd look and responded, “That’s not really a good idea.” One student did say, “Yes.” We’ll hope that she has some clever ideas about how to do that safely. One student simply said, “Ouch,” while a few others were much too busy to want to elaborate and so responded with a “no.”

Ability to share ideas.

The response, though, that reminds us that all these skills are intertwined and expands our notion of “independent thinking” was this – “Only if we could jump off like a cannonball and onto a big trampoline!” Of course, why didn’t I think of that?

Collaboration and teamwork.

Here’s hoping that this playfulness, creativity, critical thinking and overall healthy outlook on the world that we have worked so hard to nurture is embraced by our elementary school colleagues and the world. Good luck, dear friends, as you now go and bravely pursue life.

Self esteem and confidence.