Virtual Text Study: Spotlight on Young Children – Challenging Behaviors

Join specialists from the Maine Department of Education (DOE) Office of Teaching and Learning's Early Learning Team for a free, web-based professional development opportunity designed for early childhood educators working with children in pre-K through grade 2.

. This series will utilize the 2024 National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC) publication Spotlight on Young Children: Challenging Behavior, edited by Charis L. Wahman and Janice K. Lee. ("Children engage in challenging behavior for many different reasons: preventing and responding to that behavior begins with understanding why it occurs" [Wahman, C. & Lee, J. 2024].) Participants will read the chapters independently between sessions.

The book includes curated articles from NAEYC's Young Children and Teaching Young Children magazines, offering insights and strategies from a variety of early childhood education professionals. The text is organized around the Pyramid Model, with strategies grouped into three levels: preventative, targeted, and intensive and individualized. Throughout the book, there is an emphasis on creating relationally-safe and culturally-responsive environments. Reflective questions and self-care practices are woven into the content, making it an ideal resource for both new and veteran early childhood educators.

The text study will begin on Wednesday, January 22, 2025, from 3:30-4:30 p.m. and will continue the following Wednesdays:

• January 29
• February 5
• February 12
• February 26
• March 5

Registration is open through December 10, 2024, with space limited to 25 participants on a first-come, first-served basis. Those who register will receive a free copy of the book and earn up to 12 contact hours upon completion of the text study.

We encourage early registration to secure a spot! You may register here.

For more information, please reach out to Maine DOE Pre-K Consultant Sue Gallant at [email protected].