2020 Virtual Great Start Network Annual Statewide Convening: MI Learning & Growing Together

Welcome to Day 1 of the Great Start Network Statewide Annual Convening. Today our topic is 'We're All In This Together'. We look forward to a great day as we learn more about MiRegistry, literacy, parent cafes, and many more topics. Today's sessions include a keynote on MiRegistry and Great Start to Quality for our Resource Center Staff and break out choices for Great Start Collaborative Directors and Parent Liaisons.

Audience: RC Directors and All Staff, GSC Directors, GS Parent Liaisons, ECSN Staff, MDE, ECIC

Representatives from the Michigan Department of Education will provide a welcome to convening members, as well as an overview of relevant MDE updates, resources, and guidance. 

Audience: RC Directors and All Staff, GSC Directors, GS Parent Liaisons, ECSN Staff, MDE, ECIC

Updates about both systems, the GSQ website, and tips and tricks will empower RC staff to confidently support providers in the rating process. Audience: RC Directors and Staff

Come learn how our state has embraced work around improving literacy outcomes and engaging families in the State of Michigan. A brief introduction to the Early Literacy Essentials will be used as a springboard to learn about how communities are taking this research and using it to individualize outreach to meet the needs of their communities. Your state-wide peers will share experiences with Talking as Teaching, Boston Basics, Talk Read Sing, Spend Time and Read (STAR), Read Early Read Often, and more. Audience: GSC Directors and Parent Liaisons

The PDG B5 Grants are designed to fund states to conduct a comprehensive statewide birth through five needs assessment followed by in-depth strategic planning, while enhancing parent choice and expanding the current mixed delivery system consisting of a wide range of provider types and settings, including child care centers and home-based child care providers, Head Start and Early Head Start, state pre-kindergarten, and home visiting service providers across the public, private and faith-based sectors. Audience: GSC Directors and Parent Liaisons

Parent Cafés are physically and emotionally safe spaces where parents and caregivers talk about the challenges and victories of raising children and families. Though Parent Cafes have been around a while, we need to adapt them to a "new normal" of a virtual world. Meaningful conversations about parenting in these tough times can happen in a safe, virtual space, while using the 5 Strengths (protective factors). Are you planning to offer virtual cafés? Come learn tips and tricks on facilitating a Virtual Parent Cafe using the Five Protective Factors. Audience: GSC Directors and Parent Liaisons

Join the Kids Count team to gain a better understanding of community level data. We’ll review multiple data sources to help you find and understand outcome areas for children, young adults and their families as it relates to economic security, health and safety, education, family and community. Audience: GSC Directors and Parent Liaisons

Welcome to the second day of the Virtual Great Start Network Statewide Annual Convening. Our focus for today is on Living Into Your Values. Join us for our keynote speaker Dr. Nick Ceglarek as he presents on Living your Values with break out sessions after the keynote. Audience: RC Directors and All Staff, GSC Directors, GS Parent Liaisons, ECSN Staff, MDE, ECIC

Foundational for individuals and teams to function at the highest level, we must be clear around the values that center us. Guided by the text Dare to Lead (Brown, 2018), the Traverse Bay Area Intermediate School District kicked off the 2019-20 school year with an activity which helped all 550 employees to reflect on the values they hold true and reconcile individual values with the values of the organization. The gift of “the rock” is a daily reminder to be reflective of our core values. By investing the time, energy, and effort to clarify and operationalize organizational values at the beginning of the year, when turbulent times confront us our staff will respond with a unified and consistent manner. The presentation will provide an overview of Traverse Bay Area ISD's journey through organizational and cultural transformation guided by the work of Brene Brown. Audience: RC Directors and All Staff, GSC Directors, GS Parent Liaisons, ECSN Staff, MDE, ECIC

Join Rachel Pritchard and Rita Trinklein to learn the latest updates around 32p and 32p(4) legislation. Audience: Great Start Collaborative Directors and Parent Liaisons

Clarity on system processes, who to contact about what, and opportunities to share successes and struggles with virtual PD and participant engagement.  Audience: Resource Center Staff

This session will provide an overview of the problem of sleep-related infant death in Michigan, including what makes an infant at higher risk. The session will provide an overview of the 2016 American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) guidelines for a safe infant sleeping environment that was issued to reduce these deaths. Participants will learn about available resources to help keep babies sleeping safely. Discussion about how to help families practice safe sleep will also be held.  Audience: All Resource Center Staff

Chaos is natural -- it's everywhere. Life is unpredictable and will bring about many different states of mind that can be challenging and difficult, even unbearable at times. But beneath the dramas, distractions and problems there's a still and calm place we can rest in. Join me to learn more about finding that place of calm amidst the chaos. Audience: Resource Center Staff

How can you infuse positive energy into all aspects of your work? How do you embrace change and reconnect with your passion for your work? How can you make a positive impact on the early childhood field? These are the questions and dilemmas we will explore through reflective, interactive, and engaging learning experiences. You will leave with new skills and strategies that you will be able to immediately apply to your professional work. Audience: Resource Center Staff

Welcome to Day 3 of the Great Start Network Statewide Convening. Today our focus is 'Mindful Leadership'. Learn more about Mindful Leadership from our keynote speaker, Carolyn McKanders. Following the keynote all participants will have an opportunity to choose a breakout session based on their interests and professional learning needs.

Today’s leadership demands and opportunities are complex and often uncharted. At no time has the need for mindful adaptivity been so urgent, requiring focused, efficient and effective response to profound disruptive change. Natural tensions exist within individuals, groups and organizations when missions, identities, values, mental models and expected behaviors rapidly shift. Mindful adaptive leaders are grounded and aware of these competing tensions and thoughtfully lift them to the system’s consciousness; support people in navigating endings and new beginnings; and structure psychologically safe staff collaborative cultures, both physically and virtually, to plan for meeting student, staff, and community needs.
Successful adaptive leaders are present, reflective and mindful. They value going slow to go fast. Yet, mindfulness is often counterintuitive in demanding times. Audience: RC Directors and All Staff, GSC Directors, GS Parent Liaisons, ECSN Staff, MDE, ECIC

This session will focus on defining mindfulness, highlighting the science of practices, and demonstrating how the practices influence the mind and body. We will determine ways to incorporate these practices into our daily lives and discuss how these practices can influence our work in positive ways. We will address common misconceptions and answer questions that typically hold people back from beginning a daily practice. We will highlight how one might use these practices in their work with Great Start Collaboratives, Parent Coalitions, or as a Resource Center staff. Audience: RC Directors and All Staff, GSC Directors, GS Parent Liaisons, ECSN Staff, MDE, ECIC

The Office of Great Start was awarded a Preschool Development Grant Birth through Five in 2019 to help improve the state's early childhood system via performing a needs assessment, developing a strategic plan, and completing projects to increase family knowledge and choice, increase provider best practices, and improve overall quality. Michigan is one of 23 states to be awarded a three-year Renewal grant to continue the work started with the Initial grant. This session will bridge the Initial grant deliverables with the next phase in the Renewal grant to look ahead and plan together through the next three years. Audience: Audience: RC Directors and All Staff, GSC Directors, GS Parent Liaisons, ECSN Staff, MDE, ECIC

Meeting families where they are to meaningfully engage them in efforts to increase their capacity to support themselves and their families. Audience: RC Directors and All Staff, GSC Directors, GS Parent Liaisons, ECSN Staff, MDE, ECIC

In this session, Dr. Grant will introduce the idea of neurodevelopmental trauma, how it occurs and how it changes the brains of young children. She will also introduce information on how traditional behavior management techniques may be ineffective and how the COVID pandemic serves as a generational trauma event. Audience: RC Directors and All Staff, GSC Directors, GS Parent Liaisons, ECSN Staff, MDE, ECIC

One of the most powerful and impactful ways to build equitable relationships and create psychologically safe spaces for transformational conversations is through conscious, authentic listening. Many people unconsciously listen to respond instead of listening to reflect caring, understanding and empathy. Yet, from our experiences and from research it is known that groups with quality human connections are most collaborative, productive and satisfied.
Margaret Wheatley, organization developer and human systems guru, has repeatedly espoused that, “ In organizations, real power and energy is generated through relationships. The patterns of relationships and the capacities to form them are more important than tasks, functions, roles, and positions. “
Mindful paraphrasing is the selfless practice of being present for another. It conveys to the speaker a genuine intention to be in relationship and create shared meaning. Audience: RC Directors and All Staff, GSC Directors, GS Parent Liaisons, ECSN Staff, MDE, ECIC

Join the Kids Count team to gain a better understanding of community level data. We’ll review multiple data sources to help you find and understand outcome areas for children, young adults and their families as it relates to economic security, health and safety, education, family and community. Audience: GSC Directors and Parent Liaisons

Positive thinking leads to positive outcomes! Positive strengths-based energy is essential for creating vibrant learning communities where children, families,, and educators can thrive. This workshop series is designed to support early childhood leaders and educators as they move through this period of stress and uncertainty due to the COVID 19 pandemic.

This course will provide an in-depth understanding of current positive psychology research to inspire participants as they reopen their programs. We will explore how these ten forms of positivity can re-energize your work:
Joy - Gratitude - Serenity - Inspiration - Interest
Hope - Pride - Amusement - Awe - Love

The overarching goal is to support the providers as they develop new strengths-based skills to support children and families. The vital importance of modeling positivity in daily actions will be a key focus of our interactive work together.

A well-researched resource list, including books, articles, videos, and podcasts will be shared to help participants facilitate their independent learning. Audience: RC Directors and All Staff, GSC Directors, GS Parent Liaisons, ECSN Staff, MDE, ECIC

Overview of Great Start to Quality, Michigan's Quality Rating Improvement System. Audience: RC Directors and All Staff, GSC Directors, GS Parent Liaisons, ECSN Staff, MDE, ECIC

Join us for a moment of reflection on the day's sessions and the overall event. Evaluations will be sent via survey monkey after this session. Audience: All Participants