A YEAR IN REVIEW:
ANOTHER YEAR GONE BY…
And what an incredible one it’s been! From continuing ongoing Communities of Practice, to new speaker series, and another system-wide professional learning day! We are so thankful to have learned and grown alongside the amazing early childhood education and care professionals in our communities. It has certainly been one for the books.
Embracing Change and Novelty
This year has been chock-full of change and new beginnings.
The Strive team feels so lucky to have gained Kayla Barlett and Haille Ifabumuyi in the brand new Community Animator positions. Engaging community partners and working closely with the City of London’s Children Services and St. Thomas Children’s Services; their goal is to co-construct a sustainable, innovative, multi-pronged approach to mentorship by and for all early years professionals. Through surveys, face-to-face conversations, focus groups, and more, Kayla and Haille have highlighted essential aspects of how we can move forward in mentorship and professional learning journeys.
2023 was also the first time we planned a fully in-person system-wide professional learning day. The Courage to Care was by far our largest event to date, with 2,016 professionals and 86% of organizations attending across three venues. At an event as large as this, some hiccups are inevitable, but we are ecstatic to have had the opportunity to bring the entire sector together for a day of intentional learning, reflection, networking, and fun!
We can’t forget about Leading Inspired Learning: A Strive Podcast that launched in February! Conversations that jokingly arose in some Professional Learning Committee meetings turned into a huge success that has supported learning in such a unique way. There are currently 22 episodes, 12 minisodes, and over 4000 listens to date. WOW. We had no idea how you, the community, would react to us launching a podcast and we are overwhelmed with the positive response. It is obviously meeting a professional learning need for you and we are thrilled to continue to focus attention on bringing you episodes featuring local voices and the incredible work that is happening around us.
Last but not least, Strive is so thrilled that 2023 has brought us the opportunity to partner and work collaboratively with Oxford County and their Early Learning Professional Oxford (ELPO) committee! This partnership came partway through 2023 and the Strive team is looking forward to the blooming of this relationship in 2024.
Community Partners
In 2023, collaboration wasn’t just a buzzword, it was the heartbeat of all we offered at Strive. We have had the distinct privilege of partnering with The Licensed Child Care Network, Childreach, Fanshawe College, Growing Chefs, The Middlesex-London Health Unit, LAV Solutions, Wellness Together Canada to name a few.
These collaborations stand out namely because they speak of the immeasurable strength of community and immense professional expertise and knowledge that exists here in London, Middlesex, Elgin, and beyond.
We could not have done any of it without the support and guidance of our Advisory Committee, Professional Learning Committees, Childreach, and the ever supportive Child Care and Early Years teams with the city of London, County of Middlesex, Elgin County, and Oxford County. We are so grateful.
Stats
This year we have been a busy community. Via Strive, there has been:
63 professional learning opportunities
119.5 professional learning hours
1212 professionals that participated in professional learning opportunities
32 episodes of the Leading Inspired Learning podcast which includes:
848 podcast minutes
15 local professionals featured on the podcast
and well over 4000 listens to date
And these numbers do not include The Courage to Care system wide day!
Strive’s Favourite 2023 Professional Learning Offerings
Amy: My favourite professional learning offering from this year was the two-day-long opportunity with Drew Dudley called “More Than Words: Defining What Makes You a Leader”. In this session, we engaged in fun games, exercise, critical conversation, and personal reflection to uncover what our values are. For myself, many values arose that were never at the forefront of my mind and that I wouldn’t have thought were of the most value to me. After reflection, I can see how they’ve always been important to me subconsciously, and with Drew’s encouragement and tips, I now have small ways that I aim to live out each of my top 3 values every day. This session and my learnings from it haven’t left my mind since, but on top of my learnings, I absolutely loved spending these two days with other ECEC professionals, and as a group we laughed, got emotional, and built professional connections.
Kayla: My favourite professional learning opportunity of 2023 was The Courage to Care. This in-person system wide day was an opportunity that had our team thinking, researching, and trying new things. Yes, we hit some road bumps, but I think this really showed us our individual and group strengths, opportunities to grow, and helped us get to know our communities a little bit better. In addition to being a great team building opportunity for the Strive team, it was great to have an opportunity for all professionals in our community to have time to reflect on care in the many ways it may show in our work each day. Growing understanding that our own lived experiences impact our work with children in Dr. Tina Bonnett’s conversation, gaining strategies to support our own well-being with Mindful Mike, and being introduced to seasonal pedagogy as a framework for engaging in learning with children with Dr. Hopi Martin left me feeling curious, motivated, and eager to see what we will collectively do with this learning as a community.
Haille: My favourite professional learning of 2023 was recording the podcast episode “Episode 17: Cosy Cottage Conversations with Cindy Green and Diane Kashin”. In this episode, I sat, listened and spoke alongside 6 other amazing early years professionals, as we dug deeper into the meaning of mentorship and professional friendships, reflecting on themes found in Diane’s new book Cultivating Professional Friendships in Early Childhood Education. It was a wonderful day and recording session where we learned, laughed, and inspired one another, reinvigorating our passion for the early childhood education and care community. As a recent graduate and fairly new professional, it can be intimidating to share your voice and you’re not always sure if it will be heard and respected by more seasoned, knowledgeable colleagues. However, in this session, I felt that my voice and opinion mattered and the work I do as a professional matters. I also feel very fortunate to have met and learned alongside Diane and Cindy. They are true early years champions in our community, and their work and legacy will continue to impact our profession for years to come. What more could you want from a professional learning session?
Olivia: My favourite professional learning opportunities of 2023 were Mindfulness for Self Care with Mindful Mike and Educator Wellness: Yoga at Museum London. It is really hard for me to pick a favourite PL opportunity because I genuinely enjoyed them all, but what really stood out to me during these sessions were the beautiful environments we got to reconnect with ourselves in. As many of you know, the environment in which we learn has significant impact and it is no different for PL. During these sessions we were welcomed into bright, warm spaces at Boler Mountain and Museum London. The facilitators were kind, vibrant individuals that supported us in supporting ourselves through mindfulness practices and moving our bodies with grace and compassion. Since these opportunities I have continued to engage in mindfulness and yoga practices which allow me to reconnect with myself, stay grounded, and give myself love and compassion. For that, I am extremely grateful to have participated in both of these PL opportunities. By learning to care and support myself, I feel I can better care and support others. Slowly, but surely, I am learning to put my oxygen mask on first.
Ally: How do I possibly choose?! Courage to Care stands out to me because it was by far the most challenging experience for our team and the event we learned the most from. It was also the first time I had the pleasure of hearing Dr. Hopi Martin speak and he did not disappoint. Hopi, Melissa and Jaime brought such valuable experience and learning to us and I am so grateful. While it wasn’t the first time I heard Mike Massee speak, he never ceases to amaze me. The energy, passion, and storytelling he shares is so impactful. Dr. Tina Bonnett helped me reconsider my positionality in care. And my momma bear heart just burst with pride seeing Olivia up there sharing her work.
Other notable events: Dr Jody Carrington’s session on Feeling Seen, Reimagining Space Podcast Episode, and of course, anything we did with Darci Lang (huge fan girl over here)
Bre: There were so many fantastic opportunities this year that narrowing it down to one was nearly impossible. As I’m being asked to only put one, the stand out for me this year was Reading the Rainbow with Mela Swayze. Mela brought not only expertise, but also authenticity to the discussion and that led to rich, vulnerable discussions amongst participants. The room felt so full of love and understanding. It was a wonderful way to celebrate Pride in our community! Beyond all the warm fuzzies, we all walked away with some practical strategies and great book suggestions to support gender creative children and to have conversations about gender with the children, families, and communities we care for. The evening was completed with a Drag Story Time with our incredible friends at Childreach and donuts from Donut Diva!
Sara: This year has been full of incredible professional learning opportunities, and picking just one is beyond hard. However, the Literacy Conference was the Professional Learning event that took the cake for me. Bridget George and Erin Alladin were both engaging beacons of light that day. Both Erin and Bridget radiated enthusiasm about children's literature, and each brought compelling perspectives on the importance of children's reading and representation in literature. Erin brought her love for the outdoors, and while playing a game, I learned multiple interesting facts about nature. Bridget has a way of sparking imagination and wonder in everyone she meets. From moving and grooving with Erin to illustrating a page for a book with Bridget, the room was buzzing with creativity. I left feeling inspired, based on the energy in the room, everyone else left feeling enlightened about the importance and complexities within children's literature.
Thank You!
Throughout it all, the ups and the downs, the surprises, the joys, the challenges, the one constant has been YOU, the child care and early years community. Our most heartfelt thanks for numerous ways you show up alongside us and support us. Your dedication is remarkable.
Thank you for continuing to join us in Leading Inspired Learning. We look forward to connecting again in 2024!
Wishing you a happy, healthy, and restful holiday season,
