Professional Development

WEBINAR: The Healing Power of Play and Optimism

Optimism is powerful. When human beings strengthen their ability to see and focus on the goodness and value in themselves, others, and the world around them, their social, emotional and cognitive superpowers emerge. Optimism, however, is fragile. Chronic stress, fear and overwhelming adversity can weaken and destroy our capacity for optimism. This inspiring webinar helps Early Childhood Professionals discover the power of optimism to create safe, loving, joyful, and engaging environments where kids can heal, grow and thrive. Using research, humor and personal stories, it shares how practicing optimism can bring out the best in ourselves, our colleagues and our children.

2023 CNC Conference Session Recordings

Let’s keep the learning going… and growing! We have started to post session recordings on the CMAS website in the Learning Centre. Here’s a list of the conference session recordings that are now available for everyone!


WEBINAR – Art in the Trauma-Informed ECE Classroom: Process over Product

Open-ended art is a creative process of self-discovery that literally grows the brain. Why then, do many teachers deliver cookie-cutter crafts as art? Process art builds the brain in early childhood and serves to both calm the nervous system and release emotions. These calming and releasing functions have important implications for trauma-informed classrooms. Art is a safe way to experience choice and control, make our own decisions, take risks, and express our thoughts and feelings. In many ways, all art is self-discovery. This webinar will share key practices that to help reduce the use of cookie-cutter crafts in favor of true art that reflects children’s authentic thoughts and feelings.

Sing & Sign Webinar: Supporting Emerging Language Through Music, Sign Language, and Play

Join this interactive and informative presentation to learn simple steps to start signing with young children, key benefits, and easy ways to incorporate signing across the environments and routines of your day with young children!

Webinar: Trauma-Sensitive Care for Infants, Toddlers, and Twos

This webinar helps caregivers and advocates of young children recognize the many types of stress and maltreatment that infants, toddlers, and twos may experience, and know how to create positive caregiving environments that set children on a positive developmental trajectory. In it, you'll learn about the role of rhythm and movement in building healthy brains, the importance of predictable, consistent interactions, the key elements of an emotionally safe environment, and more!

WEBINAR: Reimagine Documentation to Support the Quest for Program Quality

The last two years have been challenging in terms of holding on to our values and intentions for our programs and for ourselves as professionals. This inspiring webinar explores how you can support the use of documentation to help educators refresh their thinking about practice, gain insight into children’s actions, and continue to learn. Participants will uncover how documentation can become a form of professional learning, and how raw documentation is possible – despite the challenges!!


WEBINAR: Supporting Trauma-Informed Play to Facilitate Healing in Early Childhood Programs

Play and play based learning are important for healthy growth and development of all children and is especially important for children with a history of trauma. This webinar session, presented by child development and trauma specialist, Dr. Barbara Sorrels, will focus on the benefits of play to healthy brains and bodies and will include practical strategies for creating effective play-based classrooms to help children flourish and heal.

WEBINAR: Culture and Challenging Behaviour

Like the children in our care, every educator is different. We come from different contexts and cultures, and everything we think, say, and do is processed through the filter of our own culture. Culture influences our values, beliefs, gender roles, family structures, language, and even our teaching styles. The ability to understand and celebrate differences is more important now than ever. In this webinar, Barbara Kaiser will talk about the importance of cross-cultural competence, and explore the dynamics of culture in shaping educators’ expectations and children’s behaviour.

CMAS Webinar: Supporting Newcomer Children through Active Play–Teaming up with Active for Life!

Incorporating physical literacy into your daily programming can be easy and inexpensive – and it can bring such a range of benefits for children, ECEs, and families!

When young children engage in physical literacy and active play, they can better cope with stress, build resilience, and start on their path toward a healthy and active life. 

Watch this webinar where Dawne Clark, PhD, Early Years Physical Literacy discusses:

  • What physical literacy (PL) and active play look like in the early years
  • The benefits of PL and active play for children, educators, and families
  • “Infusing” PL into everyday activities 
  • How to get children moving again and active for life after the pandemic
  • The Active for Life website, tools and resources

WEBINAR: Happiness in the “Baby Room”: Supporting the Well-Being of Infant-Toddler Care Professionals

Happiness and well-being can have a huge impact on the adults and children who spend their days in infant rooms. In this webinar, participants will learn an ‘action plan’ of concrete tips for not only supporting play-based learning for the babies, but also ideas for creating a sense of community belonging, safety and security, and professional identity for your CNC team.