Our apologies: This session is booked to capacity.
We are starting a waitlist. Email Helen.Wheelock@mail.cuny.edu to add your name to the list.

 Back by popular demand!

APPROACHING THE COMMON CORE STANDARDS: Interactive Storytelling and Emergent Literacy
in the Early Childhood Classroom (Level I)   

This FREE 5-Hour Professional Development has been developed with the support of the  NYC Dept. of Education Office of Early Childhood Education and JP Morgan/Chase Foundation.

Over the last five years, more than 1000 early childhood educators have participated in this training workshop, and the responses have been overwhelmingly positive:  

“I love coming to CAT and learning. Every time I come out feeling like I will be a better teacher.”

                                                                       -- Participating teacher

All participants earn a CUNY Certificate of Completion

DESCRIPTION: During this workshop, CAT facilitators will guide participants through a step-by-step process that will help them build an experiential and intellectual understanding of the power of oral storytelling in developing children's  listening, speaking and language skills as outlined in the Common Core Standards.

 

CAT facilitators will model three forms of oral storytelling for teachers to demonstrate the progression from written word to active engagement – reading a storybook, telling a story based on a book and storytelling that engages an audience both physically and verbally -- drawing specific links to how each form impacts a child's literacy skills.

CAT will then mentor the teachers as they develop, practice and refine an interactive storytelling of their own based one of two picture books.

Particular attention will be paid to strengthening each teacher’s storytelling skills and identifying how specific techniques of audience participation support early childhood literacy and English acquisition.

Thoughout the process, teachers will be asked to reflect on what they have led, give and receive constructive criticism, and discuss future applications. The overarching goals throughout are to help the teachers work in a student-centered manner, use effective questioning, explore how to encourage and incorporate student’s responses, and tap into their own creativity.

Participating teachers and sites will be eligible to receive an on-site mentoring residency. (Click here for a video). During the five-day residency, CAT's professional actor/teachers will model interactive storytelling in the classroom and support classroom teachers as they design and implement their own literacy-based and English acquisition interactive storytelling lesson plan.

PLEASE NOTE: This five-hour professinal development workshop will be repeated 5 times this fall, so a teacher should only attend ONE session. You can send as many teachers to as many sessions as you would like at NO COST to your site.

Led by Helen Wheelock, Director of the Early Learning Program

Register Now! 

 CAT (CUNY - Creative Arts Team) uses the power of drama to inspire lives. 
Click here to learn more.