We Are All Language Learners! A Child-centered Family Literacy Workshop for Parents of 3-8 Year Olds
Date: Saturday, May 21, 2022
Time: 9:00-11:00 AM HST
Venue: Online via Zoom
Cost: FREE!
Join us in exploring the landscape of early literacy development! Together with progressive educators at Hanahau`oli School, you are invited to engage in a workshop to better understand how young children learn language, build/strengthen your child-centered mindset, and discover strategies for engaging with your child at their current stage of language-learning. We’ll also examine some of the worries or frustrations that may come with supporting young language-learners and offer insight on how children’s passions, interests, and curiosities can become a vehicle for learning. We hope participants will walk away with new, strength-based perspectives and strategies that can be used right away in the home setting.
This event is sponsored by Hui Hanahau'oli, who offers a number of Parent Enrichment activities to current families in the Hanahau'oli School community each year. Hui Hanahau’oli is extending their resources to parents in the greater community during this challenging and historic time, and invites you to join parents from near and far in our celebration of progressive education.
About the Presenters:
Kristin Baker is a teacher, parent, scientist, literacy scholar, writer, activist, artist, athlete, and language-learner. She began her professional career as a vaccine research scientist and has been “learning by doing” as a progressive educator since 2003, and as a parent since 2012. She has spent the bulk of her teaching career working with lower elementary students at independent, progressive elementary schools, including 6 years at Berkwood Hedge School in Berkeley, California and 7 years at The Park School of Baltimore in Maryland. From 2014-2020, Kristin studied literacy education as a graduate student at Loyola University Maryland while simultaneously guiding two “living laboratories” of literacy “scientists”–her first grade classroom at Park School and her own two young children at home. Kristin has taken on the role of language learner multiple times in her life–she lived and taught science classes in Nepali language for two years as a Peace Corps volunteer; studied Spanish formally and lived and traveled in Mexico, Costa Rica, and Spain; and traveled for several months in Brazil while independently studying Portuguese. These experiences have been an important part of developing a learner-centered, strength-based, growth mindset both as a teacher and learner. Kristin has earned a Bachelor of Science in Molecular and Cell Biology from U.C. Berkeley and a Masters of Education in Literacy from Loyola University. She is currently working as a Teacher Scholar on the faculty at Hanahau’oli School and has two “literacy scholars” – 4-year old Oscar and 9-year old Maeve – at home.
Michiko Sugiyama is the Coordinator of Learning Resources at Hanahau‘oli School. She spent her childhood in Northern California and West Tokyo, and has spent most of her life speaking both Japanese and English. After attending Soka University of America, she obtained her master’s degree at Teachers College, Columbia University in Elementary Inclusive Education. She worked in Integrated Collaborative Team Teaching classrooms as a Special Education teacher in a progressive public school, supporting and empowering diverse learners. After attending graduate school and teaching in NYC, she moved to Hawaii to join her husband and family. She started working at Hanahau‘oli in 2017. Michiko loves hula, going to the beach, and using her hands to create!