Event: ECDA's Start With Play Fall Conference 2026

Exp 09 PM: The Power of Play & From Hello to Harmony: Building and Maintaining Positive Communications with Families

Morning Session: “Children in PEI are healthy and happy, curious and creative, playful and joyous.” (PEI Early Learning Framework, 2011)

As early childhood educators we know that play holds fundamental value for development and is key to children’s learning. Easy to say but can be harder to implement in practice. Outside pressures, which used to focus on academics, now include many other demands which can affect our ability to keep play at the center of our practice.Through activities and facilitated discussion, participants will explore their relationship with play and brainstorm ways to break barriers keeping play as a key focus of daily practice.

Come play, reflect and learn together in a session that will support you to revitalize the full power of play as you achieve PEI’s vision for children.

Afternoon Session: “Any relationship is a living thing that grows and changes over time” (Zero to Three) and we know that relationships with families are an important cornerstone of a high-quality early learning and childcare environment.  We also know that communication is the key to making any partnership work. So why does communication with families seem difficult?

Through interactive discussions we will explore together the communication challenges common in early learning and childcare environments such as time constraints, effective methods of communication and having difficult conversations (with families, peers, management).

These challenges will be viewed through the lens of the primary elements of positive communication, factors that may cause barriers to communication and how the early learning and childcare environment functions in the support of positive communication through their vision, expectations and policies.

Date: November 5, 2026
Time: 1:00 PM
Location: PM: Holman Grand: Beach and Dunes