In Defense of Childhood – Play and Active Learning in Urban Schools - Conference on March 13, 2010

Schedule of events:

8:30 – 9:00:    Registration and coffee

9:00 – 10:15:   Opening session

• Welcome – Beverly Falk
• Tribute to Lillian Weber – Hubert Dyasi
• Introduction to the topic of play and active learning – William Crain "Crisis in the Kindergarten" - a report from conference co-sponsor, the Alliance for Childhood - Joan Almon and Ed Miller
• Keynote speaker - Joan Lombardi, Deputy Assistant Secretary and Inter-Departmental Liaison for Early Childhood Development, Administration for Children and Families in the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
  
  "The Importance of Play and Active Engagement in the Lives of Children:  What We Know and What We Need"
  

10:30 – 12:00:  Morning workshops
Workshop Descriptions

12:00 – 1:00:  Lunch and vendor display in lobby outside of Aronow Theater (Vendors will be present throughout the day)

1:00 – 2:30:  Afternoon workshops
Workshop Descriptions

2:45 – 4:00:  Closing session

Film screening:  "When Learning Comes Naturally" by Jonathan Diamond Associates
This documentary profiles the efforts of four schools in New York, New Jersey, and California to introduce children to the natural world and to encourage them—through play, classroom activities, exploration, and their own creative work—to make a lasting connection to the environment.

Question and answers led by panel:  Rachel Grob, Director, The Child Development Institute, Sarah Lawrence College
Sara Wilford, Director, The Art of Teaching Graduate Program, Sarah Lawrence College
William Crain, Professor, The City College of New York
Yvonne Smith, Teacher, Central Park East 1 Elementary School, New York City

Special Performance:  Students from the Harlem School of the Arts

To register for the conference, click here

Directions to the Campus
Parking will be available at the campus lot on 135th Street between Amsterdam and Convent Avenues.