Branch Program Ideas

Reprinted from Committee Columns in the ACEI Exchange



Making Cultural Connections Through Ethnic Toys in the Classroom

Early childhood teachers and educators in the state of Virginia have realized that multicultural education must be more than incorporating a week-long theme on Mexico or China. They have realized that multicultural awareness for young children needs to be naturally accomplished through play activities. Allowing children to play and grow in a multicultural environment that includes authentic toys will expose them to other cultures in a natural way. They also will develop a deeper respect and curiosity toward different cultures while they play with multicultural toys. This optimal learning environment helps children to develop aesthetic perceptions about different cultures.

In addition, they will appreciate both the diverse cultural heritages brought to the classroom by other students and their families, and being part of an increasingly pluralistic society. The ideal results will be less ethnocentrism, and improved intercultural consciousness and race relations. Multicultural exposure for young children starts by providing classrooms with toys and games from around the world. Teachers can make learning in this type of classroom child-initiated, making the experience more fun, interesting, and developmentally appropriate for young children.

For instance, while children are playing with toys and games from Asia, they can learn to recognize various countries from that continent. From this point, teachers can introduce different races, cultures, values, languages, and traditions among Asian ethnic groups, helping their students to be aware of the diverse societies of Asia. Efforts to expose children to various Asian cultures can help reduce the American tendency to stereotype.

As students gain more knowledge about different Asian countries, they will have a better psychological foundation to accept students from Asia. This approach can help eliminate students' automatic assumption that all Asians are Chinese. By including ethnic toys and games from various Asian countries in early childhood classrooms, it is easy to maintain a multicultural atmosphere.

In this environment, children from Asia will see their culture reflected in the school curriculum. They can feel that the values and traditions of their culture are respected. The children, both native born and immigrant, will be able to distinguish various countries in Asia, and to promote positive attitudes toward different Asian cultures.
--Lea Lee, Diversity Concerns Committee



Spreading the Word About ACEI

One goal of the Portland, Oregon, ACEI Branch is to make their education community aware of ACEI and its mission. To realize this goal, Branch members implemented the following ideas through-out the year--in alternating schools and districts.

Each fall, the Branch sponsors an event to help teachers become acquainted with field trip opportunities in their city. A Branch committee selects a different museum each year and arranges a tour. Over the past years, the Branch has visited such places as the Oregon Museum of Science and Industry, The End of the Trail Museum (which highlights events that took place on the Oregon Trail), and the ChildrenÕs Museum. In addition, teachers were invited to a new teacher resource center, The TeacherÕs Space. The Portland Branch sent fliers to teachers in their school system and offered a free tour to the first 50 registrants.

Another awareness opportunity for the Branch is the Week of the Classroom Teacher. Since it is impossible to reach each individual teacher in the Port-land School District, the Branch members decided to target clusters of schools. One cluster was chosen each year, and in 1999, the Branch will have completed one full cycle. In celebration of this special week, Branch members send teachers individual let-ters of appreciation, thanking them for the time and effort that they give their students. The letter explains that ACEI sponsors the celebration, out-lines our mission, and gives a number to call for more information. The letters, and ACEI pencils, are delivered to the school secretary at each school in the cluster. As a result of this project, the Branch always receives several calls about ACEI, as well as many expressions of thanks.

To underwrite the cost for these projects, the Branch holds an annual garage sale. In addition to providing much-needed funds, this event also is an opportunity for members to socialize while preparing the materials for the Week of the Classroom Teacher.

For further information about this Branch's activities, contact Margaret Olson, 3250 NE 158th, Portland, OR 97230; 503-254-2729.
--Nancy E. Miller, Chair, ACEI Program Development Committee



ACEI Is Looking for a Few Good Members

ACEI is looking for educators who are dedicated to a holistic, child-centered approach to education, one that considers the child's experiences in the home, school, community, and world. If you know people like that, share with them your excitement about ACEI. Start by telling them the reasons you got involved. Your enthusiasm will be catching.

Next, share our mission . . .
  1. To promote the inherent rights, education, and well-being of all children in their homes, schools, and communities
  2. To work for desirable conditions, programs, and practices for children from infancy through early adolescence
  3. To bring into active cooperation all individuals and groups concerned with children
  4. To raise the standard of preparation for those actively involved with the care and development of children
  5. To encourage the continuous professional growth of educators
  6. To focus the public's attention on the rights and needs of children, and on the ways various programs must be adjusted to fit those rights and needs.

Tell them a little about our history.
ACEI was founded in 1892 as the International Kindergarten Union (IKU), making it the first organization of its kind. In 1931, the IKU and the National Council of Primary Education (founded in 1916) joined together to become the Association for Childhood Education. "International" was added in 1946 as an indication of the Association's growing concern for children throughout the world.

Tell early childhood educators that ACEI was one of only three education organizations that helped establish a nationwide program for the training, assessment, and credentialing of Child Development Associate (CDA) candidates.
ACEI played a pivotal role to ensure that the competencies, assessments, and credentialing required of CDA candidates would contribute to quality professional programs for children.

Let educators know how we work with other organizations.
ACEI has consultative status with UNICEF and UNESCO. ACEI is a non-governmental organization (NGO) member of the United Nations and two of our members represent ACEIÕs interests at UN meetings. ACEI also has a strong affiliation with the Alliance for Curriculum Reform (ACR), Organization Mondiale pour L'Education Prescolaire (OMEP), National Committee on the Rights of the Child, Council of Organizations for the Professional Preparation of Educators (COPPE), National Teacher of the Year Program, Educational Resources Information Center (ERIC), Elementary and Early Childhood Education (EECE Partner), and Maryland Association of Nonprofit Organizations.

Inform college or university faculty that ACEI is a constituent member of the National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education (NCATE) and currently holds seats on the Unit Accreditation Board (UAB) and Board of Appeals. Fifty-two ACEI members voluntarily review the folios of institutions with elementary programs to ensure that they consistently meet NCATE guidelines.

Tell teachers that ACEI supports recognition, respect, and empowerment for the professional childhood educator.
ACEI annually designates the first full week of May as the "Week of the Classroom Teacher." The celebration was created to remind teachers that ACEI appreciates their hard work and tireless dedication.
--ACEI, Director of Membership


ACEI Midwest Regional Conference a Success

The ACEI Midwest Regional Conference united five Midwestern states: Arkansas, Kansas, Oklahoma, Missouri, and Nebraska. Held at the Kansas City Community College, the conference, titled "Celebrating Connections with Children," included 13 workshops, as well as a Hall of Excellence.

The keynote speech, by ACEI President James Hoot, was "Teachers Making a Difference in Troubled Times." He challenged the conference attendees to develop and reflect a positive attitude about the teaching profession.

Another highlight of the conference was an informal book-signing session with Bill Martin, author of Brown Bear, Brown Bear and Polar Bear, Polar Bear. Many conference attendees expressed their appreciation for the opportunity to visit with such a special author. One attendee commented, "It is nice to hear a great speaker, but it is really special to be able to sit down and visit with him, ask questions, and share your appreciation for his wonderful works through the years."

Everyone who attended the conference was able to experience the feel of an ACEI Annual Conference on a smaller scale. The Branch Conference Committee hopes that the conference allowed nonmembers to become more aware of ACEI's benefits, and thus be motivated to join the Association.

At the conclusion of the conference the committee voted to use the surplus funds from this conference toward the next Midwest Regional Conference.
--Vera Spencer, Conference Chair, Vinita Hoffman, Treasurer, and Dorothy Pazdera, Secretary


Embedding Our Constitution and Mission in Our Branch Activities

ACEI is composed of individuals who take the ACEI constitution to heart, making the world a better place for children, families, and the educators who serve them. Therefore, ACEI members tend to be some of the busiest people in our communities, actively involved in the lives of children and youth. We tend to be involved in other professional, community, and religious organizations as well. With so many opportunities to serve, we sometimes find ourselves overwhelmed.

One way to provide service, and yet have some strength for the journey and for our own families, is to work cooperatively with other organizations with similar or related missions. This spirit of cooperation is part of our mission "to bring into active cooperation all individuals and groups concerned with children."

Mary Randall, Branch Facilitator of the University of Kentucky student group, notes that their Branch often follows this constitutional charge as they collaborate in other UK events, such as the "Walk Against Child Abuse." They also work with the Board of Student Organizations to coordinate efforts. Branches outside of the university setting may collaborate with other organizations, such as a local reading council, or with community groups, such as an after-school program with a church or synagogue. The Annual Conference sets a good example by always including OMEP, and by providing NCATE sessions.

As each Branch thinks about projects and activities in its planning sessions, it is good to be creative and to add avenues for special caring without overwhelming your members. In addition to collaborative projects, each Branch needs some activities to sponsor. A Branch could adopt one main project, with mini-projects integrated into the theme. For example, a Branch could adopt a school or a child care center as "The Project" for the year. Members could sign up for specific projects related to the main theme, like a story time or craft time, or become individual pen pals with the students or their families. The pen pals could write twice a month to a designated child or family, sharing positive quotes and stories, giving words of encouragement, and even offering ideas for conflict resolution and/or positive parenting. Little things mean a lot. Knowing that "someone out there" is thinking about a child or family can make a positive difference.

With each ACEI Branch choosing activities that "promote the inherent rights, education, and well-being of all children in home, school, and community," the world is a better place for children and youth. In addition, participation in Branch activities increases when we do things that make a positive impact, since we do believe in our ACEI mission statement. Think about how your Branch can turn these words into action. Together, we can "work for desirable conditions, programs, and practices for children from infancy through early adolescence," and make a positive difference in our world.
--Merribeth D. Bruning, Chair, Program Development Committee


Eastern Illinois University ACEI Branch Sponsors Events for Its Community

Recently, Eastern Illinois University's ACEI Branch has been expanding their involvement within the community. On April 17, the Branch co-sponsored a Unity Walk throughout their campus in conjunction with another campus group, the Haiti Connection. All of the money collected from pledges will go to help Haiti, which is the third poorest country in the world and the poorest in the Western Hemisphere. ACEI Branch members earmarked all of their donations to go toward helping education efforts in Haiti. The money raised will be used to build schools, supply books and other school materials, and pay for educators.

Other community activities that Eastern Illinois University Branch has been involved in are mini-courses and a Dr. Seuss family fun night. The mini-courses are after-school programs for elementary students that are taught by ACEI members. The classes meet once a week for four weeks. Some of our classes include volleyball, pi–ata making, creative writing, and nutrition and physical fitness. We have had excellent attendance and the children love the classes.

Two days after Dr. Seuss's birthday, the Branch participated in a family fun night at the local elementary school. The night featured a number of fun-filled activities. There were seven different Dr. Seuss-related rooms for the families to visit. The night concluded with a birthday cake celebration.
--Kristen Savage, President, Eastern Illinois University ACEI Branch


Jump-starting a Branch

Many of you may be aware of the tremendous competition among education associations to attract members and attendees to special events. Many ACEI Branches, in fact, say they are looking for ways to maintain their growth. The Washington Metro ACEI Branch has identified some features that the education community expects from a Branch's special events. They found that in order to attract participants, professional programs and workshops must enhance attendees' resumes, provide useful staff development programs, create a network of colleagues with similar perspectives, and offer access to a group of cooperative individuals with whom to work. The Washington Metro ACEI Branch designed their programs to facilitate these needs as follows.

First, the Executive Board of the Washington Metro ACEI Branch revised its mission, as well as its procedures, to reach its goal. The Board itself is made up of teacher educators from different segments of the education community: universities, public schools, private schools, Head Start, and child care facilities. To help the Board maintain its focus, it was necessary to know the audience, hold everyone's attention, and provide programs that address issues that meet the needs of a varied population. To do this, it was necessary to establish a Branch platform. Three premises guided their planning:
After the initial reorganization process of the Board and redefinition of its goals, the Branch truly "jump-started" the workshop atmosphere by inviting renowned educators to be guests and keynote presenters. Some other concepts that added to the success of the workshops include:
By focusing on instructional themes, offering small professional development programs, and introducing new approaches to teaching, the Washington Metro ACEI Branch's workshops have continued to be successful. They found that participants especially favored workshops held in a school, rather than a hotel, because the individual classroom became an additional attraction. The Branch was surprised to learn that the majority of the participants were not ACEI members, but several were eager to join the Association.

Reinvigorated by this newfound vitality and improved financial footing, the Washington Metro ACEI Branch continues to sponsor professional programs for its community.

Note: ACEI provides a list of suggested guest lecturers.
Nancy E. Miller, Chair, Program Development Committee


Why Did You Join ACEI?

Why did I join ACEI? It is good to ask ourselves that question occasionally. Perhaps the purpose statement and philosophy struck a chord within you. You want to "promote the inherent rights, education, and well-being of children. . . ." Perhaps it was the "I" in ACEI, because you realize that we all belong to a global community; what affects one, ultimately affects all. However you answer the question, you can make a personal and professional investment in ACEI that pays dividends for the children whose lives are helped by you and other ACEI members.

As you plan activities that have meaning, relevance, and purpose, try these ideas in whatever continent your ACEI Branch is located. Working together can build professional collegiality, spread information, and give encouragement for others working as advocates for children and youth. Set your goals, plan the procedures to meet them, and evaluate the results. Then, plan some more!

Ideas for Mini Conferences
Invite local educators and political figures to a Gentler World Workshop. Identify ways to work for peace in homes, neighborhoods, villages, and cities. Discuss positive guidance strategies as a place to start. Ideas drawn from courses in conflict resolution and peaceful communication may help. School guidance counselors can be great resources.

Create a Multicultural Panel to share information and address questions about local cultures. Ask panelists to focus on information that could benefit teachers working in area schools. In the discussion, include special community activities and traditions, taking care to avoid stereotyping. Local religious institutions are often a resource for multinational and multicultural representatives.

Hold an all-day curriculum fair. Invite educators with expertise in various curricula and have rotating sessions for participants.

Thematic Monthly Meetings
Create a Millennium Time Line. Divide the last 1,000 years into centuries. Discuss particular attitudes and issues that have affected children in each century. Play charades to identify famous child advocates from your country, as well as those from around the globe. Set some goals for your local Branch to make a difference in the immediate future.

Hold informal discussion groups. This is an especially good idea for college/university Branches. Choose current topics in education. Have a panel share some research information. Allow free discussion about the issue--without the stress of grades!

Focus on global issues for children. Eileen Bayer, Nancy Brown, and Lynn Stalely, the official ACEI representatives to the United Nations, can provide resource information. They can be contacted through ACEI Headquarters.

Service Projects
Branch members can go to extended school programs to do activities with children: read books, create crafts, provide music, or just listen to children. Retired members of the Branch can volunteer in community classrooms by reading with students of all literacy levels, thereby freeing the classroom teacher to assist others.

Fundraisers
Design a local ACEI logo. Have local craft persons use the design to make jewelry, shirts, book bags, etc. (These can be sold at the Annual Conference and help defray the conference costs as well!)

Create homemade goodies and sell them at a local community event. Or hold a silent auction with minimum bids. An Ethnic Food Fair could be a delicious and profitable event.

Do you want other ideas? Think of all the resources available to you. Some of the greatest sources are the friends you meet at the Annual Conference from all over the world. Just E-mail, write, or call them. It will leave you smiling and full of new ideas.
--Nancy Brown, Sue Martin, Resa Reed, and Merribeth D. Bruning, Program Development Committee


Growing a Strong Branch

A Branch with purpose and plans is a Branch that can grow and blossom! Assess the strength of your Branch. Evaluate what is happening in the following three areas: programs for Branch meetings, service activities, and fundraising. You may want to try something a little bit different. Here are some ideas:

Journal-based Programs
Use developmental newsletters and Childhood Education as a starting point for programs. Select an article, appoint a moderator, and invite people from both inside and outside of the Branch (i.e., a principal, pediatrician, family counselor) to participate in a panel discussion. Assign teams and have a debate on an issue, such as inclusion.

Service Activities
Mini-projects can make a positive difference. "Adopt" a family in need and create a special holiday gift. One Branch provided a special Easter basket for the children of a single mom. The baskets included books, educational toys, pencils, markers, and treats. Another Branchcontacted a local middle school guidance counselor to get the names of two students who needed some extra grooming supplies. The items were obtained and placed in trendy containers, then delivered to the guidance office.

Fundraisers
Among other things, fundraisers allow a Branch, to help serve others and help some of its members attend ACEI's Annual Conference. Fundraisers also can build rapport within the Branch. Book fairs and bake sales are good, time-tested ideas, but have you thought of an auction that sells off services and homemade items? One of your Branch members may be the "Best Brownie Baker," for example. For the auction, have that person auction off two dozen of his or her famous brownies to the top bidder. Another member may be an amateur photographer who could frame a print of a wildflower and offer it for bid at the auction. Yet another member may give private music instruction, and could donate four lessons. A cake auction also can be fun and profitable. To accomplish this, advertise the auction in the teachers' lounge of area schools, or in teacher education departments in colleges and universities. For this auction, each Branch member bakes a specialty cake. Be sure to advertise the fundraiser's purpose, such as providing scholarship money.

You can nurture a healthy Branch and ensure its continued growth through constructive pro-grams, selecting service projects that are meaningful, and holding creative fundraisers. For more information on how to stimulate a Branch's growth, contact Merribeth D. Bruning,
--Nancy E. Miller, Program Development Committee Chair


Listen to Their Voices of Need:
Branches Helping Branches

Many established ACEI Branches are searching for ways to increase their membership, promote effective classroom teaching and further enhance their participation in our professional organization. Fine-tuning our senses to the needs of those around us is likely to be the key to successful ACEI Branch programs. In order to assess those needs, we should take a moment and reflect on what we have heard other members say that they value about our Association.

One such Branch to listen to is the University of Tennessee at Martin ACEI (UTM ACEI). Student members there have attended each Annual Conference since 1994. They found that the most helpful conference activities for fostering professional growth included the student "Make-and-Take" event, student presentations, Student Committee meetings and the Hall of Excellence. The students found these experiences to be both informative and rewarding. They valued being able to actively participate and to have their voices heard and respected throughout the Association. Some members reflected on their conference experience by contributing articles to ACEIÕs student member newsletter, The Student Connection.

Branches can learn from listening to their members, and watching their successes and frustrations. In response, Branches can design creative ways to both promote ACEI and help another Branch. One idea is for established Branches to sponsor a mini conference, and encourage student Branches to submit presentation proposals. The conference should include a Hall of Excellence, where both teachers and pre-teachers can display lessons they have developed. Remember, even college students are developing lessons and writing stories for their methods courses and practicum classes, as well as for student teaching assignments.

Writing with a purpose is as important for young teachers as it is for their students. A second idea is for a Branch to sponsor a newsletter that includes articles, ideas and educational information. By including more than just news, a Branch can provide a forum for young professionals whereby they gain valuable insight into publishing their research, as well as an opportunity to share their reflections on Branch activities. Branches will need to design their newsletter, publish a call for all of the columns, review and select articles and, finally, publish the newsletter. To help cover expenses, the UTM ACEI Branch sold advertisements and accepted donations.

The goal of a Branch should be to not only enlighten their community to the position ACEI takes regarding quality education, but also encourage its members to attend an Annual International Conference and become part of ACEI's worldwide professional community. To quote our president, Jim Hoot, "I was a half-baked member until I attended my first conference and felt the genuine caring, competence, commitment and power of such an affiliation."

Branches can help their members gain enough self-confidence at the local level to participate and get involved at the national/international level. This can be accomplished by helping Branches establish quality programs, encouraging members to attend a national conference, and assisting and challenging members to get involved at the national level.

--Nancy E. Miller, Chair, Program Development Committee


Content Copyright 2002 by the Association for Childhood Education International. All rights reserved


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