Abuse? Not Our Kids! Protecting Children from Abuse by Empowering Early Educators, Bridgid Normand, M.Ed. and Anastasia Vitovitz, M.Ed.

This webinar is sponsored by Second Step, an initiative of Committee for Children.

Those who work with children in daycare and preschool settings are uniquely positioned to make a big difference in the lives of the children and families they serve. Sadly, they can also often be some of the first to suspect or witness signs of child abuse and neglect. By introducing their students to personal safety rules and skills in clear and age-appropriate ways, they can help young children learn to recognize and report unsafe and abusive situations and touches. Children can then begin to understand boundaries with other children and with grown-ups in their lives. As preschool teachers and site managers introduce these skills, it’s important they understand why they’re teaching these skills and are comfortable discussing the topic with children, with each other, and with family members who may inquire about what’s being taught. Additionally, when they’re also trained to recognize in young children signs of child abuse or neglect including child sexual abuse, to know how to respond to disclosures of abuse, and to report if necessary, they can intervene to protect the children in their care.

Join Bridgid Normand, MEd, Director of Education and Learning at Committee for Children (creators of the Second Step Program), who will discuss age-appropriate ways to teach young children personal safety skills, training for teachers on how to respond to disclosure, and how to create support plans for children and families. Anastasia Vitovitz, MEd,  Snohomish County Early Childhood Education and Assistance Program  Coordinator, will share how she trains staff to communicate with and engage families in personal safety topics. You’ll also learn from Anastasia how she trains staff to recognize, respond to, and report child abuse in a network of nearly 80 early childhood classrooms.

Learning objectives:

• Identify  how to help young children learn to recognize and report unsafe and abusive situations and touches

• Describe  how to respond to disclosures of abuse by children

• Identify  how to provide support to children and families experiencing difficulties in their lives, including abuse

• Describe  how to communicate with and engage families in personal safety topics

• Describe effective ways to train staff  to recognize, respond and report  child abuse

All sessions are 1.5 hours long, and include a brief announcement from our sponsor. 2:oo PM – 3:30 PM Eastern Time. To ensure you receive confirmation and reminder emails, add [email protected] to your contacts list. If you do not receive your email confirmation, check your Spam or Junk mail folders in your email system. Can’t participate in our webinars at the appointed time? Never fear! All of the webinars are recorded. To view the recording, simply register now and you will receive an email with a link to the recording when it is ready to be viewed. You can still download the certificate by watching the recording to the end when the certificate link is announced and displayed on the screen.

Only 1,000 people at one time can attend our webinars, but registration often tops 4,000. Only the first 1,000 people to click the link to attend the webinar will be able to get in. We start the webinars 30 minutes in advance of the start time. Arrive early to make sure you get in.

Please be advised that you will only be eligible for the great door prizes if you participate in the live session. You can earn .2 CEUs for each webinar. The cost is $15 paid to University of Oklahoma online when you apply. Learn more here: Continuing Education Units (CEUs) from University of Oklahoma See the schedule of upcoming webinars.