Let’s Work Together: Building Relationships with Families to Support Positive Behavior

About This Webinar:

Building a positive relationship with a child’s family that affirms their culture and identity is an important part of an early childhood practitioner’s job.  This webinar addresses ways practitioners can connect with and include families of young children with disabilities in identifying and implementing strategies to support positive behavior at school, childcare, and home.  Presenters share tips for navigating difficult conversations with families regarding challenging behavior.

Continuing Education (CE) Credit

Continuing Education

• Early Interventionists and Early Childhood Educators: This webinar offers 1.5 continuing education (CE) credits through the Early Intervention Training Program (EITP) at the University of Illinois through 6/30/2026.
• Illinois Early Care & Education Providers: This webinar is a Gateways to Opportunity Registry-approved Training for early care and education professionals in Illinois through 6/30/2026.

Presenter

Jessica Hardy received her Ph.D. in early childhood special education from Vanderbilt University and her M.Ed. and B.A. from the University of Florida.  She taught in Portland, OR as a Head Start teacher and an early childhood special education teacher.  Jessica’s primary research interests are supporting social-emotional development; evidence-based instructional practices, particularly for teaching early math and science; and early childhood coaching and professional development.

Alana Schnitz received her Ph.D. in early childhood special education from Vanderbilt University and her M.Ed. and B.S. also from Vanderbilt. Alana was a family counselor, behavior specialist, and has coached teachers in infant toddler and preschool classrooms. Alana’s research interests are supporting teachers and families to implement evidence-based practices around promoting social-emotional development and early language and literacy.

Intentional Design: Promoting Positive Behavior | Series

This four-part webinar series will focus on promoting positive behavior in young children. Throughout the series, our highly respected presenters will take us through important topics related to promoting positive behavior across home, preschool, and childcare settings for young children with and without disabilities.

Series Homepage

Event Materials

Webinar Slides (PDF)

Teaching Tools for Young Children with Challenging Behavior (from NCPMI)

Additional Resources (PDF)

Presenter Created Visuals (PDF)

Customizable Visuals (PPT)

Checklist of Effective Family Practices (PDF)

Family Culture & Identity Practices (PDF)

Feelings Cards (PDF)

Photo Credit: Pixabay.com/acky24