Create responsive and enriched early learning environments 

Early childhood educators play a critical role in building the language, literacy and social skills that prepare young children for lifelong success.  

If your role includes training or consulting to educators, the Learning Language and Loving It™ workshop can provide you with a proven framework to ensure that they have the skills to support all children’s learning – including children who are typically developing, have or are at risk for language delays, or are second-language learners.

You’ll gain a research-based coaching framework that maximizes educators’ ability to apply what they learn in different contexts and to continue to use their new skills over the long-term. 

Naturalistic and evidence-based strategies  

Young children learn best when adults tune in to their interests and communication, and respond in ways that encourage conversation. At the Learning Language and Loving It workshop, you learn how to support educators’ learning and application of three sets of powerful responsive-interaction strategies:  

1. Child-oriented – To encourage children to initiate and engage in conversational interactions.
2. Interaction-promoting – To encourage extended individual and group conversations.
3. Language-modelling – To expand children’s oral language skills and encourage the development of decontextualized language skills.

By the end of this workshop, you’ll be able to:

• Provide effective, state-of-the-art group training to educators through Learning Language and Loving It™ – The Hanen Program® for Early Childhood Educators/Teachers, which integrates the principles of language facilitation with a child centered approach to early childhood education.
• Lead Learning Language and Loving It™ – The Hanen Program® for Early Childhood Educators/Teachers, which addresses prevention of language delays, early language intervention and language enrichment in early childhood settings.
• Provide educators with strategies to promote social, language and literacy development in one-to-one and group interactions with children who are typically developing, are second language learners, have language delays, or are at risk for language delay.
• Help educators create enriched, interactive language-learning environments in play and daily routines.
• Utilize principles of adult education to provide teachers with the necessary knowledge and skills to create optimal language learning environments for all children.
• Plan and conduct interactive group sessions in the Learning Language and Loving It Program.
• Assess videos of teacher-child interactions in terms of teachers’ application of responsive strategies and provide constructive, informative feedback to teachers to facilitate generalization of strategy use.
• Evaluate videos of interactions in terms of application of responsive strategies using the Teacher Interaction and Language Rating Scale.

Certification

This workshop certifies you to:

1. 1. Lead the Learning Language and Loving It Program for Early Childhood Educators

   This intensive, evidence-based program supports educators to adopt the kinds of responsive-interaction strategies that are most powerful in building language, literacy and social skills. It includes a combination of small group learning sessions and individual video feedback sessions.

   • Learn more about the program
   • Read the research behind the program

2. 2. Use Learning Language and Loving It program materials in one-to-one contexts

   You can apply all the program materials and activities to your one-to-one coaching sessions with educators. 

3. 3. Offer Learning Language and Loving It online 

   Your certification includes a license and resources to deliver the program online to groups of educators. The online version of Learning Language and Loving It maintains all the best practice elements of Hanen’s programs, including discussion and practice opportunities.

4. 4. Obtain a Teacher Talk™ license

   Teacher Talk is a flexible series of shorter trainings that introduce educators to the key strategies of the Learning Language and Loving It program.  A Teacher Talk license qualifies you to offer these trainings both in person and online. Learn more about Teacher Talk.

Once certified, you will gain access to:

Learning Language and Loving It Making Hanen Happen Leaders Guide 

A session-by-session guide to leading the program, including handouts for use in both program and one-to-one contexts.

Learning Language and Loving It Online Program Materials

Resources to deliver the Learning Language and Loving It Program to groups of educators online. 

Learning Language and Loving It PowerPoint slides 

Newly updated presentation slides for the entire program, including real-life video examples of Learning Language and Loving It strategies used in a variety of early childhood settings with a variety of children and educators.

Teacher Interaction and Language Rating Scale  

A useful video observation rating tool to evaluate educators' use of the Learning Language and Loving It strategies before and after the program. 

Learning Language and Loving It Online Member Resource Centre   

Take advantage of resources that provide opportunities to refresh or refine your practice – e.g. live or recorded online member meetings; program delivery support; discounts on e-Seminars; translated program materials. 

What to expect at the workshop

Part 1: Self Study

Before the training, you'll complete a pre-workshop assignment to prepare you for full participation in the workshop. You’ll learn about the foundation of the Hanen approach, as well as the key principles of adult education, and you’ll familiarize yourself with the content of the Learning Language and Loving It program.

View the assignment details

Part 2: Live, online interactive training

In a small online group, you’ll participate in a series of interactive and personalized learning sessions. Each session includes discussion and small group practice activities, as well as the opportunity to reflect and receive feedback from your peers and the instructor.  Your instructor will guide you through the process of training educators in the context of a Learning Language and Loving It Program in a way that encourages lasting, meaningful changes in their interactions with children.

View the workshop agenda

Note on attendance:

Hanen Certification Workshops require participants to attend all days of the workshop in full, as indicated on the workshop registration page. Full attendance is required in order to be awarded certification and a license to offer the Learning Language and Loving It Program, as well as to obtain ASHA CEUs.