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 equips you to do more than share strategies – it prepares you to coach educators to use these strategies intentionally during their everyday classroom routines and activities. You’ll help them recognize that the most powerful interactions often happen in small groups – and how to create these opportunities, even in larger classrooms.

You’ll gain a research-based coaching framework to support educators in embedding social, language and literacy strategies into everyday routines, so they can effectively support all children, including those with or at risk for language delays and second-language learners.

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:

• Deliver engaging professional learning using Learning Language and Loving It, equipping educators with practical, child-centred strategies they can use right away. 
• Lead Learning Language and Loving It and the flexible Teacher Talk™ Training Series to support prevention of language delays, early intervention, and language enrichment in early childhood settings. 
• Support educators in promoting social, language and early literacy development in one-to-one and small group interactions for all children, including children who are typically developing, second language learners, have language delays, or are at risk for language delay.
• Help educators create language-rich environments during play and everyday routines. 
• Apply adult learning principles to ensure strategies are understood, applied, and sustained over time. 
• Plan and lead interactive professional development sessions that promote reflection, discussion, and real-world application. 
• Analyze teacher–child interactions and support educator self-reflection, providing clear, constructive feedback to guide changes in practice.
• Use the Teacher Interaction and Language Rating Scale, a validated outcome measure, to track improvements in educators’ interactions.

Certification

This workshop certifies you to:

1. Lead the Learning Language and Loving It Program for Early Childhood Educators/Teachers
   Deliver this intensive, evidence-based program that supports educators to adopt the kinds of responsive-interaction strategies that are most powerful in building young children’s language, literacy and social skills. The program combines interactive small group learning sessions with individual video feedback sessions to promote meaningful, sustained changes in educators’ practice.
   Learn more about the program
   Read the research behind the program
   
   
2. Use Learning Language and Loving It program materials in one-to-one coaching

   Apply all the program materials and activities within individualized coaching sessions with educators, allowing you to tailor support to educators’ specific goals and classroom contexts. 

3. Offer Learning Language and Loving It in-person and/or online 

   Your certification includes a license and resources to deliver the full program in-person or online to groups of educators, while including key elements such as discussion, practice and reflection opportunities.

4. Deliver the Teacher Talk™ training series

   Gain a license to offer the flexible Teacher Talk Training Series, consisting of high impact trainings that cover 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, making it easy to provide accessible professional learning. 
   Learn more about Teacher Talk

5. Facilitate the "Sharing Sensitive News" training session
   Using the presentation materials provided, equip educators with practical, compassionate strategies for talking with parents about concerns regarding their child’s development – an essential but often challenging part of their role.

Once certified, you will gain access to:

Making Hanen Happen Leaders Guide 

A structured, session-by-session guide with integrated handouts to support both group programs and individualized coaching – saving planning time while maximizing educator outcomes.

Flexible Delivery Materials (In-Person & Online)

Everything you need to deliver the program in-person or virtually, making it easy to reach educators across a variety of settings. 

Ready-to-Use Presentation Slides 

Fully developed PowerPoint slides with presenter notes and real classroom video examples, enabling engaging, evidence-based training with minimal preparation.

Teacher Interaction and Language Rating Scale  

A valid outcome measure for capturing changes in educators’ practice over time, helping you demonstrate impact to administrators and funders. 

Implementation and Promotional Tools   

Professionally designed resources – including a promotional video and ready-made flyer – that make it easier to engage school leaders, build buy-in, and secure funding for your training initiatives. These tools help you clearly communicate the value and expected outcomes of the program to decision-makers. 

Online Member Resource Centre   

Professional resources that provide opportunities that help you sustain quality and stay current, including live or recorded online member meetings, expert guidance, translated program materials, and additional resources – ensuring your training continues to deliver strong results over time. 

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.