Programming Made Simple for Educators is the 'no tech skills needed' online video workshop course that takes you step by step through the essentials of how to complete every step of the documentation cycle AND give you the simple to follow plan to get back out from behind that desk, spend more time engaging and growing with the children, feel less burnt out and get your work mojo and confidence back simply by recognising what you're already doing well, breaking down the WHY, WHAT & HOW...then building a process that works WITH your strengths.
Karlien
Educator
Visual learning combined with examples was the key for Karlien...
"It was really helpful hearing about the planning cycle and not just reading it and making my own assumptions, having it explained verbally really helps "
Marie
Educator
Marie now has lots of ideas to share with her scheme...
"Great that you have worked in so many different aspects of the sector and that your research stems from years of experience. Lots of ideas given to refine what we are doing in our scheme. Thank you"
Julie
Pre School Teacher
Julie now knows she can justify her planning...
"Made me feel more confident in myself and what I am doing already. Now I know I can justify how I am planning, what I am doing and why to anyone who enquires about my planning and programming."
I'm So Excited For You To Discover...
The simple steps you can follow to become an empowered educator who confidently shows evidence of an ongoing, organised planning cycle using simple steps that connect and link observations, reflections and analysis of learning together to inform your forward planning, programs and learning environments....
...consistently closing the documentation loop & most importantly... supporting each child on their individual early learning journey.
To reinvent the wheel and change everything you are currently doing...just because you're told someone else's template or way of 'writing' must be better than yours )
Suddenly become a tech guru overnight so you know how to use a fancy new app or online system that will 'make your planning so much easier'...yet somehow just seems more complicated !
Leave work at the end of every week still taking home a heavy bag overflowing with unfinished observations, a half written program and a stack of portfolios that need updating...just so you can start Monday without the sense of overwhelm and already behind with paperwork .
Nope, you won’t need to worry about any of that because I like keeping things simple - Don't you?
As a busy educator you want to make the shift from feeling uncertain about HOW to create a planning cycle system that meets expectations (with the limited time you have each day!)….to CONFIDENTLY KNOWING how to set up a system that works for your individual needs and saves valuable documentation time.
And you will be able to make that shift with access to......
Programming Made Simple For Educators
It's the ONLY Online Course of it's kind that gives Early Childhood Ed’s the Step by Step Guide & Resources to Make the Planning Cycle Faster, Easier & More Useful!
Created Exclusively For...
Students, educators, leaders and coordinators working in family daycare, early learning centres and outside school hours care settings who want to simplify their planning but aren't sure where to start or what to do to create change...
BECOME the Empowered Educator that easily shows evidence of an ongoing, organised system and simple steps that consistently link observations and reflections to your program and close the documentation loop!
Enrol today with 1 payment of $297 or 3 instalments of $99 across 3 months - It's Your Choice!
Kirsty
Educator
Kirsty now feels more confident & empowered.....
"This was an excellent course. It helped clarify a few things for me, I learnt some new things and made me more relaxed about some of my planning methods. Thank you, Jodie, for helping me feel more confident and "empowered" in this area. I also really loved the way you presented the information- with pictorial examples of everything YOU do and making it clear that it is ok to have your own style."
Pia
Ed Leader/Preschool Teacher
Pia was able to mentor her educators and help them understand the planning cycle using course materials...
"The course was easy to handle, good information and the handouts were useful in helping the team to develop skills and understand the planning process"
Sarah
Educator
Sarah has her love for the job back again and is feeling inspired...
"I’m so glad I found you and your wonderful course! I’m only just starting on module 1 and I feel like my goal of being passionate, inspired and enjoying my job is returning aleady"
I’m NOT prepared to spend more time writing just to tick an outcomes box...
I’ve worked as an educator and leader in Family Day Care, Early Learning Centres, Occasional Care and Outside School Hours Care settings and although I’m passionate about supporting and extending a child's early learning journey with a play based program and well thought out environments… I've realised that DOESN'T require pages and pages of writing OR less time spent engaging with the children... even if I need to show 'evidence' that I'm linking all the steps together and consistently providing opportunities for children to reach framework learning outcomes.
And Neither Should You.
You don’t have the time, patience, or, if we are being really honest with ourselves...even the slightest motivation to write more.
Can I get a high five and a 'you got that right Jodie!' to that?
So Instead…
I’m going to give you a proven, step by step plan to make your programming , documentation and assessment not only easier to understand but faster to complete that ultimately leaves you with more time to spend with the children again.
It's your time to start planning without the overwhelm and with the confidence and back to basics support you need to keep it that way!
Your next action is simply to follow the step by step pathway that’s been working for hundreds of early childhood educators from literally every corner of the world.
And I personally guarantee there is No Jargon. No Pressure & No Wasting Of Your Time inside this course. I know firsthand that you’re too busy for that.
You just need the path to follow, resources to use and a few lightbulb moments that will enhance your professional growth and development as an educator and simplify your planning.
You'll enjoy the simple tips and explanations from an educator who has been in your shoes and knows what works without the waffle.....because I have felt the frustration and overwhelm too.
That's why I created the tools and time savers that you’ll find shared with you in Programming Made Simple in the first place - to make life easier for me!
And now I'm sharing them with you through the course workshop videos so I can visually lead you step by step through every strategy or documentation tool I share with you.
Take A Look At The Course Pathway You’ll Be Following At Your Own Pace...
I introduce you to the relief of following a few simple steps that will show you how to put your planning cycle together in a way that works best for YOU.
You’ll find out:
- Why it’s important to know your programming style.
- How to create your own methods and style.
- How to ensure you’re only doing what you need to.
- What the steps of the planning *really* require of educators
I show you how ‘making them meaningful’ and using the right observation for you will lead to you saving a whole lot of time.
You’ll find out:
How many observations you *really* need to write each week and why.
The different observation types and formats available and how to find the style that works best for YOU.
How to record meaningful observations & why quality is better than quantity.
How 'meaningful observations' make your extensions & forward planning easier.
The questions you can ask to help you identify and analyse the learning that’s taking place.
How to modify your planning process when working with different age groups including 0-2 years , multi-age, outside school age care as well as the 3-5 years age group.
How to use different templates and guides for those ages with a step by step guides through the observation step.
In this session I share the information you need to confidently tell the difference between reflection and critical reflection and how to realistically use both approaches in your everyday work.
You’ll find out:
How to make sure reflection isn’t just a box to tick off and therefore a waste of your time.
How to use parent communication strategies to save documentation time and increase engagement.
How to set up a system of program reflection that takes only minutes a week.
Activity ideas that provide opportunities for children to self reflect.
How to seek out and incorporate children’s voices (yes, even babies and toddlers!) as part of your reflections then use that information to inform future planning.
In this session I show you how to Analyse, Extend & Review with the documentation and assessment information you’re probably already collecting.
You’ll find out:
How to confidently and consistently forward plan using your analysis of learning and extension activities.
How to use the information you collect to extend a child's interests, strengths and skills.
How to organise your forward planning process using digital or hard copy solutions.
How to link observations, analysis and forward planning together easily.
What child portfolios are and if using them is necessary for you.
This is the session we bring it all together with clear examples and a step by step review of the main learning areas we have covered in each session.
We’re talking organisation, cycle loops and time management tips!
How each step of the planning cycle comes together to form evidence of an overall documentation system.
How to make the most effective use of your time, templates and tools.
How to plan ahead to stay in front of your documentation and planning.
A review of the important points to remember from the previous 4 sessions.
Your action plan mapped out so you know where you will be taking action first...and how.
Enrol today with 1 payment of $297 or 3 instalments of $99 across 3 months - It's Your Choice!
Before I tell you more about how this self paced video course is going to help you feel more confident when it comes to documenting the planning cycle and meeting framework expectations...
Supporting, challenging and extending early learning for children isn’t difficult - after all, we just let them play, right?
I know we wish that were true, but if it was, we wouldn't need to be the qualified professionals that we are OR complete a planning cycle that can so easily cause moments of uncertainty, frustration or resentment without the right support and guidance.
When you consistently reach the end of every week with the realisation that you still need to find the time to record more observations, think of more activities that lead to learning outcomes, capture children’s voices, then reflect on all of the above to inform your future planning, environment setup and programs...all before you get any sort of downtime it becomes overwhelming and you begin to wonder if you even want to do this job you once loved anymore.
The Truth Is…
You know you are awesome when it comes to creating activities , nurturing and engaging with the children but when it comes to linking that all together with current paperwork and planning requirements...
... you don't understand WHY you have to do so much or HOW to even get it all done in the time you have and on top of all that, someone is always asking to see 'evidence' of your planning cycle with everything nicely 'linked' together even though it hasn't been explained clearly HOW to do that!!
You’re told to...
Provide a balance of intentional and incidental playful learning opportunities that link to learning outcomes.
You know you need to…
Put thought and time into how to set up your experiences and provide opportunities through your program to support each child’s individual developmental, social, sensory and physical needs.
You’re aware of…
The framework, standards, regulations and planning expectations.
But in reality, and despite your best intentions... sometimes you DO just want to give up trying to find that magical balance between play and paperwork.
Why? Because you just want to get back to play...without the other ‘stuff’.
It’s absolutely normal, I’ve been there too and I’m pretty sure that most educators reading this right now would say they have felt the same way at some stage.
You're not doing anything wrong when you want to ‘just let them play’ and not record an observation every 5 minutes or decide not to ‘write every single activity on a program’ when children are obviously enjoying free play and spontaneous learning.
But the real truth here is that there must be BALANCE.
You ARE a trained professional, and although they might not be able to tell you...children are relying on you to provide the opportunities and outcomes for early learning that they deserve.
If there’s not, you can easily find yourself lacking the confidence to explain to parents, assessors, leaders and members of the community how just ‘playing without any paperwork’ is actually providing consistent and ongoing opportunities to support, challenge and extend a child’s learning journey.
The good news is that there are some very simple strategies you can use to create a balance between playful learning and documentation.
Just because we are professionals, it doesn’t mean we can’t embrace simple or choose not to overcomplicate the basics so there is no judgement here!
So how do you know if you already have that play and paperwork balance or if tweaking your planning cycle steps and simplifying your current process could in fact give you the confidence and time back that you've been looking for?
Scroll down now to read the statements with me below and as you do, see if you find any that cause you to start nodding a little insanely... you know...like someone just asked you if you would like a full hour’s break from the children to put your feet up and eat a leisurely lunch...
You’re an educator who…
Is relatively happy with most of your planning but struggle to bring all the steps together and show how all this writing is actually useful to anyone other than your coordinator or assessor.
You know you're meant to…
Be 'DOING' reflection but you're still not sure if that is the same as critical reflection? Where do you start?
You don’t understand how…
To communicate and collaborate more effectively and consistently with families when it's so hard to get them to stop and listen and you don't have the time.
You’re waiting until you…
Have that perfect observation template or digital app that will make writing your program faster, even though you don't entirely understand how to use it.
You’re working with…
Babies or toddlers at the moment and just not sure how to plan or offer meaningful 'learning' opportunities in between all the toilet training, nappy changes, different sleep times and feeds...so you end up writing activities on your program that you know you'll never do but something needs to be on the plan.
You’re not sure how to…
Write A Meaningful Observation & Know Exactly What Format To Use that Suits your strengths.
You’re a leader or coordinator…
Who needs to mentor other educators through the steps of the planning cycle and increase their motivation and understanding...but you just hear ..it’s too complicated, I don't have time, I'm not a techie
You’re waiting until you know…
How to write a program that will be approved without using complicated number linking, codes or colours that take you ages to figure out
You're not entirely sure how to…
Connect all the observations, analysis of learning, assessment, forward planning and learning outcomes to your activities...so you don’t.
You’re already confidently…
Documenting your planning cycle but feel like it doesn't quite flow or link together and you'd like to simplify and strengthen this part wihtout having to write more.
Most importantly, you want to know what to use, how to simplify it , and why you are doing it that way.
You don't want (or need) to reinvent the wheel and change everything you are doing...you just need some help to build on your current strengths and skills - especially with the planning and time management side of things... and Programming Made Simple For Educators will show you HOW to do that....quickly
Did I Just See A Few Head Nods?
...Even if you weren’t nodding, let me give you some good news and reassure you that no matter your role in early childhood, the Programming Made Simple Course For Educators will give you all the step by step support and tools covering literally EVERYTHING you need to know about how to observe, reflect, forward plan, write a play based program and set up learning environments while still spending the majority of your time engaging with the children in your care and doing what you do best.
The Thing is…
You WILL be able to take the next step and climb up out of that procrastination hole you find yourself digging into deeper whenever you even consider making a change to the amount of paperwork and planning that you do so you can find a better balance.
WHY?
Because the difference with this course is I’m giving you what I've found the most effective when it comes to planning after 35 years of trial and error in early childhood environments.
Along with examples, organisation tips, action guides, step by step strategies AND page after page of videos and downloadable resources that will clearly show you how to not only confidently document and link together every step of your planning cycle but make all of that achievable in the limited time you have available...so you don't have to make the frustrating but all too common choice between paperwork or play.
Enrol today with 1 payment of $297 or 3 instalments of $99 across 3 months - It's Your Choice!
1
MODIFY & PERSONALISE YOUR PLANNING
Find your Personal Programming Style and create a documentation system that actually works for you.
2
CONNECT YOUR INFORMATION
When you can identify and understand each step of the planning cycle and see how it comes together to form an overall documentation system.
3
SELECT AN OBSERVATION FORMAT TO USE
As you will understand and reflect on the different child observation methods and how to write a meaningful observation using the format that works with your individual strengths.
4
ANALYSE & EVALUATE LEARNING
You'll confidently interpret and analyse learning to inform your forward planning and incorporate playful extension activities and experiences.
5
MEET EYLF OUTCOMES
Follow a process that ensures you meet EYLF outcomes without needing to write confusing codes, numbers, symbols and checkboxes on your program
6
LINK YOUR DOCUMENTATION & CLOSE THE LOOP
Following a familiar series of steps that link all of your observations, analysis and forward planning together to show evidence of an ongoing system of documentation
7
REFLECT & IMPROVE
Clarify the difference between critical reflection and everyday reflection and how to combine both to create better outcomes for children and continually set goals for improvement and growth.
Programming Made Simple will show you how to bring all of the workshop ideas, tools and your planning cycle together to document, support and extend each child's individual learning journeys... without second guessing everything you've written and wondering how to link all this writing together in a way that makes sense.
It's your time to start planning without the overwhelm and with the confidence and back to basics support you need to keep it that way.
Still Feeling A Little Unsure If This Will Help You?
My aim is to help you clarify, simplify and come out feeling more confident in your work - just like I do through my blog posts, social media posts and videos shared in the Empowered Ed worldwide community.
An awesome crowd of empowered educators, leaders, assistants and coordinators have already pushed the doors open to the Programming Made Simple Course over the past 5 years to see how they can simplify their planning and those educators saw how to spend less time writing while still meeting every step of the planning cycle right from the first few video sessions alone!
I’ve helped thousands of family daycare, outside school hours care, preschool and early learning centre educators, coordinators and leaders to simplify their program writing and confidently document and support a child's early learning by breaking down the planning cycle into smaller, simpler steps so the WHAT, WHY & HOW becomes very clear.
But don’t just take it from me ...
Here’s what some of those Empowered Ed’s have to say:
FAMILY DAYCARE EDUCATOR
“This was really valuable for me - I enjoy all the learning ideas and examples shared and I also feel the training is more valuable when done by someone that has been IN the field”
EARLY YEARS ASSISTANT
“Explained in easy to understand steps without any jargon..”
OCCASIONAL CARE COORDINATOR
“You made it very clear that programming does not need to be so complicated and I can just keep it simple.”
Ready to meet your early childhood mentor?
If we haven’t met while scribbling a quick observation down on a post it note or simultaneously trying to eat lunch and write next week's program while rocking the cot with your foot ...then let me introduce myself now...
I’m Jodie - an early childhood educator, mentor and blogger, always tired Aussie mum to 3 girls with a *mature & appropriate* crush on the boys from Supernatural.
When I’m not working you’d most likely find me sipping on a glass of crisp chilled white with a wedge of castello white cheese within reach and watching a tv show with some sort of vampire action... I used to want to BE Buffy way back in the day.
Too much information?
Ok. Let me tell you why you’d want to train with me instead.
I’m getting wrinkly.
Most of those wrinkles and frown lines were caused by children. True story (although I must admit having twins when nearly 40 with a teenager already at home and used to being an only child also caused more than their fair share).
Seriously though, I’ve been working with children and families in some way for over 35 years and that means a whole lot of lessons learnt, mistakes made and knowledge gained.
And now you get the benefit of that learning journey… and also the mistakes, did I mention the mistakes?
Yep, we all make them, but what I enjoy is helping educators to NOT make the same mistakes I have over the years.
I commit to this by supporting and mentoring thousands of educators every year through my popular website The Empowered Educator and practical blog posts, activity ideas, factsheets, free e-guides, online training, membership hub, e-courses, Facebook community, webinars and e-books.
I have worked in many different roles across the human services and early childhood professions over those past 35 years so it's likely I have already walked in similar shoes to your own. I know what is helpful (and definitely NOT helpful or useful) to educators because I am one too.
I’ll let you in on a little secret…
I’m not perfect, nor do I have everything always figured out.
In fact, around the time we were all bracing for an impending apocalypse and chaos at midnight because of a computer clock (google it if you have no idea what I’m talking about and get ready to laugh!) I actually decided to give up working in early childhood.
Perhaps you’ve had a similar thought at some time
I'd had enough and just couldn't do it anymore. I went back to uni again, got a degree in social work and human services and loved the career change. But I missed the children....missed setting up play experiences....missed feeling like I was making a difference in the early years of a child's life.
I learnt from that experience and found ways to reignite my enthusiasm for the job.
And now I’m sharing some of those with you. By offering this e-course I can now take you step by step through the basics of the planning cycle and how to collect and simplify the documentation you need to do.
I hope to meet you soon. Bring a little Buffy or Spike Style Confidence with you.
There’s no need to worry about feeling overwhelmed inside this series of online workshops because I break everything down for you in my signature 'KEEP IT SIMPLE ' style... so you can actually USE the information I give you AND know how to modify it to suit your own early learning service and role.
I keep things REALISTIC so you can easily modify for your own service type and level of experience.
AND...when you enrol during this enrolment intake you'll be getting...
Immediate access to everything inside the entire workshop series so you can start watching videos and feeling inspired TODAY if you want to.
Video, text, audio, visuals - consume the information in the way YOU learn best.
This way you can go at your own pace and have all the resources, action steps and motivation right there at your fingertips before you have to write that next program or figure out how to extend on your last observation.
Access to a library of comprehensive, yet easy to understand, on demand workshop video presentations so you can fit in training around work hours. View from home OR work anywhere in the world with an internet connection and pause, rewind or restart as needed.
Real examples and step by step strategies from an educator who has been doing this for 30 years now - trust me when I say I have figured out all the shortcuts and time savers!
PDF Action Guides with simple to follow steps and templates covering reflection, forward planning, observations, family communication and more.. Certificate for 8 hours professional development.
Planning templates, checklists and communication tools used throughout the workshop and yours to download.
No quizzes, no deadlines, no difficult questions to decipher - just simple steps and achievable guidelines you can begin taking action on at a time it suits you.
1
VISUAL ACTIVE LEARNING
Information, ideas, examples and strategies that are easy to understand and try yourself..
2
GO AT YOUR OWN PACE
The choice to learn when you want, where you want & HOW you want - Consume the course content all at once or stretch it out slowly.
3
WATCH, LISTEN OR READ
Watch videos, listen to MP3 audio or read through the text video transcripts when not online.
What are educators saying about Jodie’s previous training?
Renee
Room Leader
"It is a very supportive online personal development course which helps you know more about how to effectively and simply complete all your paperwork on the floor like a rich experienced and professional ECE educator".
Di
Family Daycare Educator
"I needed help in truly understanding the planning cycle. You did it step by step which has really helped as I am a visual learner. No one has ever simplified or thoroughly explained the planning cycle this way".
Emma
Centre Director
"I will be highly recommending this to all of my staff as an essential refresher to complete during our COVID-19 stand-down - I will be saying to them that this is extremely valuable and helpful, and will revolutionise how we are currently thinking about the planning cycle and will bring us together more cohesively as a team!"
I’m so glad you asked because it’s important to me that you you make an informed and confident decision so here are a few things you’d be smart to ask before grabbing your programming login details on the next page:
What if I’m not very good with computers or tech devices?
How many hours am I going to have to spend on this course? – I’m flat out trying to get everything done as it is. I’m just not sure I can fit this in!
Will I really have time to meet each step of the planning cycle?
I'M STILL COMPLETING MY STUDIES - IS THIS COURSE SUITABLE FOR ME?
I've already been working in EC for years now - is this course suitable for me?
DO I HAVE TO ATTEND LIVE?
What if I’m told I have to do my planning in a specific way by my coordinator or director using only their digital tools or templates?
I’ve seen other training sessions and resources online that tell me I need to do observations, forward planning, reflection and analysis of learning. Does Programming Made Simple do that?
Can you remind me what I’m getting when I register for the course TODAY:
WILL JODIE BE AVAILABLE AND ACCESSIBLE TO ANSWER QUESTIONS IF I GET STUCK?
WHERE IS THE COURSE BEING HELD?
If you are a visual learner with limited time for professional development, then you will definitely appreciate the flexibility and practical resources this video course & the accompanying action guides provide…
Join now to feel inspired, make changes, write less and find out how to make reflection and documentation easier yet more meaningful.
Clarify each step when you see real planning examples & methods used in early learning centres, family daycare and outside school hours care environments.
Still “thinking about it” and not sure whether your clicker finger wants to take the next step yet?
That’s understandable...an online video workshop course isn’t the right learning option for every educator.
Truth be told, I’d prefer to help you figure out if Programming Made Simple IS the right professional development option for you and the very best use of your professional development budget BEFORE you enrol rather than waste your time.
What if just one idea or example inside the course…
Helps you feel more confident writing a program that includes opportunities for open ended, intentional and incidental learning...consistently?
What if just one self reflection strategy inside the course…
Helps you to hear the child’s voice, recognise their preferences and use this information to set up your learning environments and plan playful, engaging experiences and activities.
What if just one communication strategy inside the course…
Shows you how to save time by using your family communication, engagement tools and experiences as part of your planning?
What if just one planning template, reflection tool or action guide inside the course…
Shows you how to write meaningful observations, analyse the learning taking place and use that knowledge to inform your forward planning and extension activities?
What if just one visual learning tool or video inside the course…
Helps you understand how you can show evidence of clear links to learning outcomes without adding boring outcome numbers written everywhere that parents don't even understand!
Is this course suitable for my role?
Is there always 1 child who doesn’t sleep at rest time?
Seriously though, of the 812+ educators who have previously gone through this course - I’ve seen a diverse range of early childhood roles represented so I’m pretty sure you’ll find it helpful too.
I keep the course content simple and we cover core best practice basics that support better outcomes for children and families worldwide no matter your service type or qualifications.
Early Childhood Educators
Coordinators
Family Day Care Educators
Outside School Hours Care Educators
Students
Directors of Early Learning Services
Room Leaders
Early Childhood consultants and mentors
Early Years Teachers
Kindergarten & Preschool teachers
Occasional Care Services
If I Can Do This So Can You!
I want to let you know something Empowered Ed's...I’m not extra special. Not better than you.
I’ve never had access to exclusive consultants, ‘easy’ groups of children, unlimited time or fancy resources.
Through trial and error I created simple tools and systems that made work easier for me based on over 30 years practical, hands-on (often tearful) experiences in early childhood across a variety of roles.
You don’t need to be an expert or love paperwork – that’s not me either, so if I can do this, so can you. You just need a roadmap like this course to follow and a little support along the way!
No matter whether you decide today to join us in this workshop video course or not, know that I care about your important work with children, your confidence and feeling of self worth as an educator and ultimately finding a balance between paperwork and play.
If you do choose to take this next step, I’d absolutely love to meet you personally inside Programming Made Simple For Educators, and I’ll be with you every step of the way. I couldn’t be more excited to share my passion and ideas to make planning easier for early childhood educators and kickstart this journey with you.
Take the REAL ideas and planning examples you see in the workshop videos and handouts, then modify them for use in your own early years environment while embracing your unique strengths and real life experience.
If you are ready to embrace a simpler planning process while also improving outcomes for children and feeling more confident with your documentation and meeting requirements, then I look forward to welcoming you on the inside soon.