Just before the pandemic, play expert Walter Drew led a professional development session for the faculty at Paola Lopez’s teachers in Florida. What he taught them became a core part of their professional development and community building as a faculty, during the pandemic and beyond. In this webinar, Walter will illustrate the principles of self-active play (play with open-ended materials, independently and in pairs and in groups) and Paola will discuss how she uses this engaging approach to get the faculty reflecting together about play and pedagogy.
Facilitated by Walter Drew and Paola Lopez
Dr. Walter Drew has researched and provided play leadership training as co-founder of the Institute for Self Active Education, President of The Association for the Study of Play, and lead facilitator for the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC) Play, Policy and Practice Interest Forum, and as Founder of the Florida Association for the Education of Young Children PLAY Chapter.
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For more than 40 years, Dr. Drew has presented hands-on, play experiences as a process for awakening creativity, strengthening early childhood professional practice, and generating hope and optimism across the human life span. He has pioneered the development of Reusable Resource Centers as a community-building business/ education/environmental initiative that provides an on-going supply of free, open-ended materials for teachers and parents to strengthen early learning and development through play.
Dr. Drew is co-author of “From Play to Practice: Connecting Teachers Play with Children’s Learning”, a book published by NAEYC, and creator of Dr. Drew’s Discovery Blocks, awarded “Best Toy of the Year” by the Parents Choice Foundation in 1982.
Paola Lopez, a business management professional turned education leader, is the visionary founder and executive director of Kinderoo Children’s Academy and the Innovation Center of Ocala, both based in Florida. With over two decades of experience in the early childhood field, Paola's passion for advocating the rights of children and promoting diversity and innovation has driven her lifelong journey of pedagogical research.
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Currently, the academy serves 180 families, and Paola oversees a team of 25 dedicated educators who help realize her vision of equipping both teachers and children with skill sets and mindsets essential in a world of innovation. Her dedication to the field has earned her professional affiliations, awards, and training through prestigious organizations like NAEYC, NAREA, and the Reggio Emilia Australia Information Exchange.
As a recognized leader in the field, Paola serves on several state boards and has presented at international, national and regional conferences. Her commitment to excellence in education was recently recognized with the 2019 NAEYC Play, Practice, and Policy Forum’s Patricia Monighan Nourot Award.
Paola's philosophy is rooted in the practice of developmentally appropriate responsive practices, documentation, reflection, and transformation. She firmly believes that a child-centered approach is key to fostering lifelong learners, and her primary goal is to empower both educators and children to thrive in a rapidly changing world.