Educator well-being is strengthened through meaningful opportunities for reflection, connection, and shared learning. This Lecture explores how communities of practice can support educators by creating spaces for relationship-building, reflective dialogue, and professional growth. Presenters describe a community of practice model that integrates Fred Rogers' six fundamentals of learning and growing: self-worth, trust, curiosity, looking and listening, play, and solitude. The presentation highlights how these principles can support educator well-being, strengthen program culture, and provide practical strategies that enhance relationships and learning environments.

Presenters: Emma Swift Lee, Fred Rogers Institute and Shellie Grooms, Shady Lane School

Access for 1 year from date of purchase. Learn at your pace, on your schedule, without worrying about missing out.

Earn One contact hour (.1 CEU) with completion of CEU quiz and Evaluation.

Recordings will be uploaded following the 2026 LEARN Conference, with all sessions expected to be available by December 1, 2026. We’ll be sure to notify you as soon as the recordings are ready so you can watch or revisit the sessions at your convenience.

This session examines how recent federal policy changes are shaping the daily realities of states, communities, and families with babies at a time of rapid change and uncertainty. Drawing on national data and on-the-ground perspectives, presenters will highlight emerging trends in access to supports, economic pressures, and community conditions, and consider what these shifts mean for young children and their caregivers. Participants will examine who is most affected, how these changes are showing up in practice, and what responses are needed across systems. The session will also offer practical approaches for using data and community insight to inform decision-making, strengthen supports, and guide responsive action at local, state, and national levels.

Presenters: Samantha (Sam) Melvin, PhD & Yelena Tsilker, ZERO TO THREE

Access for 1 year from date of purchase. Learn at your pace, on your schedule, without worrying about missing out.

Earn One contact hour (.1 CEU) with completion of CEU quiz and Evaluation.

Recordings will be uploaded following the 2026 LEARN Conference, with all sessions expected to be available by December 1, 2026. We’ll be sure to notify you as soon as the recordings are ready so you can watch or revisit the sessions at your convenience.

Early language and literacy experiences lay the foundation for later reading success and school readiness. This Lecture explores developmentally appropriate, research-based approaches for supporting early literacy learning in children ages 18-48 months. Presenters examine key early language and literacy skills that predict later achievement and highlight play-centered strategies that promote joyful learning experiences. The presentation draws on the science of reading to illustrate how educators and caregivers can design engaging learning opportunities that support language development and early literacy.

Presenters: Rebecca Parlakian, MEd, ZERO TO THREE and Lucy Hart Paulson, EdD, CCC-SLP, Language Literacy Links, Inc.

Access for 1 year from date of purchase. Learn at your pace, on your schedule, without worrying about missing out.

Earn One contact hour (.1 CEU) with completion of CEU quiz and Evaluation.

Recordings will be uploaded following the 2026 LEARN Conference, with all sessions expected to be available by December 1, 2026. We’ll be sure to notify you as soon as the recordings are ready so you can watch or revisit the sessions at your convenience.

Primary care providers play a critical role in identifying and responding to early childhood mental health concerns. This Lecture examines strategies for strengthening pediatric primary care systems to support early identification, intervention, and referral for young children experiencing social-emotional challenges. Presenters describe a learning collaborative designed to improve screening, intervention delivery, and care coordination across healthcare and community mental health systems. The presentation highlights lessons learned and practical approaches that can help primary care providers strengthen early childhood mental health supports.

Presenters: Colleen Reuland, MS, Oregon Pediatric Improvement Partnership; Andrew Riley, PhD, OHSU; and Beth Mossman, MD, Hillsboro Pediatrics

Access for 1 year from date of purchase. Learn at your pace, on your schedule, without worrying about missing out.

Earn One contact hour (.1 CEU) with completion of CEU quiz and Evaluation.

Recordings will be uploaded following the 2026 LEARN Conference, with all sessions expected to be available by December 1, 2026. We’ll be sure to notify you as soon as the recordings are ready so you can watch or revisit the sessions at your convenience.

This Lecture session examines sexual abuse concerns in early childhood through a developmental and trauma-informed lens. Participants will engage in focused content, guided discussion, and structured reflection to strengthen recognition of indicators of concern and practice-based professional responses that support child safety, caregivers, and relational stability.

Presenters: Cassie Yackley, PsyD, Center for Trauma-Responsive Practice Change

Access for 1 year from date of purchase. Learn at your pace, on your schedule, without worrying about missing out.

Earn One contact hour (.1 CEU) with completion of CEU quiz and Evaluation.

Recordings will be uploaded following the 2026 LEARN Conference, with all sessions expected to be available by December 1, 2026. We’ll be sure to notify you as soon as the recordings are ready so you can watch or revisit the sessions at your convenience.

Across the country, states are taking concrete steps to strengthen the early childhood education (ECE) workforce ;but what does meaningful progress actually look like in practice? This session explores how policy, funding, and systems alignment are shaping the future of the profession. Grounded in the Unifying Framework for the ECE Profession, developed through the Power to the Profession initiative and advanced by the Commission on Professional Excellence in Early Childhood Education, presenters will highlight national trends and “bright spot” examples from states making measurable gains in compensation, preparation, and professional recognition. Participants will examine what's working, where challenges remain, and how these efforts can translate into real change. Through practical examples and discussion, attendees will leave with ideas and approaches they can use to move from vision to action in their own context.

Presenters: Shyrelle Eubanks, EdD, Chair, Commission on Professional Excellence in Early Childhood Education (ECE Commission); and Lisa Downey, EdD, ECE Commission Organizational Member Commissioner and McCormick Institute for Early Childhood, National Louis Universi

Access for 1 year from date of purchase. Learn at your pace, on your schedule, without worrying about missing out.

Earn One contact hour (.1 CEU) with completion of CEU quiz and Evaluation.

Recordings will be uploaded following the 2026 LEARN Conference, with all sessions expected to be available by December 1, 2026. We’ll be sure to notify you as soon as the recordings are ready so you can watch or revisit the sessions at your convenience.

Early childhood and child welfare systems are complex and often shaped by transactional and hierarchical relationships. This Practice Plenary explores what comes into focus when relationships lead through the Safe Babies lens. As a flagship ZERO TO THREE program, Safe Babies integrates practice, policy, and systems change to coordinate across systems, elevate parent voice, and shift interactions toward trust, authenticity, and compassion with families and with providers. Join this panel of Safe Babies leaders and parent advocates as they share reflections grounded in lived experience and community practice. Participants will examine how relationship-centered practice builds hope and resilience while shaping work across a continuum, from prevention within early childhood systems to intensive, relationship-based interventions for families involved in child welfare. By naming complexity honestly and highlighting real inroads for change, this session will demonstrate how a relationship-centered, systemic approach creates the conditions for meaningful progress to take hold. Join us to explore what becomes possible when relationships remain at the center of your work and consider how this lens might shape your own practice and partnerships.

Presenters: Darneshia Allen, Manager, Training and Technical Assistance Integration & Crystal Hallock, PRSS, PRSS-SUP, Parent Leader, Safe Babies, ZERO TO THREE & Delaney Jones, MSSA, LSW, Community Coordinator, Safe Babies Program of Cuyahoga County, Ohio

Access for 1 year from date of purchase. Learn at your pace, on your schedule, without worrying about missing out.

Earn One contact hour (.1 CEU) with completion of CEU quiz and Evaluation.

Recordings will be uploaded following the 2026 LEARN Conference, with all sessions expected to be available by December 1, 2026. We’ll be sure to notify you as soon as the recordings are ready so you can watch or revisit the sessions at your convenience.

No period in human development carries higher stakes than birth to age three. And no policy conversation is more urgent than the one discussing happens when AI enters that window.  The question is not whether artificial intelligence is coming to the early education space. It's here.  The question is how we shape it. New technologies carry enormous promise ; enhancing early childhood development, supporting caregivers, and streamlining access to public benefits. But they also carry real threats, chief among them the risk of supplanting the secure attachment and human connection that are the foundation of lifelong well-being.  How can policy amplify opportunities and mitigate the threats? And what is the role of parents, professionals, researchers, and advocates in protecting young children while shaping the promise that AI may unlock? This session takes on those questions.

Presenters: Melissa Boteach, Chief Policy Officer, ZERO TO THREE & Dana Suskind, MD, Founder and Co-Director, TMW Center for Early Learning + Public Health, Founding Director of the Pediatric Cochlear Implant Program, Professor of Surgery, Pediatrics, and Public Policy, University of Chicago

Access for 1 year from date of purchase. Learn at your pace, on your schedule, without worrying about missing out.

Earn One contact hour (.1 CEU) with completion of CEU quiz and Evaluation.

Recordings will be uploaded following the 2026 LEARN Conference, with all sessions expected to be available by December 1, 2026. We’ll be sure to notify you as soon as the recordings are ready so you can watch or revisit the sessions at your convenience.

Across early childhood settings, professionals encounter complexity every day. Children's development unfolds within multiple, interacting influences that are not always immediately visible, making it difficult to interpret what is happening and how best to respond. In this plenary, Dr. Cynthia García Coll brings a powerful, integrative lens to these realities. Drawing on decades of research, she will help participants look again at familiar situations with greater clarity, illuminating how development takes shape across everyday environments and what may be influencing what they see. This session invites participants to deepen how they understand their work. By strengthening their ability to interpret complexity, participants will be better equipped to make thoughtful decisions, respond with intention, and stay grounded in their role. As the conference turns toward broader systems and structures, this plenary offers a foundation for seeing both practice and policy with greater depth and insight.

Presenters: Presenter: Dr. Cynthia García Coll, PhD, Brown University and University of Puerto Rico

Access for 1 year from date of purchase. Learn at your pace, on your schedule, without worrying about missing out.

Earn One contact hour (.1 CEU) with completion of CEU quiz and Evaluation.

Recordings will be uploaded following the 2026 LEARN Conference, with all sessions expected to be available by December 1, 2026. We’ll be sure to notify you as soon as the recordings are ready so you can watch or revisit the sessions at your convenience.

Introducing our exclusive LEARN Conference 2026 Virtual Experience: an unparalleled opportunity for early childhood professionals to engage with cutting-edge content and connect with peers from across the country—all from the comfort of your own space.

This course gives you access four content-rich main stage sessions broadcast live to your device, ensuring you're at the forefront of field innovations – and inspirations. 

Revisit every session with on-demand access for 30 days post-event. Learn at your pace, on your schedule, without worrying about missing out.

Earn up to four contact hours (.4 CEUs) with completion of CEU quizzes and Evaluations for each session.

This resource takes a closer look at the powerful connection between sensory processing, self-regulation, and social-emotional development in the early years. Designed for a multidisciplinary audience, it equips professionals and caregivers with evidence-based strategies to support infants and young children experiencing sensory processing challenges. By blending clinical insight with practical, relationship-based approaches, it offers meaningful guidance that can be applied across a wide range of early childhood settings.