Beginnings …

Posted on September 16, 2010 by Marcia Hebert

A new day! A new start! A new school year!

As the Director of an Early Childhood program, I’ve always loved beginnings. They’ve given me the opportunity to start over again every single year.

What a gift!  To start fresh – to take what I’ve learned from the previous year and add it to my practice. To remember those things that went especially well, and keep them in this year’s repertoire. And, yes, to reflect upon those things that didn’t go as well as I had planned (Should I, this year, drop these ideas altogether or figure out what might work better?).

This is definitely the reflective part of my professional life – I think about everything that has gotten me to this point, I jot down thoughts as they come to me, and I begin to shape the year ahead. Someone once said (and I’m paraphrasing here) – How will you know when you’ve arrived, if you don’t know where you’re going?

As I see it, that’s my job as the leader of the program, school, organization – to set the course. And, the best part of beginning is that I can reset it annually.

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Posted in Early Childhood Leadership, Managing Early Childhood Programs | 4 Comments

Connections …

Posted on July 25, 2010 by Marcia Hebert
“Wow! Wow! And, wow! That’s all I can say.”
“We’ve never seen anything like this!”
“I took tons of pictures!”
“This is Quality!”
“Your legacy will live on!”

“We’re going to take these ideas back to our program and re-create them.”

Recently, at the John Hancock Child Care Center, we held an Open House for our early childhood colleagues in the Boston area, and these are some of the comments we heard again and again as our visitors wandered throughout the center.

They said that it was more than the beautiful facility. That it was the feeling within the environment – a strong sense of being connected – one teacher to another, one classroom to another. It was the whole package – the presentation, the creative use of unusual materials put together in “loving” ways – yes, “loving.” For, they understood the thinking behind each item in the classroom, why it was placed just so in the scheme of things, and, more importantly, what could the children do with it – and learn from it. They talked at length with our teachers in their classrooms. A great deal of thought and care about young children’s needs (physical, social, emotional, intellectual) is what quality is all about. And, it was evident to our guests that our teachers and staff are “artists” when it comes to their work.

I love this quote from Francis Of Assisi –
“ He who works with his hands is a laborer.
He who works with his hands and his head is a craftsman.

He who works with his hands and his head and his heart is an artist.”

And, doesn’t it just fit!

What was palpable during this open house was the passion! And, the unique, individual ways that this passion came through. There was a spirit of understanding and appreciation among everyone in attendance.

When I think back to the open house, and replay the day in my head, it really is all about Connections, isn’t it? And about sharing what we know and what we have learned. And, it’s about building relationships with like-minded people who share our passions. And yes, it’s about the love we have for our work, our craft, our “art” – which will live on after we’re gone.

Can you relate to this?
I’d love to hear your thoughts!
Posted in Early Childhood, Early Childhood Teachers, John Hancock Child Care Center | 7 Comments

My First Post – The 20th Reunion at the John Hancock Child Care Center

Posted on July 7, 2010 by Marcia Hebert

What an amazing day!

On a recent summer afternoon – a Saturday – when so many other events are planned, they came to ours! About 1,000 people attended. Unbelievable! The line to the front door stretched down the block! The perfect celebration for our 20 years as the John Hancock Child Care Center (JHCCC). And, it was quite the party!

I’ve started many such programs during my career – for businesses, hospitals, communities. I’ve opened these programs, stayed on as the Director, grown them, managed them for a time, and then moved on to the next adventure. You could say that I was the “founding mother” of this Boston-based, corporate-sponsored, child care center. For I opened its doors as the Director in 1990, grew it to its 200-child capacity (with the assistance of some of the finest early childhood teachers in the area), created a leading edge early childhood program for the infants through kindergartners, managed and maintained its high standard of early education and care and, now, 20 years later, held a reunion for all who have been a part of this experience. The response was overwhelming!

What a rare privilege to create a community for thousands of young children, new parents, and young educators. And, what an honor to teach, mentor, manage, and lead!

That Saturday was a testament to a partnership, a team, a program – one that evolved from an idea whose time had come. We created a place where children thrived and where parents had complete trust. We worked together and made magic!  And, on that Saturday, I heard this over and over again as I greeted our families of the last 20 years! The children are now six to twenty-five years old – no longer the infants, toddlers, and preschoolers that we cared for. They are poised and kind and funny and grown up – and not unlike the young children they were – just much, much  taller.  And, we spent hours talking about their lives, what they were now doing, what they enjoyed, their hopes and their dreams.

And, it was one of the best days of my life.

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Posted in Early Childhood, John Hancock Child Care Center | 21 Comments