The Schoenbaum Family Center at the Ohio State University will host a Summer Institute on the theme "Achieving Quality: Best Practices in Early Childhood." This one-day conference offers high-quality professional development for early childhood educators, practitioners and administrators who work with young children, specifically those from birth to age five. The Schoenbaum Family Center is reaching out to children's librarians as part of this audience.

Groundwork Ohio presents Laying the Groundwork: Early Childhood Awareness and Education Summit, Wednesday, May 8 from 9:00 am - 3:00 pm at the Athletic Club of Columbus. Early childhood stakeholders from across the state of Ohio will convene in Columbus to bring awareness to the importance of investments in early childhood education and to communicate this information to legislators. Registration is free but space is limited. Register today: www.groundworkohio.org/summit

The Public Library of Youngstown and Mahoning County presents a new Kindergarten Readiness Workshop with Saroj Ghoting:
“Strengthening School Readiness Support to Families and the Community through the Public Library”

The workshop is funded by an LSTA grant and is open to any Ohio librarian, with attendance at each session limited to 30.

The State Library of Ohio and the Choose to Read Ohio Advisory Council are pleased to announce that The Day You Begin by Jacqueline Woodson, illustrated by Rafael López, has been selected as the fourth annual Choose to Read Ohio (CTRO) “Floyd’s Pick” title, in memory of children’s literature expert, advocate, and librarian Floyd Dickman.

Ohio Ready to Read presents its FREE hands-on early literacy training workshop!  Open to all Ohio public library workers, the next Early Literacy 101 workshops are scheduled:

• Friday, November 22 at the Auglaize County District Public Library in Wapakoneta
• Monday, December 9 at the Cuyahoga County Public Library in Parma

Boost the early literacy skills of the children who attend your storytimes! This self-paced course is built on research about how young children learn.

Dr. Laura Justice, the director of the Schoenbaum Family Center and Crane Center for Early Childhood Research and Policy at the Ohio State University. is facilitating a Literacy for Librarians workshop on Monday, October 29 from 12:30 - 3:00 pm in Columbus.

Join Dr. David Gonzalez on Saturday, October 20 for an educational “Playshop” based on his personally-developed Confluence Model Curriculum: “The Four Rivers of Storytelling.”

As children head back to school, the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services (ODJFS) and Ohio Department of Education (ODE) remind parents to visit ChildCareSearch.Ohio.gov when searching for before- and after-school care for their children. Families can search for child care providers by county, city, zip code, program type and Step Up To Quality rating.

The Nation's Report Card provides important data for librarians to use in planning early literacy programs and other services for young children and their families.