WVPT’s Early Childhood Services are part of our station’s goal to support our viewing community in preparing children to enter school ready to learn. This goal is met through highly interactive parent and teacher workshops, public broadcasting, community literacy events, and other projects. We welcome opportunities to partner in community events!

We provide parents, teachers, and caregivers free services simply by contacting Bly Brown ( This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it ) at 437-2436 or 800-345-9878.

Child Development Workshops

Through an exciting partnership with the Talaris Institute, WVPT has several workshops centered on early childhood development. These workshops for parents and teachers of children from infant to age 5 are highly interactive, informative, and fun for parents and teachers of children ages birth-5! All workshops include handouts, video segments, interactive activities, and children’s literature to define and model strategies. Throughout the workshops, participants are encouraged to share their ideas, interact with other participants, and leave with simple strategies to use immediately with young children. The workshops average 1-1.5 hours in length and can be tailored to any audience. Workshops include the following:

Communication
Have you ever wondered what your baby is trying to tell you? Have you ever been told that your baby will be spoiled if you respond too quickly or too often? Why does my preschooler hit or bite their friends? This workshop explores how early communication between parents and young children builds the foundation for early language skills thus leading to strong literacy skills. We will explore what cues your child uses to convey his/her needs and how this early connection is the foundation for language and literacy skills later in life.

Exploring
Why does my child pull everything out of my cabinets when I am trying to fix dinner? What does my young child really learn from just watching me? This workshop is designed to explain the innate need young children have for exploring the world around them and how we can encourage them while also keeping them safe.

Stress
How stressed can my young child really be? This workshop examines the causes of stress in infants and young children. Through activities and discussion, participants will understand more about their role in helping young children learn to calm themselves.

Emotion Coaching
We all know children have emotions; but did you know children learn how to handle and react to emotions by watching the adults in their life? It’s true--children learn how to handle anger, joy, frustration, etc. simply by watching the adults around them. How adults react to children’s expression of emotions has a dramatic effect on the way children learn to deal with their feelings and form relationships with others. In this workshop, we will compare four different adult response styles as defined by the research of Dr. John Gottman and learn the pros/cons of each.

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Literacy Workshops

Our workshops explore the research-based formula of “View, Read, Do”, the Ready To Learn learning triangle. Workshops are highly interactive, fun opportunities for adults to learn strategies for helping children in their early learning stages of development. Workshops utilize stories, video clips, educational packets, and modeled activities (some materials are available in Spanish). Workshops are approximately one hour in length and are tailored to meet participants’ goals.)

Reading Together
Experts agree that reading with children, talking about stories and telling stories are some of the most important ways you can help your child learn and succeed in school. Participants learn how to use the award winning series Between the Lions and its website to not only promote at-home reading but also to teach, reinforce and improve key emergent pre-literacy skills.

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Healthy Habits for Life
Sesame Street Workshop has created this initiative to help caregivers and parents discover creative ways to get children excited about being healthy. Obesity is a health crisis facing children in the United States and serious weight problems can lead to health complications later in life. Using the lovable Sesame Street characters to inspire, this workshop introduces the idea of motivational interactive television, related fun activities and book suggestions to help shape children’s positive health habits.

Family Math Workshops
To learn to use mathematics in purposeful ways children must be engaged in exploring and problem solving. These workshops based on the popular literacy program, Reading Rainbow, are highly interactive with children taking the lead in the activities and parents providing the support. Children’s literature is incorporated with math experiences that are relevant to the lives of children.

Family Storytelling: A Personal Oral History
Families participate in writing and telling their own stories. Children will learn to appreciate their unique histories when they put pen to paper and share stories important to them and their families. This is a terrific intergenerational opportunity.

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Bedtime Routine
Struggles at bedtime are all too common. Ideas and activities are included in this workshop that help create a routine at home to ease that special time of day. What parents say and do can make a big difference in how children feel about bedtime.

You Can Ask
This workshop presents positive ways for adults to talk with 3- to 8-year old children about their feelings and concerns. Whether children are worried about moving to a new home or school, facing the illness or death of a loved one, afraid about war, or concerned about their own safety, this workshop offers materials and suggestions that can help.

Language to Literacy (ages 0-3)
Adults explore simple everyday things they can do with children to enhance language skills that lead to talking, reading and writing. Sesame Street Beginnings, which received the endorsement of the American Academy of Pediatrics, shows how to take advantage of daily opportunities to help children develop language and learn to love books.

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Community Events

WVPT hosts literacy events in the community such as the Kids’ Book Festivals held annually in Harrisonburg and Charlottesville. WVPT participates in family fairs, literacy and library events, and other special happenings in the day or evening in our community. Contact us if you have an event in which we can participate.

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Would you like to volunteer?

We have many opportunities throughout the year when we need volunteers to help! If your schedule allows for a consistent volunteer opportunity, we have Wednesday Volunteers who meet on the second Wednesday of each month from 1:00-3:00. If your schedule requires more flexibility, other opportunities arise at various times throughout the year. In either case, simply contact the WVPT Education Services Department for more information.

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