That Early Childhood Nerd

That Early Childhood Nerd


Latest Episodes

NERD_0305 Visual Perception and Emerging Literacy with Stacy Benge
December 06, 2023

You've heard Stacy Benge on a previous episode, but we had to bring her back! This book is SO GOOD, folks. Join host Heather Bernt-Santy, Mike Huber and Stacy for this discussion of visual perception, how it differs from "eyesight," and why it matters for

NERD_0304 Children’s Invisible Intentions with Ron Grady
November 22, 2023

"Childhood is full of invisible intentions. The ones that, without listening, would bloom and die without our knowledge." -Ron GradyTune in to hear Ron talk more about these intentions, the relational energy of materials in early childhood spaces, and hon

NERD_0303 Saying YES to Pushing Children on Swings
November 15, 2023

Did you know that some early childhood folx have strong feelings AGAINST pushing children on swings? What started as text chat between Mike Huber and Carol Garboden Murray (and was then shared with host Heather Bernt-Santy) turned into a really good episo

NERD_0302 Slow Knowledge pt 3–Interview with Author Alison Clark
November 08, 2023

Host Heather Bernt-Santy and visiting Nerd Carol Garboden Murray are so excited to present this episode for you! Dr Alison Clark, author of Slow Knowledge and the Unhurried Child: Time for Slow Pedagogies in Early Childhood Education. You can buy the book

NERD_0301 What If They Don’t Know How to Play
November 01, 2023

It's a question that comes up whenever Heather talks about play--what do we do when children don't know how to play? Listen in as she talks through some possibilities with beloved Nerds Richard Cohen, Bethany Corrie, Mike Huber, and special guest-who-didn

NERD_0300 Deconstructing School Readiness
October 25, 2023

You all! It's the 300th episode of the show! And you know what special episodes mean? PAJAMA PARTY!Put on some jammies, grab a favorite beverage, and join the Nerd Collective as we talk about how gross our obsession with school readiness is and how it ne

NERD_0299 Settings for Young Children: One Size Still Does NOT Fit All
October 18, 2023

Tune in for a conversation about attempts to define quality, gatekeeping in early childhood, myths about one type of care being automatically higher quality, and more with Heather Bernt-Santy and Lizz Nolasco. Want to support Heather's work? You can do th

NERD_0298 The Whole Child Alphabet with Stacy Benge
October 11, 2023

YOU GUYS! You have to read Stacy Benge's book "The Whole Child Alphabet: How Young Children Actually Develop Literacy" as soon as you can!Author and speaker Stacy Benge joins Heather Bernt-Santy to discuss this really, very, really important new book. Ho

NERD_0297 Curriculum: One Size Does NOT Fit All with Helen Frazier
October 04, 2023

New York City PreK teacher Helen Frazier joins Heather Bernt-Santy for a discussion of her Chalkbeat article "In Preschool, One Size Doesn't Fit All. So Why is NYC Asking Early Educators to Use a Single Curriculum?"Read the article here: https://ny.chalkb

NERD_0296 Slow Knowledge and the Unhurried Child part 2
September 13, 2023

Heather, Carol Garboden Murray and Bethany Corrie finally get together (woo hoo!) for part 2 of our discussion of Allison Clark's book Slow Knowledge and the Unhurried Child: Time for Slow Pedagogies in Early Childhood Education.