The ECERS-3: Overview of the Framework: What Makes Those Interest Centers So Special (Three-Part Training, Plus Hands-on Practice) Deb Norris March 2, 2021

The ECERS-3 is an early childhood program evaluation tool that assesses how classrooms address the physical, social-emotional, and cognitive domains of preschoolers. The first of these three, interactive sessions offers a broad overview of the ECERS-3. Participants will discuss the framework of the tool, and study the importance of how interactions, instruction, and materials are woven throughout the scale. The second session focuses on Interest Centers, and why the authors value this prescriptive level of classroom arrangement. Between the second and third sessions, with guidance, participants will create an Interest Center of their choice in their classrooms, and then send a photo to the instructor. For the third session, participants will have the opportunity to discuss their efforts with others in a non-judgmental, lighthearted learning environment. By the end of this three-session (plus creation time) training, each participant will gain insight into how the ECERS-3 is administered, identify principle terms used throughout the scale, learn the differences between play areas and interest centers, and with guidance, have a hands-on opportunity to improve the quality of their classroom arrangements.