Teaching From the Heart: Nonviolent Communication in the Classroom offered at Hutchinson Center

Registration is open for an online professional development program, “Teaching From the Heart: Nonviolent Communication in the Classroom,” through the University of Maine Hutchinson Center. This one-day professional development program for educators, teachers and those working with preschool–third grade children is scheduled for 9 a.m.–2 p.m. Aug. 2. 

Skills that help maintain the heart-to-heart connections that support children’s ability to self-regulate and to improve their emotional intelligence are at the core of this course.

Participants will learn to manage classrooms and learning environments with a practical curriculum based on the book, “Heart to Heart: Three Systems for Staying Connected (A Manual for Parents and Teachers).” Participants also will learn how to use children’s literature to teach principles of Nonviolent Communication. The reliable systems taught in this class will provide participants with empathetic training to help children transition back into the classroom and beyond.

Instructor and textbook author Gina Simm has taught in early childhood education for more than 30 years. Her background in Montessori education and children’s theater launched her into a career as a first grade teacher, including a year spent teaching English in China. Her knowledge of Nonviolent Communication has transformed her classroom into a place where systems of the heart create a child-centered environment for moving through conflict. More information about Simm’s work is online.

The cost is $125. A limited number of need-based scholarships are available for people who live or work in Knox or Waldo counties. Scholarship information is available on the Hutchinson Center website

Participants will receive a certificate of completion; 0.6 CEUs/6 contact hours are also available.

For more information or to request a reasonable accommodation, contact Michelle Patten, 207.338.8002; um.fhc.pd@maine.edu