Every year, we get a break from the class time lectures and the four corners of our classrooms. Summertime arrives and we are allowed to stretch our arms and legs outside in the warm, sunny weather. But even with this momentary break, discovery and learning don’t end. Students continue their learning outside of the classrooms as they join camps and workshops that follow their interest. Summer then becomes the best time for us to reignite our love for learning.

Of course, our teachers don’t miss out on the same opportunity to learn. They busy themselves with attending their own workshops and training to prepare themselves for the next school year.

This year, Saint Matthew’s Publishing Corporation had the honour of hosting a seminar-lecture series this summer which aimed to provide fun and informative sessions on conducting engaging classes.

The event was called the “Enhancing Learning Experiences through Interactive Teaching Strategies” seminar-lecture series which met with preschool teachers from different parts of the country.

Our days were filled with informative sessions on various teaching strategies and workshops.

Dr. Felicidad Remo and Dr. Luzviminda Ona guided our teachers through the Integrated Core Curriculum.

Teacher Hazel Babiano shared with us a handful of tips and tricks on how to teach children with different learning styles using multisensory techniques.

Teacher Rowena Dagdag taught us how to carefully go about issues on learning disabilities and proper introduction to life skills and the practice of writing.

Saint Matthew’s Publishing was also joined by special guest speakers this summer. Teacher Ernest Ylasco, Head of the Early Childhood and Elementary Education of the College of Education in Pamantasan ng Lungsod ng Valenzuela,  joined us in Baguio to enlighten us on fun activities that truly capture our students’ interest.

Ms. Valerie Cruz-Tapalla, Managing Director of the Wilma Cruz-Tapalla Institute of Speech, Etiquette and Image, conducted one of her powerful workshops on how teachers can better connect with their students.

We also got to meet the fruit- and vegetable-themed stuffed toys from Plush & Play, a social enterprise from the Gawad Kalinga Enchanted Farm.

We must admit that we were blown away by the participants who joined us this summer. All of the teachers we met carried the same enthusiasm for learning and teaching in every place we went to: Naga, Legazpi, Laoag, Vigan, Baguio, Manila, Morong and Antipolo. They listened intently to the speakers and contributed to the open forum. We also watched them excitedly sing, dance and do improvs that we were left wondering where they got their energy from.

Managing the events had its share of challenges. For this summer’s seminars, we found ourselves making late-night and early-morning preparations at the venues, running to attend to different tasks during the event proper, making numerous drafts to perfect our program and presentations, and hauling equipment in long road trips from Manila.

As cliche as it might sound, going through all those challenges was worth it. One can only feel a sense of fulfilment and gratitude for the time shared with our country’s preschool and daycare teachers.

Our beloved educators were also dedicated professionals who made use of the events to enhance their skills in teaching. It was inspiring to see them actively participating in the event and knowing that many of them travelled far for this educational affair.

Their dedication was also seen even in the little things. We don’t often find a room full of people singing our national anthem so loud and proud. But, believe it or not, it happens all the time when you gather a group of preschool teachers. We met real-life heroes who were great examples to their students.

We intended to impart knowledge to our participants by providing them seminars which they may apply in their work. However, it seemed that we learned so much more in our encounters with them. In serving our Filipino preschool teachers, we had a deeper understanding of what service truly was.

We are humbled by the overwhelming response to our seminars as we met about 2,500 participants for the entire seminar-lecture series. We thank all the teachers and school administrators for granting us the opportunity to be their partners in nurturing young minds.

We would like to thank our worktext authors, Dr. Luzviminda Ona, Dr. Felicidad Remo, Teacher Rowena Dagdag and Teacher Hazel Babiano, for their unceasing support to their fellow teachers by sharing their expertise through their written works and the seminars they conduct. We also thank Teacher Ernesto Ylasco and Ms. Valerie Cruz-Tapalla for sharing their time and talents with our teachers.

Weeks before the event, a survey was distributed to the partner institutions of Saint Matthew’s Publishing Corporation. The survey asked for the teachers’ suggested seminar topics.

This year’s program is the result of this survey. We thank all the teachers who took time to provide us with their feedback. The line-up of topics are as follows:

• Teaching Reading and Math the Fun Way
• Teaching Writing and Life Skills the Fun Way
• A Glimpse at the Integrated Core Curriculum
• The Use of the Integrated Core Curriculum Books
• Different Learning Styles and Multisensory Techniques
• An Integrative Approach to Teaching Science, Filipino, Sibika and Values
• Learning Disabilities among Children
• Arts and Crafts for Children
• Dealing with Hard-to-Handle Students
• Dealing with Hard-to-Handle Parents
• Connecting with Your Students: Let Me Count the Ways

Click here for more photos of the events from our Facebook page.