October 27, 2026
Infants and toddlers experience the most rapid brain development of any stage of life, yet professionals serving this age group often receive fewer age-specific training opportunities than preschool staff. At the same time, research suggests educators working with infants and toddlers are among the most vulnerable to stress, burnout, and turnover due to the unique challenges of meeting the intense developmental, emotional, and caregiving needs of very young children in group settings.
The Inspiring Terrific Toddlers series equips Early Head Start and infant/toddler professionals with practical, evidence-based strategies to understand behavior, reduce challenging interactions, increase cooperation, and strengthen relationships with children and families.
The series supports key Head Start priorities by:
When caregivers understand toddler development and have effective tools to respond, children thrive—and educators are more likely to remain engaged and successful in this critical work.
Inspiring Terrific Toddlers is a live virtual training series led by Raelene Ostberg, Director and National Keynote Speaker for Thriving Together. The series is delivered as paired sessions each week: a 2-hour interactive Zoom training on Tuesdays, followed by a 1-hour live coaching session on Thursdays to check in, problem-solve, and apply the concepts in real classrooms.
Participants will leave this series with practical, research-informed strategies to understand toddler behavior, set effective limits, increase cooperation, and respond to persistent challenging behaviors in group care settings. Grounded in Universal Design for Learning (UDL), sessions include live polls, chat discussions, video analysis, guided reflection, and real-time problem-solving to help participants transfer learning immediately into practice.
Toddlers are amazing—and sometimes exhausting! Their growing brains, big emotions, emerging self-regulation, and drive for independence can create behaviors that challenge even the most experienced early childhood professionals. Inspiring Terrific Toddlers is a practical, engaging four-part series designed to help early childhood professionals move beyond simply managing challenging behaviors to truly understanding what is behind them and responding in ways that work. We also know that the more consistent teamwork we can have between programs and families, the easier it is for toddlers to learn what they need to in order to thrive.
Across the series, participants will discover why toddlers do what they do, how to prevent and reduce the behaviors that challenge adults, how to respond when difficult behaviors persist, and how to partner with families when concerns arise. Each session builds on the last, giving educators, advocates, and leaders a deeper understanding and an expanding toolkit of research-informed strategies they can use immediately.
Through relatable stories, real-life examples, videos, guided problem-solving, and practical tools, educators will learn how to reduce power struggles, strengthen connection, increase cooperation, and support toddlers’ developing self-regulation and social-emotional skills.
Whether you are new to working with toddlers or looking to expand your guidance toolkit, this series will help you feel more confident, more prepared, and less stressed when challenging behaviors arise. Educators will leave with practical tools to increase joy, confidence, and success while caring for these remarkable young learners.
This series is designed for Early Head Start and infant/toddler professionals who work directly with, or support those who work with, children under three in group care settings. Ideal participants include:
Virtual Via Zoom – [October 27-November 19] | Tuesday 2-hour session, 1:00-3:00 PM, with optional Thursday 1-hour coaching follow-up
Tuesdays: 2-hour online live Zoom webinar
Thursdays (Optional): 1-hour live coaching with Raelene
Formal Trainings:
Coaching Sessions:
Member Pricing: $159.00 Per Person
Non Member Pricing: $179.00 Per Person
I have been to management workshops, not leadership training. This has totally changed my perspective and encouraged me to propel forward in developing my skills.
I am honored and humbled to be a recipient of the Head Start WEST’s Legacy Scholarship. The scholarship helped me get one step closer to achieving my goal of becoming a Head Start Director.
I took part in The disproportionate impact of COVID 19, and how to provide “real” support for black/brown children and families and I just want to say this was an amazing webinar. I hope we can look forward to further conversation on this topic.
Thank you so much for making events like this! I really enjoyed and learned so much teaching strategies to implement STEM in the classroom.
The HR Network was an excellent opportunity to network and learn the best practices from other HR professionals within Head Start programs. You will be amazed by the level of talent and experience of the participants.
The Summer Camp training was powerful and inspiring! Each presenter was very engaging, it’s hard to even pick a favorite session!
The Leadership Challenge training was very relevant to my work as a Head Start leader! Great facilitation; stayed with the program yet allowed time for individual and small group reflections.
Regular price $12.00
Regular price $39.00
Questions? Contact us at headstartr9@headstartwest.org.
