{"id":63,"date":"2024-07-11T00:29:53","date_gmt":"2024-07-11T00:29:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/cainclusion.org\/catp\/?page_id=63"},"modified":"2026-07-24T04:49:37","modified_gmt":"2026-07-24T04:49:37","slug":"professional-development","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/cainclusion.org\/teachingpyramid\/preschool\/professional-development\/","title":{"rendered":"Professional Development"},"content":{"rendered":"

Preschool Professional Development<\/h1>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>

CA Teaching Pyramid Framework<\/h2>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>
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The CA Teaching Pyramid is the name used to describe the framework originally developed by the Center on the Social Emotional Foundations for Early Learning (CSEFEL) and now operated by the Pyramid Model Consortium. The descriptions on these pages are for the WestEd adaptation of this framework. Based on recommendations for achieving implementation with fidelity and sustainability over time, there are four recommended components offered by WestEd staff in professional development packages.<\/p>\n

Components include:<\/p>\n\n

    \n \t
  1. a leadership team;<\/li>\n \t
  2. training series (three modules for staff and training of facilitators for family training and specialized training for those developing behavior support plans);<\/li>\n \t
  3. classroom coaching (including mentorship for internal coaches); and<\/li>\n \t
  4. follow-up for sustainability.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    The training and technical assistance (leadership team\/coaching) occurs over the course of six to nine months.<\/p><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>

    Leadership or Implementation Team<\/h2>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>
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    The first step for a program implementing the CA Teaching Pyramid framework is to establish a program-wide Leadership Team. At a minimum, the Leadership Team consists of:<\/p>\n\n

      \n \t
    • An administrator\n
        \n \t
      • This should include a site-level administrator as well as a program-level administrator if multiple sites from a single program are participating<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n \t
      • Supervisors<\/li>\n \t
      • A classroom teacher or teachers<\/li>\n \t
      • Support specialists who may be anyone who would facilitate and develop behavior support plans (individuals could work with multiple sites), including mental health partners, school psychologists, disability specialists, educational coordinators, special education partners, etc.<\/li>\n<\/ul><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>
        <\/div>

        Responsibilities of the Implementation\/Leadership Team:<\/h3>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div>
          \n \t
        • Meet regularly to lead program-wide implementation<\/li>\n \t
        • Provide support for training, coaching, and classroom practices<\/li>\n \t
        • Develop a vision and action plan for long-term systems change and sustainability<\/li>\n \t
        • Attend all training sessions to gain an understanding of the concepts and to provide meaningful support for implementation<\/li>\n \t
        • Model concepts of the CA Teaching Pyramid:\n
            \n \t
          • Promote healthy social-emotional development through positive interaction with adults and children<\/li>\n \t
          • Promote the \u201cExpectations for Behavior\u201d in all aspects of the program including the Leadership Team<\/li>\n \t
          • Determine the meaning of challenging behavior<\/li>\n \t
          • Identify policies and procedures for preventing and addressing challenging behavior<\/li>\n \t
          • Demonstrate the parallel process: treating teachers the way that they expect teachers to provide for children<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n \t
          • Champion and provide support for implementation and sustainability<\/li>\n<\/ul><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>
            <\/div>

            Leadership Team Meetings<\/h3>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div>
            Generally, there are at least six (6) leadership team meetings during the training cycle. The Leadership Team meets one half-day prior to the training and continues to meet after each module during the training. This team becomes a model of shared decision-making within the program and continues to meet after training is finished to act as the Steering Committee for implementation of the CA Teaching Pyramid approach, to monitor technical assistance and additional training needs, and to problem-solve as needed for classroom- or site-specific issues.<\/div><\/div>

            Provided by WestEd<\/h3>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div>
            WestEd provides facilitation for building and sustaining a program-wide Leadership Team. WestEd will work with a contact person or small team to set-up an initial Leadership Team Meeting. In addition to the six meetings with the Leadership Team, WestEd will be available to provide a recruitment session to interested administrators to explain the program and commitment. The Leadership Team also attends the training sessions. This participation is crucial in order to help the training become more meaningful during the training and effective during implementation.<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>

            Training Modules<\/h2>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>
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            The CA Teaching Pyramid training series is designed to meet the diverse needs of adult learners. Training methods include a variety of interactive strategies, including discussions, video examples, scenarios, and hands-on activities. Each module in the series builds on the key concepts from the previous module(s).<\/p>\n

            The purpose of the CA Teaching Pyramid training series is to introduce key concepts, provide practical strategies, and engage in meaningful learning experiences to support the integration of the CA Teaching Pyramid approach into everyday teaching practices.<\/p><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>

            <\/div>
            <\/div>

            Module 1a • Promoting Children’s Success: Building Relationships & Strengthening the Effective Workforce<\/h4>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div>

            This module addresses universal strategies for promoting healthy social and emotional development and preventing challenging behavior.<\/p>\n

            Topics included in this module:<\/p>\n\n

              \n \t
            • Understanding how the brain processes information<\/li>\n \t
            • Reflecting on personal values, perceptions, and beliefs about behavior<\/li>\n \t
            • Building positive relationships with children, families, and colleagues<\/li>\n \t
            • Positive Descriptive Acknowledgement (PDA) and Emotional Deposits<\/li>\n \t
            • Understanding the role of temperament on behavior<\/li>\n<\/ul><\/div><\/div>
              <\/div>

              Module 1b \u2022 Promoting Children\u2019s Success: Creating Supportive Environments<\/h4>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div>

              Topics included in this module:<\/p>\n\n

                \n \t
              • Establishing expectations and use of visuals for schedules<\/li>\n \t
              • Designing environments, transitions, and routines<\/li>\n \t
              • Implementing activities that promote child engagement<\/li>\n \t
              • Scanning for Success and providing positive feedback (PDA) to children<\/li>\n<\/ul><\/div><\/div>
                <\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>
                <\/div>

                Module 2 \u2022 Social-Emotional Teaching Strategies<\/h4>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div>

                This module focuses on effective strategies for facilitating children\u2019s social and emotional development and teaching foundational skills to children, including the ability to solve problems, communicate emotions appropriately and effectively, and build friendships.<\/p>\n

                Topics included in this module:<\/p>\n\n

                  \n \t
                • Identifying teachable moments<\/li>\n \t
                • Facilitating the development of friendship skills<\/li>\n \t
                • Teaching children to identify, understand, and express emotions<\/li>\n \t
                • Teaching how to manage strong emotions<\/li>\n \t
                • Teaching problem solving and conflict resolution<\/li>\n<\/ul><\/div><\/div>
                  <\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>
                  <\/div>

                  Module 3a \u2022 Individualized Intensive Interventions: Determining the Meaning of Challenging Behavior<\/h4>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div>

                  This module focuses on effective strategies for observing children and identifying the meaning\/function of their behavior as a means of identifying skills that could be targeted for instruction.<\/p>\n

                  Topics included in this module:<\/p>\n\n

                    \n \t
                  • Identifying the function of challenging behavior<\/li>\n \t
                  • Identifying behaviors and social skills to target for intervention<\/li>\n<\/ul><\/div><\/div>
                    <\/div>

                    Module 3b \u2022 Individualized Intensive Interventions<\/h4>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div>

                    After determining the meaning of children\u2019s challenging behavior and the skills the child needs to learn to communicate that meaning more effectively, a plan is developed to support the child\u2019s use of the new skills and to decrease the likelihood that the child will need to use challenging behavior.<\/p>\n

                    Topics included in this module:<\/p>\n\n

                      \n \t
                    • An introduction to the Positive Behavior Support process<\/li>\n \t
                    • Developing a plan for supporting social emotional development and preventing challenging behavior through the use of the Routines Based Support Guide<\/li>\n \t
                    • Using a team approach to addressing challenging behavior & social emotional needs<\/li>\n<\/ul><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>
                      <\/div>

                      Specialized Training for the Top of the Pyramid and Family Modules<\/h3>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div>

                      At the end of the training series for teaching staff, two additional trainings may be offered for a subset of the participants. Each of these is described below:<\/p>\n

                      The\u00a0<\/span>\u201cTop of the Pyramid\u201d training<\/b>\u00a0<\/span>is a full day focused on the development of Positive Behavior Support Plans based on the CA Teaching Pyramid materials. Participants will go deeper with materials introduced in the final module (3b) and practice developing plans based on case studies. This training is intended for:<\/p>\n\n

                        \n \t
                      • Administrators<\/li>\n \t
                      • Anyone who typically supports the process of developing behavior plans (school psychologist, mental health consultant, special education staff, director, etc.)<\/li>\n \t
                      • Teachers (optional for most teachers, as they are generally participants in the development of behavior support plans, but do not have responsibility for leading the development)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

                        The\u00a0<\/span>\u201cCA Teaching Pyramid for Families\u201d modules<\/b>\u00a0<\/span>for use with parents and family members will be introduced for use by the programs. Strong partnerships with family members are an important component when implementing the CA Teaching Pyramid framework. In addition to weaving family perspectives throughout the teacher training, separate materials are designed for family groups. There are a series of six sessions in the materials WestEd San Marcos provides a one-day \u201ctraining of facilitators\u201d to appropriate parent meeting facilitators for conducting the parent groups. These materials are also available in Spanish and Chinese.<\/p>\n

                        For the facilitator training, the program(s) receiving the training identifies teams of two individuals who can facilitate groups for parents and family members.<\/p>\n\n

                          \n \t
                        • At least one member of the team should have experience facilitating parent or family groups.<\/li>\n \t
                        • Many programs have classroom teachers as part of the team.<\/li>\n \t
                        • One staff can be the lead on facilitating the groups with support from various members of the staff.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

                          All interested staff members are encouraged to attend.<\/p><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>

                          Coaching<\/h2>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>
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                          As a companion to the CA Teaching Pyramid trainings, strength-based coaching is provided to facilitate understanding and implementation of CA Teaching Pyramid practices. An internal coach is identified by the program to provide ongoing, onsite support to classroom teachers in implementing CA Teaching Pyramid Practices. The internal coach can be a curriculum specialist, an assistant director, a lead teacher, or a director. It is recommended that the internal coach not have supervisorial roles when possible. The WestEd coach serves as a mentor to the internal coach.<\/p>\n

                          Based on the Practice-Based Coaching model, the coach conducts classroom observations followed by reflective team meetings that include the teachers, internal coach, administrator and other support professionals such as mental health consultants. The meetings give staff opportunities to reflect together upon the meaning of the CA Teaching Pyramid concepts and to strategize about the practical application of the tools in the classrooms. The coach facilitates the creation of a Coaching Action Plan that captures these strategies and the supports needed for teachers to put them into practice. Coaching is an iterative process, with particular attention paid to the importance of the bottom two levels of the Pyramid and the implementation of the strategies over time.<\/p>\n

                          The Internal Coach and other support staff are encouraged to meet regularly with the teachers to celebrate successes and reflect upon the Coaching Action Plan regarding fidelity of implementation. This type of comprehensive, classroom-based coaching strengthens teacher understanding of the framework and promotes program-wide implementation.<\/p><\/div><\/div>

                          Provided by WestEd<\/h3>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div>