Podcast
That Early Childhood Nerd
Hosted by Early Childhood Nerdwork · EN
If you love thinking deeply about childhood, early childhood education, caring for children, and supporting children’s right to play, this is the podcast for you! Each week, host and self-proclaimed early childhood nerd Heather Bernt-Santy invites practitioners, writers, and thinkers who share her commitment to doing the very best we can for children, their caregivers and teachers, and their families to discuss big ideas, real life practices, and cool research. Let’s get nerdy!
11episodes
Episodes
Newest firstAll episodes
TECN Bonus Episode 1: Little Women and Teaching
Yesterday00:27:15Tap to summarizeIt’s the show’s 10th anniversary! In honor of the anniversary, we are releasing FIVE episodes this week, starting with a re-release of the very first episode. This episode originally aired on August 1, 2016...back then the podcast was called Cause an Effect. A lot has changed since then, including the host's name (from Heather Wenig to Heather Bernt-Santy) but we hope you will tune in! In this episode, Heather is joined by Tiffany Pearsall to talk about the connection between this quote from Louisa May Alcott's "Little Women" and our work with young children: "Mr Davis knew any quantity of Greek, Latin, algebra, and ologies of all sorts so he was called a fine teacher, and manners, morals, feelings, and examples were not considered of any importance." Order Heather’s book, Using Schema Play Theory to Advocate for Free Play in Early Childhood, here: https://www.tcpress.com/products/using-schema-play-theory-to-advocate-for-free-play-in-early-childhood_9780807783177 Join our new Patreon community! For just $5 a month you can support all the Early Childhood Nerdwork podcasts AND join our Discord server to chat with the hosts and others who are working for children, their families, and their teachers: https://www.patreon.com/cw/EarlyChildhoodNerdworkbyThatEarlyChildhoodNerd Thanks for listening!
Transcribe →NERD 0421 Autistic Play and Autistic Joy with Kara Ketter
6d ago00:45:40Tap to summarizeLet's talk autistic play and autistic joy! Host Heather Bernt-Santy is joined in this episode by autistic educator, preschool teacher, and disability justice advocate Kara Ketter and the conversation starts with this quote: “If I could change three things about how the world sees autism, they would be these. That the world would see that we feel joy—sometimes a joy so intense and private and all-encompassing that it eclipses anything the world might feel. That the world would stop punishing us for our joy, stop grabbing flapping hands and eliminating interests that are not “age-appropriate”, stop shaming and gas-lighting us into believing that we are never, and can never be, happy. And that our joy would be valued in and of itself, seen as a necessary and beautiful part of our disability, pursued, and shared.” Read the full blog post here: https://tinyurl.com/yfhpd6c3 Order Heather’s book, Using Schema Play Theory to Advocate for Free Play in Early Childhood, here: https://www.tcpress.com/products/using-schema-play-theory-to-advocate-for-free-play-in-early-childhood_9780807783177 Join our new Patreon community! For just $5 a month you can support all the Early Childhood Nerdwork podcasts AND join our Discord server to chat with the hosts and others who are working for children, their families, and their teachers: https://www.patreon.com/cw/EarlyChildhoodNerdworkbyThatEarlyChildhoodNerd Thanks for listening!
Transcribe →NERD 0420 We Have Surrendered to the Children with Kimberlee Hendricks
2w ago00:39:17Tap to summarizeIn her article for Exchange's winter 2025 issue on Protecting Play, Kimberlee Hendricks shares how her program's commitment to providing a space that belonged to children, that protected play required that they surrender some things, and that they remember what play feels like for adults. She talks with host Heather Bernt-Santy about surrendering to children in this episode. You can read Kimberlee’s article here: https://hub.exchangepress.com/articles-on-demand/70263/ Order Heather’s book, Using Schema Play Theory to Advocate for Free Play in Early Childhood, here: https://www.tcpress.com/products/using-schema-play-theory-to-advocate-for-free-play-in-early-childhood_9780807783177 Join our new Patreon community! For just $5 a month you can support all the Early Childhood Nerdwork podcasts AND join our Discord server to chat with the hosts and others who are working for children, their families, and their teachers: https://www.patreon.com/cw/EarlyChildhoodNerdworkbyThatEarlyChildhoodNerd Thanks for listening!
Transcribe →NERD 0419 Caroline Pratt: More Than Just Blocks (But We Love the Blocks!)
3w ago00:58:09Tap to summarizeDid you know that the familiar wooden unit blocks that so many early childhood spaces have were created in the early 20th century be a progressive educator named Caroline Pratt? I did know that--but I didn't know what an amazing, interesting, spirited woman she really was. Join me, host Heather Bernt-Santy, as Charleen Kepner takes us on a journey to get to know the truly amazing ways that Caroline Pratt challenged the status quo and championed children's right to a meaningful education...including amazing quotes from Pratt that delighted me. You can read Charleen’s thesis on Caroline Pratt here: https://pdxscholar.library.pdx.edu/honorstheses/1649/ Order Heather’s book, Using Schema Play Theory to Advocate for Free Play in Early Childhood, here: https://www.tcpress.com/products/using-schema-play-theory-to-advocate-for-free-play-in-early-childhood_9780807783177 Join our new Patreon community! For just $5 a month you can support all the Early Childhood Nerdwork podcasts AND join our Discord server to chat with the hosts and others who are working for children, their families, and their teachers: https://www.patreon.com/cw/EarlyChildhoodNerdworkbyThatEarlyChildhoodNerd Thanks for listening!
Transcribe →NERD 0418 Potty Training and School: Whose Job Is It Anyway?
4w ago00:50:10Tap to summarizeA May 2026 article posted by Education Week wonders, "Who's Responsible for Toilet Training? Schools or Families?" While the article is a measured report of data and policies, the headline hit a nerve for host Heather Bernt-Santy. How can we say it's one or the other? What developmental considerations need to be included in the question? What systemic barriers are in place? And for goodness sake, why did they select a photo of a defiant looking preschooler for the post? Lizz Nolasco joins Heather to unpack, to wonder, and to stand up for the child caught between school and family. Find the article here: https://www.edweek.org/teaching-learning/whos-responsible-for-toilet-training-schools-or-families/2026/05 Order Heather’s book, Using Schema Play Theory to Advocate for Free Play in Early Childhood, here: https://www.tcpress.com/products/using-schema-play-theory-to-advocate-for-free-play-in-early-childhood_9780807783177 Join our new Patreon community! For just $5 a month you can support all the Early Childhood Nerdwork podcasts AND join our Discord server to chat with the hosts and others who are working for children, their families, and their teachers: https://www.patreon.com/cw/EarlyChildhoodNerdworkbyThatEarlyChildhoodNerd Thanks for listening!
Transcribe →NERD 0417 Carcerality and Child Care with Kisa Marx
Jun 2400:55:59Tap to summarizeIn our second episode with Kisa Marx about her new book, we had to dig into two quotes to get a full picture for our conversation. "Care is a birthright--an inherent need that follows us throughout our lives. From the moment a child is born they are entitled to care, not just as a basic necessity but as something that nurtures their growth, autonomy, and capacity to imagine a future where they belong." "We hold dreams for children--visions of freedom, exploration, connection, and joy. Yet in practice, these dreams are often stifled by deficit-based narratives. These narratives don't merely fail to nurture children's potential, they actively strip away the empathy, belonging, and joy essential to their development." Kisa is here to talk us through it. Order Kisa’s book here: https://tinyurl.com/5ckscscz To find out more about the Play Lab Foundation: https://theplaylabnfpoakpark.org/the-play-lab Order Heather’s book, Using Schema Play Theory to Advocate for Free Play in Early Childhood, here: https://www.tcpress.com/products/using-schema-play-theory-to-advocate-for-free-play-in-early-childhood_9780807783177 Join our new Patreon community! For just $5 a month you can support all the Early Childhood Nerdwork podcasts AND join our Discord server to chat with the hosts and others who are working for children, their families, and their teachers: https://www.patreon.com/cw/EarlyChildhoodNerdworkbyThatEarlyChildhoodNerd Thanks for listening!
Transcribe →NERD 0416 Risky Play at School with Megan Zeni and Mariana Brussoni
Jun 1700:58:53Tap to summarize"We know that schools and classrooms can be tough spaces to work and learn. The good news is that OPAL almost always offers a pathway for improving learning conditions, no matter which difficulties districts, schools, or classroom teachers identify as priority issues. Improved mental health, student engagement, staff wellness, joy and wonder in the school day are all possible when OPAL and risky play are supported in schools." Whether you work with children before they go to formal school or in an elementary/primary setting, you'll want to listen as host Heather Bernt-Santy talks with Dr. Megan Zeni and Dr. Mariana Brussoni about their book Embracing Risky Play at School: Getting Kids Outdoors to Explore, Learn, and Grow. You can order Embracing Risky Play at School here: https://www.tcpress.com/products/embracing-risky-play-at-school_9780807784006 You can find the study Dr. Zeni and Dr. Brussoni referenced in this episode here: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0272494426001635 Find Order Heather’s book, Using Schema Play Theory to Advocate for Free Play in Early Childhood, here: https://www.tcpress.com/products/using-schema-play-theory-to-advocate-for-free-play-in-early-childhood_9780807783177 Join our new Patreon community! For just $5 a month you can support all the Early Childhood Nerdwork podcasts AND join our Discord server to chat with the hosts and others who are working for children, their families, and their teachers: https://www.patreon.com/cw/EarlyChildhoodNerdworkbyThatEarlyChildhoodNerd Thanks for listening!
Transcribe →NERD 0415 Can We Really Do Quality Child Care?
Jun 1000:54:52Tap to summarizeAny Princess Bride fans out there listening? If so, I'll bet you've quoted "You keep using that word. I don't think it means what you think it means" on more than one occasion. And host Heather Bernt-Santy thinks of that line whenever she hears the words "high quality child care." What do we think it means? What do research, culture, child care budgets, or isms of all sorts say about "quality?" Listen in as Heather and guest Sam Balch unpack the Vox article "A Critical Fight Over Quality Child Care Could Shape Millions of Kids" by Rachel Cohen Booth. Find the article here: https://www.vox.com/child-care/413120/child-care-daycare-quality-preschool-head-start-qris-standards-children Order Heather’s book, Using Schema Play Theory to Advocate for Free Play in Early Childhood, here: https://www.tcpress.com/products/using-schema-play-theory-to-advocate-for-free-play-in-early-childhood_9780807783177 Join our new Patreon community! For just $5 a month you can support all the Early Childhood Nerdwork podcasts AND join our Discord server to chat with the hosts and others who are working for children, their families, and their teachers: https://www.patreon.com/cw/EarlyChildhoodNerdworkbyThatEarlyChildhoodNerd Thanks for listening!
Transcribe →NERD 0414 How Institutional Are You?
Jun 300:50:28Tap to summarizeIn 1992, Jim Greenman wrote an article called "Places for Childhoods--How Institutional Are You?" that has been, without exaggeration, in host Heather Bernt-Santy's mind at least once a week since she discovered it early in her career. And what fun! Sam Balch was in town to join her for a conversation of how (sadly) relevant the question is today. Find Jim's article here: https://hub.exchangepress.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/5008749.pdf Order Heather’s book, Using Schema Play Theory to Advocate for Free Play in Early Childhood, here: https://www.tcpress.com/products/using-schema-play-theory-to-advocate-for-free-play-in-early-childhood_9780807783177 Join our new Patreon community! For just $5 a month you can support all the Early Childhood Nerdwork podcasts AND join our Discord server to chat with the hosts and others who are working for children, their families, and their teachers: https://www.patreon.com/cw/EarlyChildhoodNerdworkbyThatEarlyChildhoodNerd Thanks for listening!
Transcribe →NERD 0413 Emergent Curriculum with Sue Stacey
May 2700:49:40Tap to summarizeSusan Stacey joins the show for a deep dive into emergent curriculum--what it really means, what is looks like in practice, and why it still matters in early childhood settings. Her book Emergent Curriculum in Early Childhood Settings reminds us that "emergent curriculum requires the disposition of genuine curiosity about children and their play" and that "a teacher who is curious, who wonders why children are doing a particular thing in a particular way, will be genuinely interested in finding a meaningful response." Order Emergent Curriculum in Early Childhood Settings here: https://tinyurl.com/y9h5us2f Find more of Sue’s work at https://suestacey.ca/ Order Heather’s book, Using Schema Play Theory to Advocate for Free Play in Early Childhood, here: https://www.tcpress.com/products/using-schema-play-theory-to-advocate-for-free-play-in-early-childhood_9780807783177 Join our new Patreon community! For just $5 a month you can support all the Early Childhood Nerdwork podcasts AND join our Discord server to chat with the hosts and others who are working for children, their families, and their teachers: https://www.patreon.com/cw/EarlyChildhoodNerdworkbyThatEarlyChildhoodNerd Thanks for listening!
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