Educators at Cairdeas Ballyhass recently took part in a reflective and energising CPD session delivered by Dr Gillian Lake, our Chief Education Officer, which focused on Aistear 2024, Children’s Rights, and the power of observation and high quality documentation in everyday practice. The session created space for meaningful discussion, shared reflection, and a renewed confidence in educators’ professional roles.
From the beginning, the tone of the day encouraged educators to slow down, notice more, and trust what they already know. Through a mix of discussion, practical activities, and real-life scenarios, educators revisited the principles of Aistear 2024 and explored how its themes of Wellbeing, Identity & Belonging, Exploring & Thinking and Communicating come alive in daily interactions with children.
A strong focus of the session was on child-centred and rights-based practice. Educators explored familiar moments such as tidy-up time, snack choices, group activities, and peer disagreements, reflecting on how adult responses can either limit or strengthen children’s agency. These conversations highlighted the importance of listening, negotiating, and allowing children the space to make decisions about their own learning.
The second part of the session turned attention to observation and documentation. Educators worked through examples of play, interactions, and learning to move beyond simply recording what happened, towards understanding what children might be communicating and how educators can respond intentionally. The cycle of noticing, nurturing, responding, and reflecting helped link observation directly to planning and learning records in a practical and accessible way. The Child Paths Learning Record was exemplified as an effective way of achieving this.
Throughout the day, the session remained highly interactive. Group work, shared scenarios, and reflective activities supported peer learning and kept energy levels high. Educators described the experience as engaging, practical, and enjoyable, with many commenting on how accessible and relevant the content felt to their day-to-day practice.
By the end of the session, a clear theme had emerged: educators recognised themselves as agentic professionals. Participants reflected on feeling more confident using their professional voice, advocating for children, and trusting their judgement when making decisions in practice.
This positive experience was reflected in the feedback, with the session receiving an overall rating of 4.94 out of 5, and all educators agreeing that the content was relevant to their role. Many highlighted the value of the interactive format and the clarity provided around Aistear 2024 and documentation.
Feedback also strongly praised Dr Gillian Lake’s facilitation, describing her as knowledgeable, passionate, relatable, and engaging, with an ability to create a supportive learning environment where educators felt comfortable sharing and reflecting together.
Overall, the session was experienced as high-quality, meaningful CPD — one that not only supported practice, but reinforced educators’ confidence in their professional identity and their role in shaping children’s learning experiences.
This session reflects the core belief at Child Paths that educators are knowledgeable, capable, and central to quality early childhood education. By creating space for reflection, dialogue, and shared learning, Child Paths is committed to supporting educators to trust their professional judgement, use their voices with confidence, and act as advocates for children’s rights and wellbeing. Experiences like this reinforce our belief that when educators feel valued and empowered, children benefit most.