Welcome It’s More Than Just Playing Participants!
On May 5th, we will begin to explore It’s More Than Just Playing –It’s Learning! What Research Says about the Importance of
Play. Play is an essential piece of a child’s healthy growth and development. In this series, play research will be explored.
Participants will learn how to translate observations of play into intentional teaching practices. Teachers will also explore the many
ways of interpreting children’s play to colleagues, family members and the community. I wanted to give you a quick introduction,
give you your first assignment and make sure that you know how to get to the blackboard course so we are all ready to go!
My name is Miranda Whitham and I am a Professional Development Instructor for Community Education at Northampton
Community College. For more than 10 years, I have worn many “hats” in the early care and education field including; classroom
teacher, center director, trainer, and mentor. I am a wife of 10 years and a mother to two beautiful children (five year old boy and
1 year old girl). I enjoy playing outside with my children, running, and martial arts.
As per the NCC ECE Department, the email sent by course start needs several documents returned by the end of the day of
the last class date. Please fax the following forms to 610-861-4110:
1.
2.
3.
Student Release of Information Form
ECE Contracted Training Registration Form
ACT48 Form (optional)
You will not have access to Blackboard or your course until the session begins on May 5, 2016. When you have
access to your course site in Blackboard, the objectives and other information will be available to you through Blackboard.
Your course uses Blackboard for your course site. You may access Blackboard from the NCC home page at
http://www.northampton.edu by clicking the ‘logins’ area and then choosing ‘Blackboard/Online Learning’ or you can go directly
to http://northampton.blackboard.com . Please note this direct link contains no www and ends in .com rather than .edu.
Blackboard Login Procedure:
Your Blackboard logon is your Lifelearn student ID#. That ID# begins with ll (two lower case Ls) and then usually 4 or 5
digits. Your initial Blackboard password is your Lifelearn ID #. If you previously used Blackboard and changed your password, use
your current password instead.
When you logon to Blackboard, you may change your password if you desire. Also, please verify/change your e-mail
address. Instructions on how to do this are in the Blackboard Manual accessed from the NCC Online Learning website. You can
access and print a manual by going to the NCC Online Learning website at: http://www.northampton.edu/onlinelearning.
From the left hand menu, click on Current Students > How to Get Started Using Blackboard to see instructions on using
Blackboard.
You can email requests for technical assistance to helpdesk@northampton.edu. Here are some tips
for success in an on-line class:

Time matters. Set up a schedule for reviewing class assignments, including time for reading,
researching, writing and participation in discussion forums.
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Feedback systems. You will get feedback directly through discussion forums. If you feel you need additional feedback,
please email or call me.
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Networking. Sharing knowledge with each other is a valuable experience and an opportunity for
even more meaningful and enhanced learning.

Savor the differences. This online training will have value-added features that you would not experience in a
traditional face to face workshop, such as access to the internet, the use of technology and practice in
communication skills when you’re working in groups from a distance.
Please feel free to contact me at any time if you have a question about this training or specific assignments. I
welcome your questions.
A first assignment for you is to go login to your blackboard account and click “It’s More Than Just Playing –It’s Learning!
What Research Says about the Importance of Play” link. Hopefully, you're in! If you are having problems on May 5th, please
contact the help desk at 610-861-5413 or helpdesk@northampton.edu You can begin to explore the buttons on the left-hand
side of the page, including the “course home” button, which lists any new announcements and places to go if you need help.
Now go to the "start here" button and explore the documents that explain the Blackboard system, technical requirements,
student responsibilities and assessment criteria. Please remember that this is not a graded course, but your participation is
required to obtain and earn your professional development certificate at the end of the course.
When you are ready, you can begin to navigate the “discussions” button, where you will be sharing ideas and exploring
questions. Some of the discussion questions will be available at the beginning of this session, and some of the discussion
questions will be available as the course progresses.
The idea behind this 24/7 professional development session is to be able to access it at your convenience. Please do,
however, check back often on discussion boards so you have an opportunity to see, respond to and interact with other’s responses.
Ideally, you can have a conversation with other participants through the discussion board. Please note: Do not wait until the end of
the session schedule. Think of how difficult it might be to join a face to face conversation just as everyone is about to wrap up and
leave.
We will be having a one hour live webinar on May 17th from 1-2 pm. Please make sure that you are available, have a
computer with strong internet access, and are set up in time for the webinar to begin. Further instructions on the webinar will be
made available on the online workshop as the date draws closer. This will be an opportunity to share knowledge immediately with
one another, while learning some new information regarding observation and environments.
A certificate of participation for 6 hours will be provided in the PA Registry System under My Learning Path – My
Transcript once the sessions is completed and closed; which typically will happen within the week after the workshop completes on
May 26th.
Please reply to this email so that we are sure that email communication systems are working.
I look forward to working with all of you in our journey of exploring new ideas. Thank you and have an outstanding rest of
your day!
Miranda Whitham,
PD Consultant
Northampton Community College