I’m Amie, and my early childhood journey has taken me through many different roles that started in 1995. I’ve owned and operated a family child care program, worked in child care centers, taught public preschool, served as a center director and been an advocate.

I don’t believe meaningful learning has to be Pinterest perfect. It doesn’t require an overflowing supply closet, an elaborate theme, or an activity that takes longer to prepare than the children spend using it.

Sometimes the most meaningful learning begins with a book, a handful of loose parts, a child’s unexpected question, or a teacher or parent willing to follow their curiosity.

Who Is This Space For?

Rooted in ECE is for early-childhood educators, child care providers, parents, grandparents, homeschoolers, and anyone else helping little learners grow.

Although our settings may look different, we share many of the same questions:

• How can I make learning meaningful and playful?
• What is a child’s behavior trying to communicate?
• How can I support social-emotional development?
• What activities are truly appropriate for young children?
• How can I encourage curiosity without taking over?
• And what can I do when nothing seems to be working?

This will be a space to explore those questions together – with curiosity, honesty, practical ideas, and hopefully a little humor.

What You’ll Find Here

You’ll find playful activities that can be adapted for home or the classroom, ideas for supporting children’s development, book based learning, sensory experiences, social-emotional guidance, seasonal inspiration, and honest reflections about life with little humans.

I’ll also share resources I’ve created and some of my favorite books, materials, and tools. When I recommend something, my goal is never to convince you that you need more stuff. It’s to help you find items that invite play, make life easier, or can be used in more than one way.

Most importantly, this won’t be a place that expects perfection from children or from the adults guiding them.

We’re all learning.

Let’s Stay Curious Together

Children don’t need us to have every answer. They need us to notice, listen, connect, and sometimes see an ordinary moment a little differently.

That is what being rooted means to me: building strong relationships, observing before assuming, creating meaningful opportunities, thinking differently, recognizing that every interaction counts, and honoring development.

Whether you’re standing in a busy classroom, sitting at the kitchen table, or wondering why a child has carried the same pinecone around all day, I hope you’ll find something here that helps you feel inspired, encouraged, or simply less alone.

Welcome to Rooted in ECE.

Stay rooted. Guide wonder.