Outreach Institute Book Club Series: The Language of Art

Join us for our 2025 Book Club Series! This year we will gather in-person over five sessions to discuss, apply, and reflect together on ideas and concepts from Ann Pelo's book, The Language of Art. Together we'll find new inspiration in community, bring an equity lens to art education, and build our confidence for providing meaningful & intentional art experiences for young children.

Each session will include:
*20-25 pages of reading prior to meeting

*Discussion with fellow early learning professionals

*Hands-on exploration of art experiences featured in each chapter

*Reflective writing

*2.5 hours of STARS credit (for pre-session reading and live attendance)

Book Club Timeline (all sessions 4:00-5:30pm)
February 25th, Session 1: Introductions and Chapter One – Creating Art Spaces for Children

March 11th, Session 2: Chapters Two and Three - Two-Dimensional Art

March 25th, Session 3: Chapter Four – Three-Dimensional art

April 8th, Session 4: Chapter Five – Representational Art

April 22nd, Session 5: Chapters Six through Eight - Practical applications in the classroom and Closing Reflections

About the Facilitator
Rebecca Dallin (she/her) is an educator at Hilltop Children's Center. She first began working with young children in the early 1990s as part of a psychology practicum and quickly fell in love with the field of early childhood education. Since then, she has enjoyed many roles including teaching in preschool and toddler classrooms, administration, and mentoring. She is currently an approved STARS trainer. Since fall of 2023 she has worked at Hilltop as a full-time primary educator. Outside of work, she enjoys hiking, watercolor painting, and reading good books.

Each Book Club session is eligible for 2.5 hours of STARS training credit for all WA State Early Learning Professionals who attend live.
Can't make it to every session? We hope you'll join us for the full series to get the maximum Book Club learning experience, but we understand that scheduling conflicts are bound to happen. Please email us at '[email protected]' if you know you'll have to miss a session.

Registration is FREE for all early learning professionals! Please indicate when you register if you'd like to purchase your own copy of the book or borrow a copy from Hilltop (please note that all borrowed copies will need to be returned at the last Book Club session). Many thanks to our generous sponsors at Seattle's Department of Education and Early Learning (DEEL) for helping us make Book Club affordable and accessible!

Parking Options: Use this map to find free street parking and paid lot parking available near our building (type our address into search engine: 3601 Fremont Ave. N, Seattle).
Bus numbers 31, 32, 40, and 62 also drop off within two blocks of our building.

Any additional questions? Email us at '[email protected]'

Info: Introduction and Chapter One – Creating Art Spaces for Children

Info: Chapters Two and Three - Two-Dimensional Art

Info: Chapter Four – Three-Dimensional art

Info: Chapter Five – Representational Art

Info: Chapters Six through Eight - Practical applications in the classroom and Closing Reflections

Host or Publisher Hilltop Children's Center - Professional Development Institute