McCormick Institute for Early Childhood

BY Barb Volpe, M.Ed. | May 2, 2023

This document may be printed, photocopied, and disseminated freely with attribution. All content is the property of the McCormick Center for Early Childhood Leadership.

“May I please finish?” said one of my siblings during a discussion on the care of my elderly parents. I had just interrupted with what I thought was a helpful suggestion. Another sibling said in a low voice, “See, I am not the only one who interrupts.” The third sibling said, “We are a family of interrupters!” I quickly shut my mouth and mentally told myself to stop thinking of what I wanted to say and LISTEN! This incident reminded me that even though I work hard on my communication skills, I may need to monitor myself more with family and also at work. I started to wonder how well I had really been listening.


Communication skills are a fundamental competency in Leadership Essentials, one of the three domains of the Whole Leadership Framework. Being a good listener is key to being an effective communicator. Early childhood leaders and administrators spend much time listening to children, families, staff, and community members. To listen well, they need to understand what is being communicated, stay engaged in the conversation, be mindful of their perspective, and listen with a focus on empathy.


I have been fortunate to work with several colleagues who are good listeners. They make it a priority to listen to understand rather than being quick to respond. I notice that when they listen, they don’t prejudge, and they ask questions to enhance their understanding of what is being said. They serve as a model for me as I aspire to be a better listener.


Now that I am more aware that my habit of interrupting has crept back into my behavior with family, friends, and colleagues, I plan to focus on improving my listening skills. Below are five simple strategies I will practice to strengthen my listening skills.


  1. Be mindful and aware. To change my behavior, I need to monitor it. Therefore, I will be more mindful and aware of when I interrupt or have the urge to speak rather than listen. I will practice meditation breathing techniques while I listen to others. This will help me slow down and process the information being shared.
  2. Acknowledge and apologize. I have shared my desire to curb my interrupting habits with my family and colleagues. This allows them to help hold me accountable for changing my behavior.
  3. Take notes. At work, I often worry that I will need to remember questions, ideas, or key points. If I write down my thoughts, I will be prepared when it is my turn to speak. I will keep a notebook with me, especially during meetings. Doing this will allow me to capture my thoughts without interrupting.
  4. Stay present and patient. Life is busy; there is no denying that. But sometimes, that sense of busyness has a negative impact on my listening skills. When I am in a rush or preoccupied with other tasks, I can feel distracted and sometimes interrupt to speed things up. I will work to stay present and patient when listening. When I become distracted by a sense of urgency, I will refocus on the conversation at hand or suggest a better time to talk when I know I can be a more supportive listener.
  5. Listen to Understand, Not Respond. As the Director of Professional Learning, I am often involved in creative thinking and problem-solving. In many ways, coming up with solutions serves me well. However, it is critical that in conversations with others, I remember that the first goal of listening is to understand. I will focus on making understanding what is being said my priority rather than jumping into the role of problem-solver.


This will take dedicated effort, but I believe I can become a better listener. The next time I am with my siblings, I hope to hear them say, “Thanks for listening!”


“The most basic of all human needs is the need to understand and be understood. The best way to understand people is to listen to them.”


— Ralph Nichols


Interested in learning more about communication and leadership? Communication skills are just one of the topics discussed while building leadership skills in the Ready to Lead leadership academy. Information can be found here.

Barb Volpe, M.Ed., is the Director of Professional Learning at the McCormick Center for Early Childhood Leadership. She oversees the development and implementation of leadership academies for early childhood center- and home- based administrators. Barb is a state and national trainer in areas of early childhood program leadership and administration. Building on past experience as a statewide assessor for the Illinois QRIS system, she supports statewide Quality Specialists and Infant Toddler Specialists in their technical assistance work through training on quality assessment tools and coaching practices.

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The AI-Enabled Administrator: Reclaim Valuable Time

By Dr. Neal Green • February 8, 2026
Tools: Gemini Gems, NotebookLM, Perplexity Spaces Overview The evidence is clear that early childhood professionals' most significant challenge is a lack of time. Artificial Intelligence (AI) tools, when used strategically, can give administrators some of the time they desperately need, allowing them to focus more on their staff and the children and families in their care. This approach aligns with the foundational goal of strengthening leadership effectiveness and program impact (Abel, Talan, & Masterson, 2023). When I scan the AI landscape of available products and platforms, it becomes overwhelming. There are so many options that it is impossible to keep up with every new development. Focusing on a limited number of AI tools backed by organizations with strong infrastructure and fiscal stability is a wise place to start your AI journey. McCormick Institute for Early Childhood’s (MIEC’s) upcoming professional development sessions will focus on three AI tools. These include Gemini Gems, NotebookLM, and Perplexity Spaces. Think of Gemini Gems as your customized AI assistant that you "train" to follow your rules and meet your goals. Gemini Gems are the right tool to tackle Internal Operations . NotebookLM is perfect for creating Family Support resources that stick. NotebookLM is a powerful AI tool that uses only the documents or other resources you add to generate specific, focused output. Perplexity Spaces is a fantastic choice to address Marketing demands. Like many AI tools, you can toggle back and forth between open web searches and focused documents that are specific to your work. Gemini Gems: The “Specialist Teammate” Gemini Gems allow you to create templates you can use repeatedly for agendas, HR policies, and more. If you have used AI in the past, you know that writing an effective prompt takes time, and they can easily get "lost" if you use AI often. Gems removes that challenge and lets you save your most effective prompts without having to rewrite them every time you use Gemini. It is up to you to decide if you want to create several smaller Gems to tackle common challenges you face or create larger Gems that encompass large swaths of your work. For our purposes, we will focus our Gem work on Internal Operations, addressing Program Administration Scale (PAS) Item 9: Internal Communications (Talan & Bloom, 2011). Imagine using a Gem to turn messy staff meeting notes into professional minutes with clear action plans in minutes or less! NotebookLM: The "Walled Garden" NotebookLM is an excellent tool for Family Support for your center, addressing PAS Item 17: Family Support and Involvement (Talan & Bloom, 2011). After uploading documents and resources, such as your parent handbook or community referral lists, to your Notebook, you can create several resources that parents/guardians of your center students will love. Just a few of the impressive features available with NotebookLM include audio (podcast) summaries, video summaries, and reporting functions with templates or the option to create your own report with metrics that matter most to you. Perplexity Spaces: The "Research Librarian" Perplexity Spaces is a perfect AI partner for Marketing your early childhood education (ECE) program, addressing PAS Item 18: External Communications (Talan & Bloom, 2011). You can build your own centralized repository, with control over branding to ensure consistency and present a professional, current image. Adding specific instructions to your space eliminates the need to format documents constantly and saves valuable time. The consistency that a Perplexity Space offers in this regard allows you to upload messages that are the "voice” of your brand. Your marketing efforts are not only more aesthetically pleasing but also enable you to track trends at similar centers in your area, helping you assess the competition. Strategies for Success: Audit your Internal Communications: Identify one repetitive task, such as creating staff meeting agendas (PAS Item 9), and automate it with a Gemini Gem. Curate your Family Resources: Gather three to five existing documents to "feed" a NotebookLM project for more responsive family support (PAS Item 17). Standardize your Brand: Use a Perplexity Space to ensure all public relations tools project a consistent, professional image (PAS Item 18). Reflection Questions: Which administrative task takes the most time away from your interactions with staff and families? How might centralizing marketing materials (branding) impact the professional image to prospective families? Table 1: AI Tools for ECE Professionals
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