“The formative years, the ones that matter the most, are spent with you,” UFT Vice President for Elementary Schools Karen Alford told the more than 400 early childhood educators gathered for the UFT’s 17th annual Early Childhood Conference at union headquarters in Manhattan.

On April 5, the union hosted 3-K through 2nd-grade educators for a day of inspiration, camaraderie and professional development. Throughout the day, educators emphasized how important a strong start is to a child’s educational achievement over their lifetime.

The participants chose from among 11 workshops over two sessions on topics as varied as supporting literacy in English language learners to understanding dyslexia.

Paola Gutierrez Navarro, a pre-K teacher at the Learning Through Play Pre-K Center in the Bronx, enjoyed the activities involving Play-Doh and cards in the workshop “Math Party: Bringing Joyful Math Exploration to Early Learners.” She intends to use the lessons she learned in her own classroom. “There are so many ways we can teach math,” she said. “It can be fun and not frustrating for the children.”

The workshop “Movement-Based Learning,” led Nina Krisel Berke, a special education teacher at P94M @ P188M in Manhattan, became a lively collaboration as educators talked about how to align movement breaks and physicality with learning standards.

Diane Jones, a 2nd-grade paraprofessional at PS 70 in the Bronx, said she would play the games she learned with her student and tell the classroom teacher about them to use for the whole class.

Jones particularly liked the variant of freeze tag because students have to listen for instructions during the game. Instead of just “stop, freeze,” she said, the variant incorporates specific movements, like standing on one leg or making an “arm-brella.”

The new version “works on their motor skills, their concentration and their attention,” Jones said.

Keynote speaker Leslee Udwin, the founder of Think Equal, an early childhood social and emotional education program, delivered a passionate speech that emphasized early childhood educators’ moral responsibility to develop students’ kindness and compassion in a world where those qualities can be lacking. “We are at a very serious crossroads,” she said. “You hold the future in your hands.”

The event was carnival-themed, and Shanker Hall was festive with colorful balloons. New Orleans-based musician Polanco Jones Jr. entertained the crowd with a song, and students from PS 66, PS/IS 155, PS 41 and Mott Hall IV of Brooklyn — all members of the “Science of Music” program — performed on the steel pan drums. The educators danced, waved their bandannas and sang along with the music.

In counterpoint to the cheerful decor and music was the sometimes sober note struck by speakers’ remarks about the current national political landscape.

“The Trump administration is trying to do away with public education and resegregate schools,” UFT President Michael Mulgrew told the attendees.

He said UFT members will continue to celebrate the diversity and cultural differences that make New York City public schools strong. “Sometimes you have four or five languages in a classroom,” he said, “and that’s a beautiful thing.”

Alford, who heads the UFT’s Elementary Schools division which organized the event, alluded in her remarks to the national forces working to destabilize public schools. “We are the stabilizing forces in our classrooms and communities,” she told the audience. “We represent hope.”