S1E5 - Lili-Ann Kriegler: Building Resilience
How can integrating play into early childhood education enhance children’s conceptual understanding and cognitive development?
In what ways can educators support abstract, organized, relational, representational, and metaphorical thinking in young learners?
In this episode, Dr. Amie Fabry engages in a compelling conversation with Lili-Ann Kriegler, a distinguished education consultant and author renowned for her expertise in early childhood education, educational leadership, and cognitive development. With over 30 years of experience, Lili-Ann shares her insights on the transformative power of play, the significance of early attachment and language development, and the evolving role of educators in fostering critical thinking skills in young learners.
Lili-Ann Kriegler is a Melbourne-based education consultant and author with over three decades of experience spanning all educational levels, from early childhood to adult education. Her primary specializations include early childhood education (birth to nine years), educational leadership, and optimizing human cognition. She holds a Bachelor of Arts (Honors), a Higher Diploma in Education, and a Master’s in Education.
Throughout her career, Lili-Ann has been a fervent advocate for the transformative power of education, emphasizing that learning is constructed through dialogue and social interaction. Her consultancy, Kriegler Education, focuses on customized professional learning design for preschool and junior primary leaders, educators, and curriculum coordinators.
As an author, Lili-Ann has penned several influential works, including “Edu-Chameleon: 7 Dynamic Learning Zones to Enhance Children’s Concept-Based Understanding” and “Roots and Wings: A Parents’ Guide to Learning and Communicating with Children to Forge a Family with Mettle.” Her latest publication, “The Power of Play,” delves into the dynamic ways educators can engage with students to foster deeper understanding and cognitive development.
Resources mentioned:
• Edu-Chameleon: 7 Dynamic Learning Zones to Enhance Children’s Concept-Based Understanding
Connect with Lili-Ann Kriegler
• Website
Hire this host via hello@thelearningfuture.com
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Amie Fabry (00:08)
Hi friends and welcome back to the Leading the Early Years for the Future podcast. I'm your host Dr Amie Fabry and I am delighted to introduce another wonderful leader in the early years who is an education consultant, an award-winning author and a thought leader in early childhood education. I'd love to introduce Lili-Ann Kriegler who has decades of experience working with people of all ages right from toddlers all the way through to adults.
And her expertise lies in early childhood education, educational leadership and enhancing thinking skills of people of all ages. She is also the author of several amazing books. Her most recent publication is The Power of Play and it's due to be released this month and I cannot wait to get my hands on a copy. also the host of a wonderful podcast called For Your Ears from the early years. I cannot wait to have this conversation. Thank you.
Lili-Ann Kriegler (00:38)
you
Amie Fabry (01:06)
Lily-Ann for joining me.
Lili-Ann Kriegler (01:09)
Hello, Amy. It's so great. It's great to be online with you again, actually, because coincidentally, your recent interview on my podcast, which you've just mentioned, will likely be hitting the airways as we're talking. I loved hearing about it. Yeah, I loved hearing about your leading with intention framework, but thank you for the invitation today. I really appreciate it.
Amie Fabry (01:23)
That's so exciting.
absolutely. It's such a wonderful opportunity to now learn and dive more into the wonderful work that you do. before we talk about early years and play and all of your amazing work, I'm really curious if you can give us a glimpse into who you are as a whole human being and perhaps some of the things that light you up. Perhaps you've got some hidden talents, skills or interests that lie outside.
of your professional role? Is there something that you'd like to share with us?
Lili-Ann Kriegler (02:05)
For Amy, I think one of my great advantages in life is that I can see the funny side of things. Most the time. I usually have a very positive mindset and I love looking for the strengths in others and seeing different perspectives. But then on a personal level, there's nothing makes me happier than skiing down a mountain, being on the golf course or sewing. They all keep me grounded.
And I love, love, love listening to audio books. So my car's name is Honeybee. And when I go driving, I say I'm in Honeybee's university because it's always fueling my knowledge and my curiosity.
Amie Fabry (02:40)
you
beautiful. So many wonderful skills and hobbies and interests, you know, to keep exploring and,
just such a wonderful, wonderful view to have of the world to keep being curious and learning. Thank you for sharing that. let's dive into early years. So based on your experience and expertise, can you share with us, why do you believe the early years are such an important period of life?
Lili-Ann Kriegler (03:17)
Amy, I'm so pleased you asked that. And I want to spend a few minutes on that if you don't mind. So the first thing I'll talk about is, yeah, the first thing is attachment, and then rapid brain development, and then some critical ideas about language and literacy and how we, you and the listeners can support that. So the early years are vital.
Amie Fabry (03:24)
of
Lili-Ann Kriegler (03:44)
because as the British psychologist John Bowlby discovered, children's experiences in the first 1,000 days are formative for attachment, giving children a sense of security or not. And neuroscientists research also showed that in the first five years, the brain reaches 90 % of its development.
You know that and I know that. And one of the most underestimated aspects of this developmental period is supporting language development. The philosopher, and this is a bit of a mouthful, Ludwig Wittgenstein, says that the limits of our language mean the limits of our world. So just think about that for a moment. Our language,
predict the geography of our thinking and acting and how far we can go. So this period, the early years period begins to shape the child's identity and it is the foundation for their ability to think critically. And they do that through literacy. And literacy, I like to see it as an iceberg where reading and writing is at the very top, but we know that
95 % of an iceberg is under the water and it's invisible. And the early years are vital for this invisible part, which is all the pre-literacy skills. So from the Australian Literacy and Numeracy Foundation and experts there, we find that this is where children's oral language introduces them to things that Wittgenstein calls language games. And that's how we use language like
How do we tell stories and retell stories? And how do we give instructions? And how do we imagine? And how do we explain facts and rationalize things and think about things? So children are already engaging in these very, very interesting forms of language. And it happens when we are in conversation with them in this thing called serve and return. So back and forth and back and forth. So during these formative years, I am passionate about
fueling children's knowledge, fueling that knowledge and helping them become thinkers by talking with them and knowing how important this early language is for who they're going to become. So I think you can hear from this that I think language is the superpower of human beings to develop their identity.
Amie Fabry (06:24)
Yeah, absolutely. Can you, you also mentioned attachment. What is the connection between language and attachment?
Lili-Ann Kriegler (06:34)
Well, attachment is where you feel a sense of belonging. And I think it's literally from starting to see the expressions on your carer's face, whether that might be parents or other carers. I am a grandmother recently, six months, six, sorry, six weeks, six weeks ago. And already, thank you. It's so exciting. His name is Ivar.
Amie Fabry (06:56)
Congratulations!
Lili-Ann Kriegler (07:02)
IVAR, he's just gorgeous. And already you can see at six weeks when you broaden your eyes at the bright expression that he's starting to see that and responding to that. So attachment is really about responsiveness. And from that, children begin to understand that they're important in the world.
and that they're valued. And that's what attachment is all about.
Amie Fabry (07:29)
love that you were talking about the role
attachment and I guess as adults in children's lives, whether we're parents or we're educators, we have a really important role to play in enabling children to feel that sense of belonging and actually being a participant in those serve and return back and forth interactions. And I love too that you mentioned the child's identity and...
how attachment and language is shaping that identity. And I guess for me, I'm thinking too, you know, the early years we talk about being so important because all of this development is happening, but I'm wondering what are your reflections on the role of the early years and what that means for a child going forward in the rest of their life?
Lili-Ann Kriegler (08:17)
as you've said there, Amy, it's all about creating relationships and
We speak about the attachment between the parent and the children and their own children and other caregivers, but they're often children who might have challenging backgrounds. And even if they don't, the educator is another point of connection between a child and their growing identity. So there's a fabulous psychologist here in Melbourne called Judith Papasi.
And when she speaks to educators, she says, you have to understand that you might be the only I can person for a child, which gives them the sense that they can do things, they are important, and that they have a place in this world and that they are gonna really do well. So as educators, we can be very, important in that attachment, in that identity formation of young children.
Amie Fabry (09:21)
Yeah, absolutely. So tell us more about your work then. know, educators and parents as well, I don't want to overlook them, but educators in particular, you know, we have such an important role in children's lives, particularly in those early years. Tell us more about the work that you do as a consultant to support educators.
Lili-Ann Kriegler (09:43)
Well, I work currently alongside educators through my consultancy, which is fairly new called Kriegler Education. And I help them to unlock new possibilities for children, mainly through play and project based learning. So I am quite adept at linking theory to practice.
and showing how different educational philosophies all lead us to understand how children learn. So based on this vast experience, I'm not going to tell you how many decades, but I am a grandmother, remember. I have written a book called, which you mentioned, The Power of Play, Mastering the Seven Dynamic Learning Zones.
Amie Fabry (10:27)
I'm
Lili-Ann Kriegler (10:37)
And what this book does is it offers educators a shared language to describe what they are already doing so that they can use their techniques a little more consciously and a little more purposefully. Because every time we move, every time we open our mouths and every word that comes out of them,
has the possibility to amplify the impact of our work. So my work is supporting children and educators to understand the how of learning. I love the what, I love the content, and you know, we can set up the most exquisite learning environments to bring content to the fore.
but I'm very strong on working on the how of learning. So I introduce children and educators to their brains as I've been introduced over time through the giants and the theorists of our amazing profession and their incredible thinkers gone before us. But yeah, for me, it's the process of thinking and getting children in touch with that so that they can become reflective and critical.
and not just react to the environment, but to help create one.
Amie Fabry (12:10)
That's really, really powerful. And I think, you know, I'm reflecting as you're talking on just how important it is to support our educators. You know, whether you're a consultant, whether you're a center director or a school principal, I think it is so important that we are supporting our educators, but they're also supporting each other, particularly when we think about the how.
of learning. And I guess because, you know, in the current times, when we're looking at some of the discourse around education and, you know, the debate around what's the best how of learning, I think it is so important that we're having these really pivotal conversations right across the sector.
about what that looks like and helping and supporting educators to connect to purpose, but theory and research and understand that so that they can lead and they can educate with intention. You know, there's a lot to do. Being an educator is a busy role, as you know, and I know. So I think it is, you know, it's so paramount that we are connected to what we're doing, why we're doing it so that we can be really intentional.
So tell us how did you come into this work? You mentioned that you've been a consultant for a short time. I know you've been an educator and worked as a director. What led you to start working as a consultant?
Lili-Ann Kriegler (13:34)
All right, well, like you, because I know we've chatted and we've met each other and followed each other. I have grown professionally from studying a lot of really extraordinary approaches like the Reggio Emilia philosophy. And also I've worked with the primary years program amongst other theories. And I mean, we love Brunner and we love Dewey and we love Piaget and we love Vygotsky, et cetera.
But during all of those studies, I find that I reach thresholds or aha moments that just grow understanding. And I cannot wait to share those with other people. So I would go around and talk about them because you want to share what you've learned. So after years in the classroom and as an ELC director from being invited to speak and share,
these things that I'm learning on the giants, you know, on the shoulders of these other giants. I was invited to work at Independent Schools Victoria, where I was for 12 years as an education consultant. And that stretched me so much because it takes you out of the ambit, even of one context or one school, it exposes you to different cultures, it exposes you to different
techniques, different beliefs and values. So that has kept me going and I met the most incredible teachers and facilitators. I'm privileged to work alongside. And then the other thing is that I've worked across all levels of education. So from, you know, from the preschool before that, I was a secondary teacher. I've worked in primary and I've worked with adults. And so that journey has just taken me
further and further along, just step by step. And at the center of it all though is still that educational mission, which is around my deep belief in the power of play and how play can be the vehicle for language learning and how it can also start
fantastic project-based learning without taking away the joy and without becoming prescriptive, but really spiraling children up in their knowledge so that they don't stay in one place. So that book, The Power of Play and the Tools I've Developed, like the central thing of that book is called The Agility Wheel, which is different ways that educators can pivot.
to achieve what they want to, and another language tool called the Larvitude method. All of these offer educators the practical means to extend children's language and thinking and help them understand and articulate their knowledge while building that cognitive development. And from that, their creativity, because I'm such a strong believer in creativity. And Edward de Bono tells us, he's such a great guru.
that we can't create from a vacuum. We need knowledge to connect and to connect it in unique and exciting ways. So yeah, that's a big mouthful about how I've ended up where I am now, which is on my own, but you know what, loving collaborating with other people.
Amie Fabry (17:13)
What a wonderful journey. There's so much in there to unpack. I love that you're actually talking about sharing what you know. And I think that is so powerful. And I think it's something that we can all keep reflecting on. How are we sharing what we know rather than holding it to ourselves? Because I truly believe as a profession, we are stronger together and there is so much to...
learn from one another and and I guess you know we all have different strengths and different expertise. I don't think anyone is completely right and wrong I kind of don't see it that way but I do think that there's so much power in supporting our profession when we do share what we do know and understand and I love that you also talked about not just these theories and giants that we know are so so powerful and impactful the work that they've done.
but that you're actually helping to bridge that, research theory divide into practice. And I think that is so so needed and so useful and valuable for supporting our educators to understand some of these concepts, which can be a little abstract, you know, what does that mean in practice? And how can I use that in my own thinking, my own reflection, the way I engage with children, the types of learning
the how of learning that you talked about before is amazing. Thank you for sharing your journey. And I also really love that you talked about the learning that happened for you, going into consulting and that you learnt a lot and perhaps pushed you out of your comfort zone. And I think personally, my experience has definitely been the same.
you are achieving some incredible things and you you've written a couple of books, which I'm completely in awe of as someone who is yet to write one. On the outside, I think when we look at some of the leaders right across the sector, you know, whether they're educators working directly with children, whether they're centre directors, working in schools, consultants, there's a whole range of us in terms of our roles and experience.
But I think it's really easy to slip into the trap of looking at what other people have done and seeing them as perfect or having all the answers or even having a really smooth path. So I'm keen to learn from you and hear from you what maybe some of the behind the scenes has looked like for you. I'm hearing you say you had a lot of learning and stepped out of your comfort zone. If you are comfortable, can you share some of the key
guess challenges you may have experienced and maybe how you overcame some of those to keep going and to kind of get to where you are and experience the success as well.
Lili-Ann Kriegler (19:56)
I would love to, but just to revert back to sharing your information, because this is kind of where it starts. When I was working at Bialik College, I was working with the children on shadow, light and reflection. And they taught me so much about how they were approaching these materials and what they were learning from them. And I decided that I would invite the parents
to come to a little talk about what their children were learning. And I set up the date and then to my surprise on the day, the ELC director, I was a teacher then, and the junior school head turned up in this little room to listen to what I had to say. And this really talks to how
important it is for all of us to be seen and heard because it just gave me such a buzz that they would be interested. And so we can be those people who see and hear others. And there are a lot of challenges on the way. I mean, for instance, writing a book, I was working on The Power of Play,
It's a second iteration. It had another life as Edu Chameleon before that. For 10 or 15 years, it's not something that happens overnight. And I talk about there being gatekeepers in the world who are arbiters and judges of your work. And so I got a fair number of knockbacks. But you know what? You've just got to stand up and dust yourself off.
and just start again. And sometimes it happens in a day and sometimes it takes a year or two. But don't stop. That's what I say. Just don't even stop. So one of the challenges is to believe in yourself even when other people might not think that what you're offering is as valuable as you do, you know, because clearly you believe in your own work. So...
That is one of the challenges. And yeah, just pick yourself up and try new things. You know, just do it. They say action is a really, really important first step. Just act and see what happens. And I've learned sometimes to not get married to the result. So if I put something out there and I get one person responding, you know what? I made a difference in one person's life and I can learn from that.
But another challenge, think, in our roles is that we have to honor compliances, regulations, and all these external demands, ideas, and opinions that come our way. So it's difficult to live with all of that and then still remain true to yourself.
So I advocate for educators to have the courage to design their curricula and their learning spaces to reflect their values and beliefs about children and about their fellow educators and how we all learn. Because there's no one that's going to know your children and your program and what makes it tick as well as you do. You're professional. So don't let someone come and tell you to change it.
Rather stand your ground and explain to them why this works. And if you have valid reasons for why it works, then try and maintain those values. And it's hard not to step on other people's values and beliefs while you do that, but then you just have to negotiate. and then just continue to be that I can person for all your students, but also for
everyone around you, try to have that energy. There lots of challenges, but really resilience, I think, is the most important thing.
Amie Fabry (24:17)
There's some, yeah, some very real challenges you mentioned there. And I love that you've also offered some
ways that you've navigated those challenges. I also really resonate when you're talking about believing in yourself and your own values and mission, because sometimes I think you do have to stand your ground like you're like you're saying. And I also love that you talk about giving it a go, trying something and seeing what happens. And I think a lot of leadership is trial and error. And, you know, but to reframe
what one person might deem as a failure. You know, if I put something out and only one person responds or maybe no one does, or they don't see my side, but actually to turn it into a learning opportunity, I think is so powerful and kind of takes the focus off you as an individual. But actually it's about this mission and how can I better lead or serve and support the people around me. I think that's really powerful,
you've given us lots to think about in terms of some of those strategies to navigate challenges. Is there something that works for you in particular to motivate or inspire you to keep going when you face some of the challenges or get some of the knockbacks? mean, obviously believing in yourself might be one of them. Is there anything else that helps you to stay motivated?
Lili-Ann Kriegler (25:43)
I'm a great believer in mantras and I have several of them. But the one to bear in mind here and to really focus on resilience and make me, just ground me, is that ancient saying that even a thousand mile journey starts with the first step. So whether all the steps are forward,
Amie Fabry (25:46)
Mm-hmm.
Lili-Ann Kriegler (26:13)
or whether a step is backwards or whether a step is sideways, every step is valuable, really valuable. And I think the idea is just to keep your why in mind and continue to just be intentional and value your own strengths. Like I think I'm pretty aware of my strengths. I also know what some of my lesser.
strengths are, but focusing on your strengths, that is who you are. And so really stick with that. And this is also how I want to work with people in a consultative way is to collaborate and to co-create and to meld teaching philosophies and techniques and just help us to sift out what really
Amie Fabry (26:44)
you
Lili-Ann Kriegler (27:09)
works in a particular context. So I really believe in contextual value and in place-based learning and understanding and going from where people are. And I give myself that kindness in that I go from where I am. And I do believe, and I've done so much personal development.
work and reading and the thing that I love to think about is that no matter where you are you're in the perfect place.
Amie Fabry (27:45)
Hmm. love all of that. You know, and I do I do also think having those mantras is such a great reminder, you know, and all the steps really are part of the journey.
I think, you know, it's easy to focus on the end point, like you said, and be wedded to that. What's the actual outcome we want to see as opposed to what is the journey? And I think leadership for me is a journey and it is about a series of steps. So I love the idea of having some really clear mantras that you can regularly read and reflect on. And I think that's really powerful because sometimes we have to challenge that inner voice, you know, that says, you're not doing a very good job or that didn't go to plan, but actually to have
those reminders really visible to us to keep reminding us of it. You know maybe it's not just me, maybe it's the way I communicated that or maybe you know people need more information. You know looping back to what you said about being on that journey of constantly learning and I think one of the things we can do well is keep learning about ourselves, connecting to context like you're talking about, collaborating with others, you know where are the opportunities that we can keep growing.
as leaders in the way we support other people, but also, you know, what are my strengths that can lean into? What are the things I could do better? You know, I think that's really powerful. So many things to think about and keep learning about. While we're talking about leadership, what are some of your key learnings about being a leader? Based on, know, your work, your really extensive experience, when you think about leadership,
What comes to mind? What are some of the really key learnings for you about leadership and being a leader?
Lili-Ann Kriegler (29:34)
One of the hardest things for me was to understand that telling is not selling. I am very confident in my perspective. I'm very confident in my skills. I love to show people how things are going to work. But really, if you do that, who's doing the work? And it's the same with our students.
Amie Fabry (29:43)
Mmm.
Lili-Ann Kriegler (30:03)
If we come along and give all the answers and give a unpack a black box and say, this is how it is, it doesn't really land and it doesn't really work. So I've had to learn to co-create the answers with children and co-create the answers and to remain open to being a learner as a leader. And
You know, you mentioned that the podcast, it's not my first podcast. did a beautiful podcast with Ortal green called the thinking effect podcast and working, working with other people.
You just learn so much because the people, for instance, I've hosted on that podcast demonstrate the immense courage that they have in navigating the complexities of early childhood. And it motivates me to see how they engage children and prepare for them in what we know is an uncertain future, but with the sensibility that you still got to keep them feeling safe and engaged and joyful.
So for me, leadership is about understanding that things are uncertain. You don't have all the answers, but maybe providing the thinking structures and the thinking tools and the pathways to get there. So I think pretty much creating the book and creating a few of these little models is how educators can understand the ways
that they can enact their learning and grow their learning. So yeah, for me, maybe learning and leading are two sides of the continuum. And I wasn't always good at that. I think if some people are listening to me when I was director, when they used to come to me and say, Lillian, put it up on
the window so that we know exactly what you'd like us to do because you you don't always lead in the best way possible. You've got to learn a lot about yourself and about others and then how you can create learning pathways for people. So that's pretty much where I am at the moment on that idea.
Amie Fabry (32:34)
That's wonderful and I really appreciate your honesty, know, just actually talking about the journey of being a leader, right? Because there is so much learning that happens, you know, I think...
we really have to unpack some of the challenges and the growth opportunities that come with leadership because I do think there are still lots of perspectives that leaders have all the answers you know and I love that you said you know I don't have to have all the answers actually it's about connecting with people creating that space for them to feel safe feel a sense of belonging and it's we can you know liken it to being an educator with children it's actually creating the opportunities for co-designed learning and thinking as opposed to
telling people what I want them to do necessarily. That's so powerful, know, learning and leading. I really like that. And I think that's something I learned a lot in my own research as well. Now you've given us so many wonderful strategies and suggestions for overcoming challenges, know, believing in ourselves, growing and learning. Is there anything else that you would add to that? If you're thinking about some of our
sector, people who are already leading and perhaps need some inspiration to keep going or people who might be aspiring to lead, you know, want to try something new, branch into a new role, be innovative. Do you have any words of advice that you haven't already shared with us that you would offer to those people?
Lili-Ann Kriegler (34:06)
absolutely do. And this relates to a lot of learning that I've acquired since leaving independent school. So we're talking, or maybe since I wrote my first book, and that is that the modern digital world is your playground. A, you can learn anything. B, you can be a publisher,
a writer, a videographer, a filmmaker. You can create yourself into a thought leader if you respect the expertise that you've acquired. And I think when we look at that, we think, my gosh, but the world is populated with hundreds and hundreds of people and they're all in competition with me. They aren't. No one is you.
No one has what you 100 % have and they haven't nailed it down in the way that you do. So I really want you to share your expertise. I want you to grow your persona for yourself, for your colleagues, for the parents in your center, for your leadership, for your networks. So go out and grasp these digital tools, learn about them and
Create your space and your mark because you can go way beyond the classroom door with your learnings and what you understand. There's seven billion people on the planet and many of them want to know what you know.
Amie Fabry (35:46)
so powerful. It really speaks to every individual you know because I completely agree with you no one is the same you know whether it's what they know their experience the way they might translate some of that thinking to practice you know the context that you're in. I also agree with you that everybody has their own individual
spark and light and offering to the world but also to our sector. And I think you talked earlier about having courage. think having that courage to just share what you know and who you are adds, competition, but actually it adds to the richness of the conversations and the opportunities for learning across our sector in the early years.
You know, I often reflect on having lots of people saying the same or similar messages, whether it's around play or it's about the how of learning or it's about attachment or belonging or whatever it might be. I think that only strengthens the narrative and strengthens the conversation and the dialogue that we're having because it's not one person who's saying that actually lots of people are participating in that conversation, which I think just adds so much richness to our sector.
So thank you for sharing. That's advice. Just as we wrap up, I'm conscious of time. Let's think back to our youngest citizens, our young children in those early years. What are you excited about?
when you think about the future for our children? What do you see as the greatest opportunities that we can all contribute to enabling our youngest children to thrive?
Lili-Ann Kriegler (37:32)
That's a big question. And one of the areas I think, which is topical and which we can throw into the mix here, that is besides sharing everything good that we know about how children learn, is about artificial intelligence. I know that there's a lot of discussion and there's a lot of hype around the use of AI.
But I see this new area as a way for education to reach every child on the planet and give them the support they may not currently have to receive the relevant education when it's needed. So as we watch it, AI is becoming more intuitive. It understands what we're trying to achieve. It offers us the wisdom and the discoveries of the whole planet on our desktop or on our phone.
The thing though, to use it well, we have to maintain critical thinking and drive it from humanity. So this digital space holds immense potential in assisting children to, as I've mentioned, for what you could be an author, a designer, scientist, a leader, help them articulate what they know in yet undiscovered ways.
So I'm really excited about that, providing we're working with it to create an optimistic future. And I think every single one of us is important and necessary in that because we've got to create the rules of engagement. No one else is going to do that. So that excites me, slightly terrifies me, but the excitement is more than the terror.
Amie Fabry (39:23)
I think many people would relate to that, Lili-Ann I know I share a similar sentiment. I think it is a wonderful opportunity. And again, I think if we approach it as learners, thinking about how can we understand the actual capabilities of it, but use it as a tool. I don't see it as something that's going to replace us as educators. I know we have an important role in working with children and working with AI.
as the human beings in the room and in their contexts, we're going to continue to play a really pivotal role. But I think we can, use AI in ways that really support all children to learn in engaging ways, but also perhaps to help us in our roles as educators as well. I think it is definitely an exciting space.
Lillian, it was such a joy to talk to you today. Thank you so much for joining me on the podcast and for sharing all of your wonderful insights and advice to our listeners.
Lili-Ann Kriegler (40:16)
Well, thank you for this reciprocal, amazing invitation and visit into your studio and your world. Thank you.
