Playtopia: Neighborhood Villages’ 2nd Annual Early Education Conference

Upcoming event

Mar 28

Get Your Tickets Now! Registration closes on Friday, March 20

Join Playtopia on Saturday, March 28, 2026 from 9:30am to 4:00pm! Our second annual early education conference is taking place at the Artists for Humanity EpiCenter (100 W 2nd St. Boston, MA 02127). Check out a recap of our first Playtopia here.

Make Way for Play

Elevating Play Experiences that Lead to Joy & Learning

WHY: Playtopia is dedicated to engaging early education professionals by being heavily interactive and urging them to recognize and champion “play” as a fundamental right for everyone—children and adults—and not just a childhood luxury. Play is a powerful resource that not only fosters robust development in children but also supports well-being and learning for adults. Ultimately, everyone attending the conference will believe: Play brings joy and serves as the basis of all learning and development across the lifespan.

WHO: Playtopia is for all early childhood professionals who work with, for, and/or on behalf of children 0-8 years (including but not limited to center based programs, family child care providers, family engagement & support, advocates, and home visitors).

Darryl Edwards will be this year’s keynote speaker! Darryl is an internationally recognized advocate for play and physical activity across the lifespan. A movement coach, author, TED speaker, and creator of the Primal Play Method®, he champions active play and a playful movement that supports motivation, adherence, and lifelong well-being.

Our guest plenary speaker is Rachelle Hannoush, M.Ed., who will present The Symphony of Us – an electric, interactive experience that celebrates early educators as the true architects of community! This isn’t just a session – it’s a high-energy call to action where you will use storytelling, movement, and reflection to discover how your unique "instrument" harmonizes with others to shape a child’s world. Aligned with the Learning Through Exploration© curriculum, we will weave together identity, anti-bias practices, and radical collaboration into a powerful masterpiece of professional growth.

More than a dozen play facilitators will be on hand to help you explore and discover learning concepts through play. Let’s meet some of them!

Harry and Gus: Singer, emcee, puppeteer, and magician – Harry and his monster friends are always the life of the party! They will host a green screen for free play, where you can chat it up with Gus and other friends!
Make faces out of playdough and paper bag puppets to display emotions with Boston Children’s Museum to describe feelings! You can also write thank you notes to people in our community to express gratitude and kindness.
Join The Life is Good Playmaker Project for a joyful, interactive play experience focused on connection, engagement, empowerment, and the simple truth that play isn’t extra….it’s essential!
Connect with the New England Conservatory for informal ways to explore music, instruments, and sound. Pat some bells, compose your next masterpiece, make your own instrument, or just jam out with a stranger and focus on the joy of music making in community!
LMHC Julia Sayles will guide you through how play gives children a safe way to heal, using the 6 R’s (relational, repetitive, rhythmic, respectful, rewarding, and relevant). You’ll play simple games used to support regulation in children and adults.
Join YMCA for a culturally responsive exploration of springtime celebrations from diverse cultures. You’ll honor traditions, stories, music, and movement from around the world.
Team up with the New England Association for Play Therapy to discover important themes in your life and how to express yourself without words by creating representations of families and communities that are important to us.
Explore coding, robotics, and animation through joyful, hands-on making with Code & Circuit. Build interactive creations, experiment with cause and effect, and experience how playful technology supports creativity and storytelling!
Connect with Countdown to Kindergarten to try out learning experiences from the Focus on Pre-k curriculum, like creating a multilingual poem, playing kitchen and grocery store, and helping the coaches and facilitators from the Boston Public School Department of Early Childhood make a group book!
The Playful Learning Institute is where an ordinary paper bag will become extraordinary costumes and props! Learn how simple, low-cost activities can infuse the power of play in everyday learning.