Learn Play Thrive's Professional Learning with MAGGIE DENT

Learn Play Thrive: End-of-Year Festive Professional Learning Event (for early educators, primary teachers and families)

Featuring Keynote Speaker Maggie Dent

Join the Learn Play Thrive community as we celebrate the close of another dedicated year with an inspiring afternoon of connection, reflection, and professional learning!

We are thrilled to welcome one of Australia’s most loved and trusted parenting and education voices, Maggie Dent, delivering a live, interactive keynote on one of the most critical challenges facing educators, professionals, and families today -- childhood anxiety. Whether you work directly with young children or are supporting families navigating big emotions, this session will equip you with deeply practical, compassionate strategies to bring calmness and confidence back into children’s daily home and early learning environments.

About the keynote topic: Exploring Children’s Anxiety

Audience: Early Childhood Educators, Centre, Directors and Leaders, Primary Teachers, Allied Health Professionals, Support Staff, and Parents/Carers

Focus Age Group: Toddler through early Primary Years

The landscape of childhood and childhood stress is rapidly shifting, with anxiety presenting more frequently and earlier than ever before. In this vital keynote, Maggie Dent explores:

• What anxiety is and what we as parents and educators can do to help reduce anxiety and fear in today’s kids.

• Why anxiety is increasingly prevalent in modern childhood environments.

• Highly practical, helpful and simple strategies to support a calmer home or classroom and, ultimately, calmer, happier kids.

• Proven ways to embed routine moments of peace and emotional safety into chaotic daily rhythms.

Maggie has been writing about the importance of calmness and stillness in children’s lives since publishing her 2003 book 'Saving Our Children From Our Chaotic World'. This session goes beyond theory to provide tools you can implement immediately to nurture calmer, happier children.

Event Schedule

• 4:00 PM – 5:00 PM | Festive networking

  Arrive early to mingle, celebrate the end of the working year, and connect with fellow educators and professionals. Food and drinks will be available for purchase at the venue.

• 5:00 PM – 6:45 PM | Virtual LIVE keynote & audience Q&A with Maggie Dent

  Settle in for an engaging, live-streamed presentation followed by an interactive Q&A session where Maggie answers your real-world questions. Please email your questions at least one week prior to event - info@learnplaythrive.com.au

About Maggie Dent

Maggie Dent is a much-loved and trusted voice for parents, families, and educators across Australia and beyond. A bestselling parenting author, she has written more than 10 books, including Mothering Our Boys, From Boys to Men, Girlhood, Help Me Help My Teen, and, with Kirra Pendergast, Digital Freedom: A guide to less screen time for safer, happier and healthier families.

Maggie hosts The Good Enough Dad podcast and led six seasons of the acclaimed ABC podcast Parental As Anything. In 2025, she brought her wisdom to television in the ABC series The Role of a Lifetime. A mother of four sons and a grateful grandmother, Maggie continues to champion calmer, more connected childhoods.

What’s Included:

• Access to the live professional learning keynote and Q&A recording afterwards.

• Handout with topic information from Maggie Dent.

• End-of-year community networking.

• Certificate of Professional Development attendance (available post-event upon request).

Reserve your spot today to celebrate the end of the year with your community and invest in practical professional teaching and learning tools for the year ahead!