ECE Conference 2025 | Association of China and Mongolia International Schools

ACAMIS Early Childhood Education (ECE) Conference

Saturday & Sunday, November 8 & 9, 2025

Yew Chung International School of Shanghai, Puxi Ronghua Campus

Theme: “It's All About Me”

In Early Childhood Education, we know that every child lives in a beautifully unique world of wonder, curiosity, and imagination. This year’s conference theme “It's All About Me” invites us to step into those worlds, reflect on how we fit into them, and explore how we can better nurture each child’s identity, agency, and sense of belonging.

Join fellow educators, teaching assistants, and early years professionals for a day of connection, inspiration, and professional growth. Together, we’ll explore how we can build environments where children are seen, heard, and valued—where every moment becomes an opportunity to grow with them, not just for them.

Presentations can be delivered in both English and Chinese

This year’s conference dives into four powerful sub-strands:

Technology-Logged In Or Tuned Out: Reimagine the role of technology in early learning—not as a tool to lead, but one that responds to the world children are already curious about. Explore how we can harness digital tools in ways that empower children’s voices, creativity, and exploration.

Community Involvement: “What if every child had a village cheering them on?” Join us in uniting parents, educators, and community members through a dynamic and enriching interactive learning experience where we will collaborate and share our strengths. Together we will empower the community and cultivate an environment where every child will flourish and reach their full potential. Join us and let’s make a difference—together!

Master Play: Play is the language of children. Discover how we can deepen our understanding of play as a powerful medium for self-expression, identity-building, and lifelong learning. This strand celebrates play as the master teacher in every early learning environment.

Leader and Me: Leadership begins in the earliest years. This strand looks at how children begin to see themselves as capable, responsible, and empowered—within their own lives and in community with others. Explore how educators can model and nurture the foundations of leadership, confidence, and choice.

What's New at the ECE ACAMIS Conference? Chinese language options for Peer Presenters, Break out Sessions for ECE Leaders and Aspiring Leaders, Community Engagement - Parent Panel.

Let’s come together to listen, reflect, and grow—always with the child’s world at the center.

Registration deadline is October 31, 2025

Recommended Hotels

Keynote Speaker

Kristine Mraz

Learn More About Kristine: kristimraz.com

Career: Teacher, Writer, and Consultant

Kristine Mraz is an award winning teacher with decades of experience in schools. She is coauthor—with Christine Hertz—of Kids First from Day One, which provides a practical blueprint for increasing the child-centeredness of your teaching practice. She and Christine previously teamed up for the bestselling A Mindset for Learning, which provides practical and powerful strategies for cultivating optimism, flexibility, and empathy alongside traditional academic skills. Their popular substack Taproots keeps teachers in touch with ongoing and relevant classroom issues and ways to center play.
Kristi has also coauthored—with Alison Porceli and Cheryl Tyler—Purposeful Play, the book that helps you make play a powerful part of your teaching. She and Marjorie Martinelli wrote Smarter Charts and Smarter Charts for Math, Science, and Social Studies to get the most out of this classroom staple.
Kristi is a resident of southern California, where she will be writing and consulting until the classroom calls again. You can follow all of her adventures at playfullearningcollective.com or kristimraz.com .

Host School

For the past 90+ years, Yew Chung has grown from a small seed planted in Hong Kong to an extensive network of schools. Our passion and commitment in education have remained stronger than ever in building a bright future for humanity through nurturing future compassionate leaders and educators of the next generations. YCIS Shanghai marks our first footprint in the Chinese mainland. Over the past 30 years, the school has expanded with six campuses across Puxi, Pudong and Lingang, offering a unique education pathway and competitive international curriculum for expatriate children aged 2 - 18.
At Yew Chung International School of Shanghai (YCIS Shanghai), we are renowned for offering one of the most progressive programmes of international education in China. The school's unique multicultural and bilingual approach to education, which focuses on both English and Chinese language learning, is recognised worldwide and helps distinguish our students in a globally competitive environment. Our international curriculum nurtures individuals to develop multicultural perspectives.
YCIS Shanghai is a fully accredited school recognised by the New England Association of Schools and Colleges (NEASC) and the Council of International Schools (CIS). In addition, the Secondary School is authorised as an accredited Cambridge Assessment Examinations Centre for the International General Certificate of Secondary Education (IGCSE). YCIS Shanghai is an International Baccalaureate World School, offering the International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme (IBDP). We proudly offer these world-class programmes as a part of our international curriculum. Notably, YCIS is the only school in China to have received the Cambridge Award for Excellence in Education.

Address: 59 West Ronghua Avenue (near South Shuicheng Road), Puxi
上海耀中浦西荣华校舍

Jane Sun

Chinese Co-Principal

Grace Gu

School Business Manager

Meet Our Planning Committee Team

Amy Thames

Concordia International School Shanghai

Amy Thames, an early childhood educator at Concordia International School Shanghai, knew from a young age that she wanted to be an educator. Even when as a teenager and young adult, she had a passion for working with younger children. It only felt natural that she would pursue a degree in education. Amy graduated in 2004 with a BA in Elementary and Kindergarten Education. Amy has been teaching in various Early Childhood settings for almost two decades. Early in her career there were not many opportunities for Early Childhood professional development, this is what sparked Amy’s passion for sharing her knowledge and experiences with her fellow educators. Amy continued her journey as a life long learner by obtaining her M. Ed in Early Childhood Education in 2018 and has now started a doctoral program in Educational Leadership. Amy is excited to serve her fellow early childhood educators in the ACAMIS Early Childhood Planning Committee.

Ann Lopez

Shekou International School

With over two decades of experience in early years education, Ann embodies the philosophy of John Dana: "Who ceases to teach, never ceases to learn." She values playful inquiry and believes that students should drive their own learning while teachers serve various roles, including as facilitators. As a workshop leader, Ann has presented at three ECE ACAMIS Conferences, actively engages in Parent EDUs at Shekou International School, and serves as the coordinator of the early years after-school program. Additionally, she has experience as a team leader, promoting collaboration and innovation among educators. Ann holds a Master’s in Education specializing in Reading and Writing and recently completed an additional teaching certificate from Moreland University. She is also a PYP-trained teacher, bringing a strong understanding of the International Baccalaureate framework to her practice. Ann is excited to be serving the ECE alongside this group of dynamic educators on the committee.

Bernadette Silcock

Yew Chung International School of Shanghai, Puxi

Bernadette is from New Zealand and has been an ECE teacher in New Zealand, Korea and China. Since 2013 she has been at YCIS Shanghai Pudong as ECE Co-teacher, Team Leader, Coordinator and is now Vice-Principal of ECE. understand the power of high-quality play based pedagogy. She is drawn to the dynamic nature of education and the creative opportunities that occur when learners and teachers are in tune and responsive. She is excited about creating meaningful, relevant experiences for others in ACAMIS.

Jenna Brown

QSI International School of Shenzhen

Jenna Brown is a dedicated and experienced first-grade teacher with a passion for fostering student learning and creating effective, engaging classroom environments. With 10 years of experience in early childhood, teaching in diverse international settings—including USA, Egypt, Morocco, and China — Jenna has developed a global perspective on education and a deep understanding of the unique needs of young learners. Holding a BA in Early Childhood Education, Jenna is committed to employing innovative teaching strategies to help students (and teachers) reach their full potential.

Melina Neira

Western Academy of Beijing

Hey y’all! I am Melina, an Early Years educator. I am in my eleventh year of teaching; ten of those years have been spent teaching internationally in Ecuador, the Philippines, Thailand, and China. My educational philosophy is to create an atmosphere in the classroom where each unique child can grow to their full potential. I foster positive and engaging learning environments where student agency is at the forefront, and taking risks is encouraged in order to develop lifelong learners.

Paula O’Connell

Qingdao No.1 International School of Shandong Province

Paula O’Connell, originally from New Zealand, is the Lower School Principal at Qingdao No.1 International School of Shandong Province, where she leads both the Early Childhood and Elementary divisions. Since beginning her career in 2009, Paula has worked across New Zealand and China in a range of teaching and leadership roles. She has been based in China since 2013 and at QISS since 2018.
Paula holds a Bachelor of Education in Early Childhood and Primary Teaching, a postgraduate certificate in Educational Leadership and Administration, and is currently pursuing her Doctorate in Education. Her doctoral research focuses on how intercultural families engage with playgroups as communities of practice, where connection, culture, and early learning come together.
Passionate about play-based, inquiry-driven learning, Paula is leading a school-wide transformation of curriculum and classroom environments inspired by the Reggio Emilia philosophy. As both an educator and a parent of two, she believes deeply in the power of relational, culturally responsive teaching and learning. She is inspired by the words of Albert Einstein: “Play is the highest form of research.” Paula is excited to join the ACAMIS Early Childhood Planning Committee and contribute to building meaningful professional learning experiences for fellow educators.