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ECE213-Art, Music, and Movement
In a world where academic and professional achievement is so valued, it appears as though seemingly trivial activities like painting and dancing are pushed to the bottom of the priority list. However, many would argue that those tasks are actually the most important work a child might do, especially in terms of their emotional, social, and cognitive development.
Throughout this course, you’ll explore these ideas of art, music, and movement and their roles within a child’s development. By tailoring teaching strategies, assessment techniques, and environments to the creative needs of students, you’ll reach one of the most important goals of teaching: to make learning fun.
Objectives:
- Analyze developmental theories related to creative thinking, behavior, and play in children's learning.
- Identify the best practices for fostering creative thinking through art, music, movement, and drama.
- Categorize the research-based methods for assessing children's creative thinking.
- Analyze the learning environments and materials that promote creative thinking.
- Prepare a lesson plan for a single day for a preschool classroom.
ECE216-Language and Literacy Development in Young Children
This course is designed to provide early childhood education professionals with a new approach to teaching early literacy skills with a multicultural perspective. The multicultural approach to literacy presented in this course provides an understanding of how children develop literacy skills and cultural awareness. The four major components of communication — speaking, listening, writing, and reading — are fully explored with each age group.
- Analyze the multicultural approach to literacy and how it can promote early literacy skills.
- Point out how music and art help in developing early literacy.
- Show how speaking and listening skills are foundational for early literacy development.
- Analyze how children become writers and readers in preschool and kindergarten years.
- Categorize the importance of family literacy and the transition phase from preschool to kindergarten.
- Prepare a storytelling board for toddlers and preschoolers.
ECE217-Developing Math and Science Skills in Young Children
Learn how to integrate math and science with other content areas for young children from preschool through the primary grades.
Objective:
- Study the guidelines of the National Association for the Education of Young Children.
ECE160-Cultural Diversity in the Early Childhood Program
This course will challenge you to examine the cultural influences on your attitudes and behaviors and how those cultural influences affect your professional judgment and practice.
Objectives:
- Analyze the cultural influences and differences in family childrearing practices, young children's social skills and behavior, and communication skills and styles.
- Describe how culture influences emergent literacy.
- Understand the importance of developing cultural competence.
ECE221-Administration of an Early Childhood Education Center
This course offers a comprehensive view of the procedures involved in establishing and administering a child care education program.
Objectives:
- Learn how to staff and budget for day-to-day administration.
- Learn about parent involvement and equipment acquisition.
ECE225-Family Child Care
This course includes the practical consideration of issues and responsibilities in providing family child care for infants and young children. Topics include developmental domains, developmentally appropriate practices, curriculum and creating a successful environment.
Objectives:
- Identify typical milestones of physical and motor, cognitive, language and social and emotional development.
- Recognize activities and approaches that are developmentally appropriate in terms of physical and motor, cognitive, language and social and emotional skills.
- Define the areas of your program and practice that promote academic subjects as well as creativity or play, address safety issues, guide behavior and establish schedules and routines while in care.
Prerequisites:
- ECE100 Orientation to Early Childhood Education
- ECE220 Child Growth and Development
ECE240-Assessment in Early Childhood Education
The current emphasis on producing high-quality, comprehensive programming for young children requires early-learning professionals to develop excellent observation and assessment skills. To do your best work on behalf of children, you must be able to accurately determine the skill level of each child. As early-learning programs and elementary schools begin to work cooperatively to provide seamless transitions for children, your observations and assessments will follow them throughout their school years. The first two chapters of the textbook describe the purpose of observation and assessment in the early childhood classroom and the process of collecting and recording these observations in the Child Development Checklist. Chapters 3 through 11 cover the specific sections of the checklist and provide practical suggestions for fostering children’s development in each learning area. The final chapter discusses how you can share your observations with the children’s family members.
- Analyze the importance of observation and understanding the development of self-esteem related to assessment.
- Categorize the assessment methods of social and emotional skills and motor development.
- Distinguish between the teaching processes related to cognitive development, language, and emerging literacy.
- Point out the importance of developing creativity and sharing assessment data with families.
- Evaluate the findings of a Child Development Checklist to create learning prescriptions.