Course Syllabus

Course Description

This course covers the latest research on brain and child development to give participants foundational knowledge in developmental progressions for children from birth to age 5. Through course readings, discussions, activities, and assignments, participants will learn to identify children’s developmental trajectories. An emphasis on brain development will provide participants with a unique lens to apply in an early learning program as an additional tool to identify developmental progressions.

Participants will learn how to create early childhood environments that promote physical, language, social and emotional, and cognitive development. Participants will also explore the key role that individual differences and family and socio-cultural context plays in development and learn strategies to build relationships that support each child’s individual development.

Objectives

Participants will:

1. Demonstrate knowledge of brain development and the developmental progressions of children ages birth to 5 in physical, language, social-emotional, and cognitive areas.
2. Identify children’s developmental progressions as expressed through their behavior in their environments.
3. Identify and create learning activities and environments and plan adult-child interactions that support children’s developmental progressions in physical, language, social-emotional, and cognitive domains.
4. Demonstrate an understanding of the key roles that individual differences and family, program, and socio-cultural contexts play in development, and apply strategies to build positive relationships with and between children and families.