CDF 63 - Introduction to Early Childhood Education Curriculum

Transfer Status

CSU

Unit(s)

3.00

• Lecture: 51.00 Contact hours/102.00 Out of class hours/153.00 Total hours/3.00 Unit(s)
• Total: 51.00 Contact hours/102.00 Out of class hours/153.00 Total hours/3.00 Unit(s)

Course Description: This course provides an exploration of developmentally appropriate curricula and environments for children from birth through age eight. Students will use knowledge of children’s development, theories of learning and development, and examples from various models of developmentally appropriate practice to plan environments and curricula in all content areas to support children’s development and learning in indoor and outdoor settings. (C-ID ECE 130).

Upon successful completion of this course, the student should be able to:

1. Explore various early childhood curriculum models, approaches, and professional practices to inform and evaluate curriculum and environments.
2. Explain how the curriculum is integrated across all developmental domains and content areas.
3. Observe and evaluate teaching strategies, curriculum, and environmental designs.
4. Observe children as a basis for planning curriculum and environments.
5. Use knowledge of academic discipline content and children’s growth, development, and individual characteristics to plan and developmentally and linguistically appropriate learning experiences for infants and toddlers through the early primary years.
6. Develop plans for physical environments that are appropriate for children’s individual ages and stages, skills and abilities, needs, and learning goals.
7. Explain how different teaching strategies could be used for a variety of curriculum goals.
8. Describe guidance and interaction approaches to support social relationships and learning.
9. Explain how the principles of Universal Design for Learning (UDL) are applied in various situations, and how specific learning experiences could be adapted to address individual children’s learning and development needs.
10. Describe various strategies for engaging and partnering with families to support children’s development and learning.

Topic Titles / Suggested Time Topic

Lecture

1. Demonstrations
2. Group Discussions
3. Guest Speakers
4. Homework: Students are required to complete two hours of outside-of-class homework for each hour of lecture
5. Lecture
6. Multimedia Presentations

1. Research Projects
2. Oral Presentation
3. Group Participation (Inactive)
4. Written or Oral Examinations
5. Curriculum lesson plans aligned to industry-standard evaluation tools
   F. Observations/ Assessment

Reading Assignments

1. Read about various early childhood curriculum models, approaches, and professional practices and explain in a one-page summary how the curriculum is integrated across all developmental domains and content areas.
2. Read peer-reviewed articles on early children’s development and individual characteristics and document two three-or-more page developmentally appropriate learning plans referencing two different developmental domains.

Writing Assignments

1. Observe and evaluate early childhood videos for various teaching strategies and write a three-page curriculum lesson plan that includes developmentally appropriate practices.
2. Write a 1500 word summary describing various strategies for engaging and partnering with families to support children’s development and learning.

Out-of-Class Assignments

1. Observe an early childhood programs to identify effective practices for planning, implementing, and evaluating developmentally appropriate curriculum and be prepared to share in a group discussion in class.
2. Observe an outdoor early learning environment to identify designs and impact of physical space and create a drawing/model reflecting your findings.

Kostelnik, M. (2019). Developmentally Appropriate Curriculum. Pearson, 7th. 978-0134747675.

Bredekamp, S. et al. (2022). Developmentally Appropriate Practice in Early Childhood Programs Serving Children from Birth Through Age 8. The National Association for the Education of Young Children, 4th. 978-1938113956.

Henniger, M. (2017). Teaching Young Children: An Introduction. Pearson, 6th. 978-0134569994.

Other Learning Materials

Open Educational Resource - Canvas Commons: https://lor.instructure.com/resources/814a281886d94ea1bebbd5ab779499e5?shared

Open Educational Resource - LibreTexts: https://socialsci.libretexts.org/Bookshelves/Early_Childhood_Education/Book%3A_Introduction_to_Curriculum_for_Early_Childhood_Education_(Paris_Beeve_and_Springer)

Open Educational Resource - CAP 8 Textbooks in English and Spanish available at: https://www.childdevelopment.org/higher-ed-faculty/curriculum-alignment-project/cap-8-course-textbooks

California Preschool Learning Foundations: https://www.cde.ca.gov/sp/cd/re/psfoundations.asp

California Preschool Curriculum Framework: https://www.cde.ca.gov/sp/cd/re/psframework.asp

California Infant/Toddler Learning Foundations: https://www.cde.ca.gov/sp/cd/re/itfoundations.asp

California Infant/Toddler Curriculum Framework: https://www.cde.ca.gov/sp/cd/re/itframework.asp

Child Dev/Early Childhood Ed