Influenced by The California Early Childhood Curriculum Alignment Project (CAP), and in consideration of credentialed teachers working with children in Transitional Kindergarten (TK), this course will examine the progression of development in the physical, cognitive, social, and emotional domains and will support students to identify developmental milestones for children from conception through early childhood. Students will gain knowledge about the architecture of the young child’s developing brain and how this brain development sets a foundation for all learning and behavior. Throughout this course there will be an emphasis on interactions between biological processes and environmental factors. Students will observe young children and analyze characteristics of development at various stages according to developmental theories.
As students deepen their understanding of the stages of development, they will then learn about the historical contexts and theoretical perspectives of developmentally appropriate practices in early learning and care settings for young children. This course will also introduce best practices for developmentally appropriate learning environments, curriculum, and effective pedagogy for young children, with an emphasis on relationships and how play is crucial to children's learning, growth, and development.
Number of Units: 3.0 graduate level extension credit(s) in semester hours
Who Should Attend: This course provides continuing education for invited educators in San Diego County, that have a current California multiple subject teaching credential, and who are currently teaching or intend to teach Transitional Kindergarten. Those who are currently teaching or intend to teach Transitional Kindergarten, but do not have knowledge, experience, and/or enough coursework to meet the newly established requirements to teach Transitional Kindergarten, would benefit most from this course. The ideal student for this course would have [1] knowledge of education and pedagogy, [2] experience in the K-12 sector, and [3] need additional coursework in child development and/or early childhood education.
Enrollment Requirement: Be prepared to provide the 5-digit code sent with your SDCOE invitation during enrollment. If you feel that you are eligible for this program and did not receive the code, please contact the San Diego County Office of Education at [email protected] to proceed with your enrollment. Participants that are not eligible for enrollment, will be dropped from the course and refunded, less a $25 processing fee.
Third Party Payments: USD will accept purchase orders or district credit card payments at the time of enrollment, please contact program coordinator at [email protected] to set up third party payment of an individual enrollment or group enrollments.
Prerequisites:
Students enrolling in this course must have a bachelor's degree and California Multiple Subject Teaching Credential
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