Welcome to Child Growth and Development. This text is a presentation of how and why children grow, develop, and learn. We will look at how we change physically over time from conception through adolescence. We examine cognitive change, or how our ability to think and remember changes over the first 20 years or so of life. And we will look at how our emotions, psychological state, and social relationships change throughout childhood and adolescence.

Welcome to learning about how to effectively plan curriculum for young children. This textbook will address:

Developing curriculum through the planning cycle
Theories that inform what we know about how children learn and the best ways for teachers to support learning
The three components of developmentally appropriate practice
Importance and value of play and intentional teaching
Different models of curriculum
Process of lesson planning (documenting planned experiences for children)
Physical, temporal, and social environments that set the stage for children’s learning
Appropriate guidance techniques to support children’s behaviors as the self-regulation abilities mature.
Planning for preschool-aged children in specific domains including
Physical development
Language and literacy
Math
Science
Creative (the visual and performing arts)
Diversity (social science and history)
Health and safety
How curriculum planning for infants and toddlers is different from planning for older children
Supporting school-aged children’s learning and development in out-of-school time through curriculum planning
Making children’s learning visible through documentation and assessment

If you are reading this, you’re likely interested in learning more about becoming an early childhood professional. Perhaps you’re just curious and want to know a little bit more about young children. Maybe you want to make up your mind after finding out a little bit more about what is involved. In either case, your interest and curiosity are two key characteristics that will make this a positive growth experience for you.

Guided by cultural beliefs and principles, families select experiences, convey attitudes, and impart knowledge to their children to prepare them for adulthood. Accordingly, it is important for program staff to learn to collaborate effectively with families. To develop a partnership and to tap into the family as a primary resource, early childhood educators must reach out to, learn about, and develop strong partnerships with families. This process requires openness to learning and an effort to understand the individuality of each family and the diversity of the families from which the children come.

Early childhood is a critical time in development. Many outcomes, both positive and negative, have their beginnings in these years. It is vital that children’s health and safety be protected. High-quality early care and education programs can play a valuable role in improving outcomes
for children.