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	CATHOLIC CHARITIES NEIGHBORHOOD SERVICES, INC. (formerly Builders for the Family and Youth, Inc.) Teacher Training Program Organization Directory Page (titles of all evaluated learning experiences, organization description, and source of official student records) Titles of all evaluated learning experiences in the Teacher Training Program section Descriptions and credit recommendations Titles, descriptions, and credit recommendations for all learning experiences recommended for college credit within the Teacher Training Program section can be found below. To locate information on additional learning experiences, which have also been recommended for college credit, use the Organization Directory Page link above for a complete list of *titles* for all learning experiences or use the following links to go directly to other sections: Optional Courses Retired Credit Recommendations - Teacher Training Programs Titles of all evaluated learning experiences in the Teacher Training Program section *NOTE:* The Teacher Training Program represents a two-year integrated learning experience; therefore, credit is recommended only after an individual has successfully completed the entire program Child Development - Birth Through Middle Childhood (160) Classroom Management (250) Cultural Subjects: Science, Geography, History, Music, Art (280) Family and Community (360) Math and Language: Materials and Methods for the Pre-School Montessori Classroom (260) Practical Life and Sensorial Materials (180) Principles and Practices of Montessori Education Supervised Practicum/Field Experience (350) Descriptions and Credit Recommendatons Child Development - Birth Through Middle Childhood (160) Location: Various child care facilities associated with the Caritas Training Center. Length: 45 hours. Dates: April 1996 - Present. Objectives: Define and recognize the landmarks of physical, social, cognitive, emotional, and linguistic development in the young child and use techniques of observation in tracking a child’s development; identify major theorists and discuss their key ideas; compare the ideas of different theorists with those of Maria Montessori; discuss the ideas of theorists as they apply to classroom situations; select and provide the child with developmentally appropriate activities for each age and each stage of growth; identify developmental problems and provide appropriate activities for children with special needs; discuss the child’s place in the family and the need to involve families in the child’s healthy development; develop plans to create and furnish an an age appropriate space; discuss articles on brain research in planning an interactive environment for infants, toddlers, and preschoolers. Instruction: This course introduces students in early childhood programs to the various theorists whose ideas focus on the development of young children. The course covers physical/cognitive development from birth through preschool and on to middle childhood followed by social/emotional development, and moral development. Major theorists who are prominent in each area are compared with the Montessori method and philosophy. The final portion of the course concentrates on the creation of an interactive age appropriate environment. Reading assignments, child development assignments and video tapes, child development and infant/toddler albums of age appropriate work, and examination are requirements of the course Credit recommendation: In the lower division baccalaureate/associate degree category, 3 semester hours in Montessori Education (6/00) (8/06 revalidation). Classroom Management (250) Location: Various child care facilities associated with the Caritas Training Center. Length: 45 hours. Dates: April 1996 - Present. Objectives: Introduce developmentally appropriate activities in an actual classroom setting based on concepts, philosophy and approach presented in the course; observe and record outcomes in a child’s development, and to write and implement appropriate lesson plans for each curriculum area; create a healthy, safe, welcoming learning environment for infants, toddlers, or preschoolers; present and adapt materials for individual children with or without disabilities; recognize signs of suspected child abuse and follow correct guidelines for reporting; establish relationships with parents that are supportive of the child in a social learning environment; complete all required documentation with accuracy. Instruction: This course prepares students to manage the day-to-day requirements of an Early Childhood Head Start or Day Care classroom. Respect, observation, and preparation are the three broad areas of focus. Respect for children, for parents, for fellow staff members, and for supervisors is a goal that is built into every session. The student is introduced to multiple forms of observation that are the basis for the preparation of the learning and social environment. The areas of preparation cover the environment, discipline/positive guidance, planning and recording, communication, and staff development. Health, safety, nutrition, and working with exceptional needs children are a focus of the course. Components of the course are also geared to providing freedom, structure and order, reality and nature, beauty and atmosphere, leading to the development of a community of children. Topics covered include: starting the year; arrangement of the classroom; discipline/positive guidance techniques; health and safety procedures; program planning; record keeping; team building; and maintenance of materials. Students make observation visits to several local Montessori programs and prepare child studies and classroom management reports. Credit recommendation: In the lower division baccalaureate/associate degree category, 3 semester hours in Montessori Education (6/00) (8/06 revalidation). Cultural Subjects: Science, Geography, History, Music, Art (280) Location: Various child care facilities associated with the Caritas Training Center. Length: 45 hours. Dates: September 2005 - Present. Objectives: Collect and present relevant ideas illustrating concepts in developing a theme in all cultural areas; design an integrated sequence of materials which move from simple to complex in expanding the context of a concept into other curriculum areas; create materials for independent work in all cultural areas that are age appropriate for preschool children; use appropriate background material and resources to explain and analyze the purpose and value of each cultural area; discuss and demonstrate the experience of creating art that displays individual expression while utilizing a particular technique with a variety of media. Instruction: This course prepares students to offer children a basic foundation in five cultural subjects: music, science, geography, history, and art. In the Montessori classroom, the cultural subjects are not divided because they overlap in so many different ways. In reviewing basic ideas and in experiencing the concepts in a form that is age-appropriate for preschool children in day care and Head Start settings, students develop a foundation of skills upon which they can expand to broaden the child’s understanding of the world that surrounds them. The music component is a fundamental introduction to the elements of music, to basic ideas and activities of listening, movement, call and response, echo rhythms, and ways of developing the young child’s voice without damaging it. In the science component, children begin with basic concepts of physical and geological science with magnification, prisms, magnets, volcanoes, rocks, etc. Botany and zoology, plants and animals, follow. The geography component begins with the understanding of spatial relationships and expands to include globes, maps, people, cultures, and the world, both local and global. In the history component for the pre-school child, the emphasis in history is on the development of an understanding of time. Only then can the child begin to develop a concept of the history of the earth and its people. The art component fills an important role in the child’s ability to visualize and conceptualize his/her ideas about the world. The emphasis is in encouraging the classroom teacher to teach techniques and not outcomes. Students create 5 albums, one in each area of study, which illustrate the correct use of materials in developmentally appropriate activities. Credit recommendation: In the lower division baccalaureate/associate degree category, 3 semester hours in Montessori Education (8/06). Family and Community (360) Location: Various child care facilities associated with the Caritas Training Center. Length: 48 hours. Dates: September 2005 - Present. Objectives: Discuss and participate in the various elements in the intake and orientation process with parents, including home visits; evaluate the process and be able to offer ideas and suggestions for improvement; discuss the requirements of the Child Abuse laws, and the referral process for disabilities; conduct the developmental assessment on new children; Discuss and use the integrated process of observation, recording and reporting children’s progress and relating positively with parents in the exchange of necessary information regarding their children; convey correct information about the Montessori curriculum and correctly answer questions that parents might ask; Use both a traditional process for dealing with challenging behavior and a process that goes beyond behavior management to the development of life skills; Use community profiles and community resources in creating workshops and programs that serve the needs of families and children; use the appropriate processes to participate in a family’s transition from the Head Start/day care program into the public school environment; plan and create workshops which are both informative and inviting. Instruction: In the intern year, students attend eight workshops which focus on Family and Community. Upon completion of this course, the students should have identified the primary components of the Family and Community Partnership that the federally funded early childhood programs are expected and mandated to maintain. Each workshop explores and defines one or several elements of this partnership from parent orientation through transition of the children into public school. The students identify the various instruments used, complete the documentation, critique the application in their own program, evaluate and reflect upon the strengths and weaknesses, and propose ways in which their own program could be improved. Credit recommendation: In the lower division baccalaureate/associate degree category or in the upper division baccalaureate degree category, 3 semester hours in Montessori Education (8/06). Math and Language: Materials and Methods for the Pre-School Montessori Classroom (260) Location: Various child care facilities associated with the Caritas Training Center. Length: 48 hours. Dates: September 2005 - Present. Objectives: Math: Introduce and present math manipulatives in a manner which best supports the development of age-appropriate concepts for the preschool child; classify and sequence math skills presented in each area in order to build upon knowledge and strengths that the child has already gained; present and adapt materials for children with disabilities; recognize and incorporate relevant ideas and applications for materials when they are created through discovery by children; observe and record children’s outcomes in mastery of materials; individualize planning to meet the diverse levels of understanding within the class; create a supportive environment for the discovery and appreciation of mathematical ideas. Language: Introduce and present language development materials in five areas of language: early writing development, language patterning skills, phonetic analysis, grammar development and age-appropriate literature/drama /poetry; create language materials for individual work in all five areas; develop resources of quality children’s literature in both fiction and non-fiction areas; adapt materials to provide a print-rich age-appropriate environment for children with all levels of English language proficiency; involve children in grammar games that illustrate the structure of language; recognize the importance of self-expression in spoken and written language; observe and record children’s work mastery that is used in curriculum planning. Instruction: This course prepares students to teach preschool Math and Language using the Montessori method and materials. Students are introduced to math manipulatives and through practice with the materials both in the training class and with children in their programs. Though practice and familiarity with the materials, students become increasingly aware of the value of math manipulatives in developing the age appropriate math foundation in young children. Emphasis is placed upon the sequence and order of materials and the importance of how different areas of math skills are integrated to build concepts. Language games introduce many of the concepts of grammar in a simple and age appropriate manner. The students experience work in five different areas of language: writing, language patterning, phonetic analysis, and literature/drama/poetry and grammar and demonstrate proficiency by presenting materials in math and language to the group and in creating classroom materials. Along with a written essay in each subject area, the student creates a drawing for each work that illustrates the manner in which it is presented. Emphasis is placed upon the participation of the student Credit recommendation: In the lower division baccalaureate/associate degree category, 3 semester hours in Montessori Education (8/06). Practical Life and Sensorial Materials (180) Location: Various child care facilities associated with the Caritas Training Center. Length: 45 hours. Dates: April 1996 - Present. Objectives: Arrange and maintain classroom areas of practical life and sensorial materials; create and use age appropriate materials and adjust all materials for these areas to meet different developmental stages; help children to function in their own environment, to care for the environment and increase their attention span, develop self-discipline, and refine gross and fine motor skills through practical life activities; support children’s development in sensorial skills of matching, sorting, and exploration of the five senses through the use of concrete manipulative materials; research and create materials which are age appropriate for preschool children. Instruction: This course introduces students to the materials for Practical Life and Sensorial areas. Students learn to utilize materials familiar to the child’s own environment to help the child in the development of an increased attention span, self-discipline, gross and fine motor skills, and a sense of independence. Students share in the skills of grace and courtesy and care of the environment that aid the child in developing a sense of cooperation and community. Students explore the sensory materials which isolate each sense and aid the child in sensory discrimination through matching, grading, sorting and other manipulative exercises of order and construction. Students arrange, maintain, and present these materials within the classroom and adjust presentations to fit the stages of development of each child. In addition, students create materials that are age appropriate and serve the developing skills of their children. Students illustrate their presentations in an organized album for each area and write essays that summarize concepts and philosophy of the Montessori Method which are applicable to the practical life and sensorial areas. Credit recommendation: In the lower division baccalaureate/associate degree category, 3 semester hours in Montessori Education (6/00) (8/06 revalidation). Principles and Practices of Montessori Education Location: Various child care facilities associated with the Caritas Training Center. Length: Minimum 90 hours. Dates: April 1996 - August 2005.* Objectives: Discuss the theoretical and philosophical foundations of early childhood curriculum development and their implementation in the early childhood classroom in a developmentally appropriate manner; organize and integrate the following curriculum areas into classroom practice: Language Arts, Mathematics, Science, Social Studies, Art, and Music and Movement. Instruction: The curriculum addresses how to engage children in developmentally appropriate ways with individual, small group, and whole group instruction and emphasizes how to manage the transition between activities. Language Arts: pre-writing exercises, language patterning sequence, visual discrimination, initial sounds, phonetic sounds, phonograms, grammar games, literature and poetry for young children; Math: 0 to 10 materials, teens, tens, and hundreds, decimal system, operations of addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division, and introduction to fractions; Science: health, nutrition, human body, solar system, rocks, plants, and animals; Social Studies: sensorial perception of the concept of time, basic human needs, vastness of history, sensorial age appropriate experience with maps, flags, landforms, habitats and cultures, child’s body awareness and relationship to the world; Art: materials and media, i.e., crayon, pencil drawing, clay, water color, sculpture, etc.; Music and Movement: listening, following directions, appreciation, recognition, group participation in songs, movement games, instrument making, etc. Credit recommendation: In the lower division baccalaureate/associate degree category, 6 semester hours (3 in Mathematics/Language Arts, 1 in Science, 1 in Art/Music, and 1 in Social Studies) in Montessori Education (6/00). NOTE: This course has been divided into two separate courses. Please refer to the exhibits for Math and Language for the Montessori Classroom and Cultural Studies for the Montessori Classroom. Supervised Practicum/Field Experience (350) Location: Various child care facilities associated with the Caritas Training Center Length:* Version 1: Minimum 216 hours of supervised practicum/field experience. Version 2: Minimum 168 hours of supervised practicum/field experience. Dates: Version 1: April 1996 - August 2005. Version 2: September 2005 - Present.* Objectives: Version 1 or 2: Carry out developmentally appropriate activities in an actual classroom setting based on the concepts, philosophy, and approach presented in the lecture; write and implement appropriate lesson plans for each curriculum area; develop practical classroom skills that integrate the philosophy, materials, and methods of the Montessori approach; track the developmental growth of a particular child; discuss and use observation tools for tracking various aspects of a child’s development; recognize the importance of cooperation and planning in classroom management through the use of forms and checklists; practice time management in meeting responsibilities of the classroom and other responsibilities of the Early Childhood center; build confidence in oneself and experience success in the classroom or other roles of the Early Childhood program; use evaluations and correction action plans to improve performance. Instruction: Version 1 or 2: Under the direct observation and supervision of a head teacher, the students observe children and write assignments relating their observations to class discussion, engage children in developmentally appropriate activities, read articles and textual materials, conduct a child study, keep a journal, and view and discuss videos to support the concepts, philosophy, and approach presented in the lecture. Credit recommendation: Version 1: In the lower division baccalaureate/associate degree category, 9 semester hours as a supervised field experience or internship in Montessori Education (6/00). Version 2: In the lower division baccalaureate/associate degree category or in the upper division baccalaureate degree category, 6 semester hours as a supervised field experience or internship in Montessori Education (8/06 revalidation). NOTE: Version 2 of this course was divided to create a similar Supervised Practicum/Field Experience and a course entitled Family and Community (360). Please refer to that exhibit for further information. Updated 8/14/07* Return to all CCR Online listings
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