WAYLAND BAPTIST UNIVERSITY
HAWAII CAMPUS
SCHOOL OF EDUCATION
Mission: Wayland Baptist University exists to educate students in an academically challenging,
learning focused and distinctively Christian environment for professional success and service to
God and humankind.
COURSE NUMBER AND TITLE: ECHD 3301 Principles of Caring for Preschool Children
TERM: Summer 2015 (May 25 – August 8, 2015)
INSTRUCTOR’S NAME: Christen Imig
EMAIL: Christen.Imig@wayland.wbu.edu
OFFICE HOURS: By appointment
CLASS HOURS: Wednesday nights from 5:30pm-9:30pm, Mililani Campus
CATALOG DESCRIPTION: This course serves as an overview of the basic principles that represent
best practices in early childhood education. This course emphasizes an appropriate learning environment
with practical applications based on current research. Students will learn how to observe developmental
levels, design appropriate activities, and how to support children in their learning.
REQUIRED RESOURCE MATERIALS:
A. Student Textbook: Gestwicki, C. (2014). Developmentally Appropriate Practice:
Curriculum and development in early education (5th ed.) Belmont, CA: Cengage
Learning.
B. Access to WBU Blackboard and Learning Resources-Articles and databases
www.wbu.edu/lrc
C. Access to a digital camera and capabilities to download to the Blackboard
COURSE OUTCOME COMPETENCIES:
1. Students will develop a broad sense of who children are and describe the roles children assume as
individuals, as group members, as family members, and as members of cultural and linguistic
communities.
2. Students will use their understanding of young children’s characteristics and needs to create
environments that are healthy, respectful, supportive, and challenging for all children.
3. Students will use their knowledge of relationships with children and families to identify ways to
connect to children and families.
4. Students will promote positive development and learning of content knowledge through
developmentally effective approaches.
5. Students will use systematic observation to document the qualities, needs, and attributes of children.
ATTENDANCE POLICY:
1. External Campus Attendance Policy
a. Students enrolled at an external campus of Wayland Baptist University should make every
effort to attend all class meetings. All absences must be explained to the satisfaction of
the instructor who will decide whether the omitted work may be made up.
b. Any student who misses twenty-five (25%) or more of the regularly scheduled class
meetings will receive a grade of F for that course.
c. When a student reaches a number of absences considered by the instructor to be excessive,
the instructor will advise the student and file an unsatisfactory progress report with the
executive director/campus dean.
d. Students who miss the first two class meetings without providing a written explanation to
the instructor will be automatically dropped from the roster as a “no-show.” Students who
know in advance that they will be absent the first two class meetings and who wish to
remain in the class must inform the instructor in order to discuss possible arrangements
for making up absences.
DISABILITY STATEMENT:
In compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA), it is the policy of
Wayland Baptist University that no otherwise qualified person with a disability be excluded from
participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subject to discrimination under any education
program or activity in the university. The Coordinator of Counseling Services serves as the
coordinator of students with a disability and should be contacted concerning accommodation
requests at (806) 291-3765. Documentation of a disability must accompany any request for
accommodations.
COURSE REQUIREMENTS:
A. Participation/Attendance
Students are expected to come to class on time and stay for the duration of the class.
Attendance points will be deducted for arriving late or leaving early. We are a community of
learners; therefore, you are encouraged to share your input, ideas, and experiences in the class
discussions. Your participation grade is based on active involvement in the class discussions
and activities. Occasionally, you will be asked to bring specific materials or resources to
class which will be counted toward your participation points.
If you must miss a class meeting, contact me via email or call the WBU office at
488-8570 BEFORE the scheduled meeting. If prior knowledge is given for an excused
absence, partial credit may be earned for a make-up assignment (for 1 missed class). If no
initiative is taken to contact me before the scheduled class meeting, a zero will be given for
that class’s participation/attendance points.
B. On-line Blackboard Assignments
A portion of the class will be online through Blackboard (BB). The assignments will be
posted to the BB one day after our in-class meeting (by midnight HST). Follow the
assignment length requirements and deadlines for posting and responding in order to earn full
credit. In order to give a fair chance for all students to post their assignment and receive peer
feedback, please do not post your responses to your classmates before the allotted timeframe.
Responses will be graded on quality and quantity. You should focus on furthering the
discussion and contributing thoughtful responses based on your own experiences and
principles discussed in the text. Use in-text citations to give credibility to your assignments
and response discussions. Any posts that are submitted after the due date will not earn credit.
C. Chapter Presentation
Select one of the chapters from the text to teach to the class. Prepare a PowerPoint
presentation that covers the main points from the chapter. Take on the role of facilitator after
asking at least three discussion questions to the class. Create an activity for the class that will
challenge us to apply the knowledge gained from the chapter. Additionally, create an
assessment for the class, to gauge our knowledge of the chapter content. Submit a description
of your activity and assessment (via email) to me at least the day before you present. Follow
the rubric given for specifics on this assignment.
D. Quizzes
Short reading quizzes will be administered each in-class week, which will consist of
True/False, multiple choice and short answer questions. All of the quizzes are based on
material from the weekly text readings.
E. Lesson Plan
Create a lesson, on a topic of your choice, which you will teach to the class using one of the
instructional methods from the text. Present the lesson as though you are the teacher and we
are the students. Submit the written lesson plan in the format that will be given in class.
F. Journal Reflections
Journals are a self-reflective tool on the BB that allows students to post their personal
reflections about the concepts covered in class. For each of the journal entries, write a halfpage (double spaced, 12 font) reflection with your thoughts, ideas, experiences, and
applications.
G. Observation
Chose 2 educational or child care settings to observe infants, toddlers, preschoolers, or
primary-aged children (should be different age group for each observation). For a minimum
of 1 hour per each site, observe the learning environment and interactions, recording both
objective and subjective details. The objective details of the observation should describe the
demographics of the class, the physical environment, the children’s roles and activities and
the teacher’s role and activities. The subjective details of the observation should describe
your thoughts, opinions and evaluation of how the class compares to appropriate practice as
defined in the course. Write up into an APA-style paper, ~4 pages in length.
GRADING CRITERIA:
 Participation/Attendance (10 pts/week)
 Online Blackboard Assignments & Participation (20 pts/week)
 Chapter Presentation
 Quizzes (7 at 5 pts each)
 Lesson Plan
 Journal Reflections (5 at 5 pts each)
 Observation
Total:
80
60
50
35
50
25
50
350
Course grades will be based on Wayland Baptist University policy:
A= 90-100%
C=70-79%
F= Below 60%
B= 80-89%
D=60-69%
I (Incomplete) and W (Withdrawl) grades will be given according to University policy.
GRADING REQUIREMENTS:
Students shall have protection through orderly procedures against prejudices or capricious academic
evaluation. A student who believes that he or she has not been held to realistic academic standards, just
evaluation procedures, or appropriate grading, may appeal the final grade given in the course by using
the student grade appeal process described in the Academic Catalog. Appeals may not be made for
advanced placement examinations or course bypass examinations. Appeals are limited to the final
course grade, which may be upheld, raised, or lowered at any stage of the appeal process. Any
recommendation to lower a course grade must be submitted through the Executive Vice
President/Provost to the Faculty Assembly Grade Appeals Committee for review and approval. The
Faculty Assembly Grade Appeals Committee may instruct that the course grade be upheld, raised, or
lowered to a more proper evaluation.
ACADEMIC HONESTY: University students are expected to conduct themselves according to the
highest standards of academic honesty. Academic misconduct for which a student is subject to penalty
includes all forms of cheating, such as illicit possession of examinations or examination materials,
forgery, or plagiarism. (Plagiarism is the presentation of the work of another as one’s own work).
Disciplinary action for academic misconduct is the responsibility of the faculty members assigned to the
course. The faculty member is charged with assessing the gravity of any case of academic dishonesty,
and with giving sanctions to any student involved. Penalties may be applied to individual cases of
academic dishonesty see catalog for more information about academic dishonesty.
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:
● Assignments are due at the beginning of each class or by the time indicated on Blackboard for online
assignments. Late assignments on BB will not receive credit. Late written assignments will lose 10% of
total points for each day late.
● Unless otherwise indicated, all written assignments should be doubled spaced, use Times New
Roman 12-point type, and adhere to the APA Manuscript Writing style.
● If you submit a written assignment via email (besides a BB assignment), please make sure to bring a
paper copy to class at the next on-campus meeting so that I can give you written feedback on your
assignment.
● Out of respect, please put cell phones on silent mode during class time and remove them from sight.
Any cell phone use (including talking, texting, or checking updates) during class time is distracting to
the learning environment.
CLASS SCHEDULE AND ASSIGNMENTS (tentative):
Week Date
#
May 27
1
Topic to be covered:
Assignment DUE:
Introductions and Review Syllabus
Chapter 1: Defining Developmentally Appropriate Practice
Sample Quiz
June 3
Chapter 2: Understanding Play
Chapter 3: Planning for Dev. Appropriate Curriculum
Quiz
June 10
Chapter 4: A Consideration of Various Curriculum Models
Share Curriculum Model Lesson Plan
Quiz
Lesson Plan
June 17
Class begins at 5:00pm (Christian Emphasis Week)
Chapter 5: Dev. App. Physical Env.: Infants
Chapter 6: Dev. App. Physical Env.: Toddlers
Quiz
5
June 24
Chapter 7: Dev. App. Physical Env.: Preschoolers
Blackboard
6
July 1
Chapter 8: Dev. App. Physical Env.: Primary-Age
Chapter 9: Dev. App. Social/Emotional Env.: Infants
Quiz
7
July 8
Chapter 10: Dev. App. Social/Emotional Env.: Toddlers
Blackboard
July 15
Chapter 11: Dev. App. Social/Emotional Env.: Preschoolers
Quiz
July 22
Chapter 12: Dev. App. Social/Emotional Env.: Primary Age
Chapter 13: Dev. App. Cognitive/Lang/Literacy Env.: Infants
Blackboard
July 29
Chapter 14: Dev. App. Cognitive/Lang/Literacy Env.: Toddlers
Chapter 15: Dev. App. Cognitive/Lang/Literacy Env.: Preschoolers
Quiz
Aug 5
Chapter 16: Dev. App. Cognitive/Lang/Literacy Env.: Primary-Age
Share Final Observations
Quiz
Observation Paper
2
3
4
8
9
10
11

Gray rows indicate the on-line class meetings
Lesson from the Curriculum Model: _______________________
Chapter Presentation: ___________________________________
Due Date: _______________
Due Date: _______________