Associate of Arts in Early Childhood Care and Education

This course examines a variety of developmentally appropriate instructional strategies central to the education of children. Integrating a micro-systemic perspective that takes into account internal and external family dynamics, this course will focus on identifying theoretical and applied solutions to the choice of age-appropriate learning exercises

This course examines the fundamentals of infant and toddler development, including planning and implementing programs in group care. It emphasizes meeting physical, social, emotional, and cognitive needs; scheduling, preparing age-appropriate activities, health and safety policies, record keeping, and reporting to parents.

This course examines the family during the latter half of the twentieth century. Topics include a diverse range of issues, including single mothers, fathers, disparities among families, child care and child well-being, cohabitation, and how these trends affect American family life.

This course is an examination of the behavior and development of children. Course topics cover issues of care throughout the periods of infancy and toddlerhood.

This course focuses on theory and practical approaches to understanding and providing accommodations for students with special needs. Students will be presented with an overview of the characteristics of the most prevalent types of disabilities, as well as the laws that protect and best educational practices for children with disabilities. Students will examine the methods to teach, as well as the documents that provide the legal basis for meeting the needs for an appropriate education for this population.

This course identifies and examines the theoretical approaches applicable to child rearing in families with an emphasis on developing practical skills for working with parents and children.

This course examines formal and informal methods of gathering and analyzing data on children. The emphasis is on understanding developmental patterns and implications for diagnostic assessment and intervention.

This course is designed to provide a solid foundation for undergraduate study in the online environment. Students will be introduced to learning theory, the tools available in the online classroom and campus, and online research. Identification of personal learning style allows students to improve their study/learning techniques and prepares them to succeed in college level courses. Students will be introduced to formatting and citation styles. APUS policy and procedure is addressed. There is an emphasis on written communication to assist students in the transition to the online environment.