Academic Catalog

CHLD 74: SCIENCE & NATURE

Foothill College Course Outline of Record

Foothill College Course Outline of Record
Heading Value
Effective Term: Summer 2022
Units: 1
Hours: 1 lecture per week (12 total per quarter)
Degree & Credit Status: Degree-Applicable Credit Course
Foothill GE: Non-GE
Transferable: CSU
Grade Type: Letter Grade (Request for Pass/No Pass)
Repeatability: Not Repeatable

Student Learning Outcomes

  • Plan, facilitate, and evaluate developmentally appropriate science and nature activities
  • Demonstrate an understanding of the importance of science and nature when planning curriculum in an early childhood program.
  • Develop a plan to integrate science with music, cooking, and other daily activities.

Description

Developing science experiences for children. Activities involving plants, animals, and the physical properties of the environment. Emphasis on making science part of the everyday experience in early childhood program curriculum.

Course Objectives

The student will be able to:

  1. Plan, facilitate and evaluate developmentally appropriate science and nature activities.
  2. Demonstrate an understanding of the importance of science and nature when planning curriculum in an early childhood program science and nature in connecting children with the environment.
  3. Develop a plan to integrate science with music, art, cooking and other daily activities.

Course Content

  1. Plan, facilitate and evaluate developmentally appropriate science and nature activities
    1. Science and nature experiences based upon the children's interests
    2. Hands-on exploration (worms gardening, mud)
    3. Contextualization of science and nature for children through the life cycle experience
  2. Demonstrate an understanding of the importance of science and nature when planning curriculum in an early childhood program
    1. Design curriculum based on observations and child's inquiry
    2. Recognize the importance of cultural sensitivity in child development and apply in planning curriculum
    3. Model enthusiasm while demonstrating the critical role of science and nature in connecting children with the environment
  3. Develop a plan to integrate science with music, art, cooking and other daily activities
    1. Use of "webbing" to plan a science based topic curriculum project (math, art, literature, etc.)
    2. Documentation and assessment of children's exploration and learning
    3. Internet research of early childhood curriculum activities based on science and nature
    4. Topics may include:
      1. Animals, reptiles and care of living beings
      2. Agriculture, food, plant life, gardening, seasons
      3. Conservation and thinking "green"
      4. Weights and measurements, working with magnets
      5. Water, sand, soil
      6. Cooking
      7. Seashore, tide pools, and aquarium life, marine mammals

Lab Content

Not applicable.

Special Facilities and/or Equipment

When taught via Foothill Global Access: on-going access to computer with JavaScript-enabled internet browsing software, media plug-ins, and relevant computer applications.

Method(s) of Evaluation

Methods of Evaluation may include but are not limited to the following:

Class discussion
Group projects
Presentations
In-class reflections

Method(s) of Instruction

Methods of Instruction may include but are not limited to the following:

Lecture
Discussion
Oral presentations
Demonstration

Representative Text(s) and Other Materials

Article readings selected by instructor. Examples:

"Our Proud Heritage. Take It Outside: A History of Nature-Based Education." NAEYC, Young Children (Fall 2021): Vol. 76, No. 3. https://www.naeyc.org/resources/pubs/yc/fall2021/take-it-outside

"The Science and Nature Center in Child Care." August 15, 2019. https://childcare.extension.org/the-science-and-nature-center-in-child-care/

Matthews Hensley, Deb. "Discovering Science in Nature." https://www.scholastic.com/teachers/articles/teaching-content/discovering-science-nature/

Types and/or Examples of Required Reading, Writing, and Outside of Class Assignments

  1. Class reflection writing assignments
  2. Reading selected articles
  3. Internet research

Discipline(s)

Child Development/Early Childhood Education