1.

TITLE OF COURSE:

Creativity and the Young Child

PREFIX/NUMBER:

ECE 226

CREDIT HOURS:

3

2.

PREREQUISITE:

None

3.

RESOURCES NEEDED:

TEXT:

Creative Activities for Young Children, by Mary Mayesky

SUPPLIES:

4.

COURSE DESCRIPTION:

Provides an emphasis on encouraging and supporting creative self expression and problem solving skills in children.  Explores creative learning theories and research.  Focuses on developmentally appropriate curriculum strategies in all developmental domains.  Addresses ages birth through age 8.

5.

COURSE GOAL:

Emphasis is on strategies to develop, implement, and evaluate activities to support a curriculum in an environment that encourages and supports creative self-expression and problem-solving in children. Developmentally appropriate practices as they relate to music, movement, art, drama, literature, play and other avenues are integrated

6.

COURSE OBJECTIVES:

Unit I  Students will learn about the theories of creativity.

(A)

Define the concept of creativity including aesthetic sensitivity, and characteristics of creative people.

(B)

Apply the knowledge of child development and other developmental issues to stimulate curiosity, inventiveness, problem-solving, communication and creative thinking in young children.

(C)

Explore the role of the teacher in facilitating children’s creative activities through language and behavior modeling.  Discuss adult attitudes and behaviors which may or may not foster and support creativity in young children.

(D)

Recognize that the process of creating is as important than the product and that in very young children, the product is secondary to the process.  Recognize the uniqueness and spontaneity in each child’s creative expression and avoid goals of uniformity.

Unit II  Students will understand developmentally appropriate practices for young children.

(A)

Examine the effect of a variety of learning centers and the concept of open and closed environments on the goal to emphasize developmentally appropriate practices.  Recognize conditions in the environment that stimulate creative behavior, activities and interactions.

(B)

Recognize how to develop a physically and emotionally secure environment for young children that supports their developing creativity, self knowledge and control, self awareness and identity, social growth and behavior.

(C)

Explore and select a variety of developmentally appropriate songs, stories, books and other forms of literature, math and science activities, movement and food experiences for young children up to the age of eight.

(D)

Discuss creative ways of establishing and enhancing parent partnerships to achieve the common goal of facilitating developmentally appropriate creative activities for young children.

(E)

Determine assessments for developmentally appropriate practices with respect to environments and routines, materials selection, curriculum, and interrelationships.

Unit III  Students will understand the impact of creative thinking and problem-solving on curriculum planning.

(A)

Develop written plans, including behavioral objectives and procedures for creative activities and experiences, within the curriculum that provide ways for children to express, communicate, brainstorm, understand, feel and invent.

(B)

Identify transition times throughout the children’s daily activities and find creative ways to promote a smooth flow from one activity to the next thereby reducing tension, confusion and lack of direction.

(C)

Identify creative and developmentally appropriate field trips for young children.  Specify procedures for planning and implementing these experiences.

Unit IV  Students will discover ways to implement  a creative curriculum for young children.

(A)

Support creative activities by identifying and/or providing a wide variety materials and props that expand children’s imagination.

(B)

Discuss ways to prepare, introduce, motivate and implement creative activities for young children.

(C)

Select creative activities that promote communication.  Facilitate the use of language to express thoughts, ideas, questions, feelings and physical needs for self-expression and social development.

(D)

Explore creative ways to help children recognize and accept their feelings, including joy, affection, anger, jealousy, sadness, fear, loneliness, etc. and express feelings in appropriate ways.

(E)

Develop strategies for curriculum implementation that allows time for spontaneous and extended play within the daily routine and offers choices in activities, materials and equipment.

Unit V  Students will become involved in curriculum evaluation.

(A)

Determine the purpose for evaluations, select and/or develop a tool for evaluating curriculum and proceed to evaluate curriculum by oneself and others.

(B)

Using a curriculum evaluation, re-assess it’s effectiveness and appropriateness.

(C)

Recognize that human growth is influenced by creative play and expression.  Develop a collection of materials, equipment and ideas that encourage creative, spontaneous, dramatic play,   active exploration and supports a broad array of experiences, both indoors and out, which develop and stimulate young children’s individual creative expressions.

(D)

Develop a collection of stories, books and other forms of literature, including those from the child’s own culture and others, to encourage self-expression, social and emotional development.

(E)

Develop a collection of group games to promote social and emotional development.

Unit VII  Students will learn how to promote physical development in young children.

(A)

Use principles of child development to plan creative and appropriate individual and group age appropriate physical development activities.

(B)

Discuss the importance of creative problem-solving.  Develop a collection of activities, experiences and ideas to promote creative problem-solving.

7.

EVALUATION PROCEDURES:

Grading Scale
Raw Score Range

Letter Grade

90 to 100

A

80 to 89

B

70 to 79

C

60 to 69

D

0 to 59

F

Special Remarks:

1.

Regular and punctual attendance is expected of all students.  A complete record of attendance will be kept by each instructor for the entire length of each course.  Students will be counted absent from class sessions missed, beginning with the first official date of class.  A twenty percent absence from each enrolled lecture or laboratory course will be taken as evidence that a student does not intend to complete the course.  Students may be dropped by the instructor if missing 20% of the class.  Student drops will be handled through the Records Office in accordance with college policies.

2.

It is the student’s responsibility, whether present or absent, to obtain all material presented and to complete all course assignments in a timely fashion.  It is the student’s responsibility to inform the instructor and/or department chair of an impending absence.  Absences occurring during exams must be reported in advance.  There will be no make-up for un-excused absences.  It is also the student’s responsibility to inform the instructor of a physical, emotional and learning disability that may affect his/her performance in class or lab.  Refer to the college catalog for specific policies on behavior and conduct.

8.

COURSE OUTLINE:

9.

METHODS OF INSTRUCTION:

To be successful in this course, students are expected to participate in discussions, readings, in-class writing, and peer review activities. The instructor may assign point values to such activities.

10.

ACADEMIC INTEGRITY:

The very nature of higher education requires that students adhere to accepted standards of academic integrity. Therefore, Pueblo Community College has adopted a policy of academic conduct as described in the Student Handbook. Violation of academic integrity may be defined to include the following: cheating, plagiarism, falsification and fabrication, abuse of academic materials, complicity in academic dishonesty, and personal misrepresentation. It is the student’s responsibility to be aware of the behaviors that constitute academic dishonesty. Sanctions for violating the standards of academic integrity may include warning, probation, suspension, and/or failure of the course or assignment at the discretion of the instructor.

11.

ADA NOTICE:

Students who have a documented disability may be eligible to receive accommodations for this class. Please contact the Disability Resources Center at 549-3446 for further information.