CHLD 183: Infant and Toddler Caregiver: Learning and Development

Citrus College Course Outline of Record

Citrus College Course Outline of Record
Heading Value
Effective Term: Fall 2025
Credits: 1
Total Contact Hours: 18
Lecture Hours : 18
Lab Hours: 0
Hours Arranged: 0
Outside of Class Hours: 36
Total Student Learning Hours: 54
Strongly Recommended: ENGL C1000.
Transferable to CSU: No
Transferable to UC: No
Grading Method: Standard Letter

Catalog Course Description

This is one of four one-unit classes in Infant and Toddler Caregiving based on the Responsive Caregiving approach. Students in this class will learn to recognize cues and to follow the child's interest in order to facilitate the infant's or toddler's discoveries and learning. Understand the process of growth and change in intellectual/mental abilities such as thinking, reasoning, and understanding. Students will learn to base the curriculum on the child's interest and readiness. This class partially meets the licensing requirement for 3 units in infant and toddler care and development. 18 lecture hours.

Course Objectives

  • Identify and describe the stages of cognitive and language development.
  • Interpret cues based on observations of individual children and respond in ways that support learning and development.
  • Create and implement a developmentally appropriate curriculum using materials and conversations that support the individual infant or toddler.
  • Observe, document, and assess infant and toddler play and interactions to plan individualized care and curriculum.

Major Course Content

  1. Observing Infants and Toddlers
    1. Getting acquainted
    2. Identifying cues
    3. Responding to cues
  2. Learning Schemes
    1. Young infants
    2. Mobile infants
    3. Older toddlers
  3. Developing Curriculum
    1. Supporting motor development
    2. Supporting language development
      1. Milestones of language development
      2. Mono and multi-language learning
    3. Supporting cognitive development
    4. CDE Infant/Toddler Learning and Development Foundations
  4. Understanding Cause and Effect
  5. Spatial Relationships
  6. Problem-Solving
  7. Imitation
  8. Memory
  9. Number Sense
  10. Classification
  11. Symbolic Play
  12. Attention Maintenance
  13. Understanding of Personal Care Routines

Suggested Reading Other Than Required Textbook

California Infant/Toddler Curriculum Framework, California Department of Education, Sacramento, 2012

Examples of Required Writing Assignments

Observe an infant or toddler and identify what stage of cognitive development this child is in. Why do you believe this child is in this stage? List five toys that would be beneficial at this age/stage.

Examples of Outside Assignments

Create an age-appropriate activity for one of the following infants or toddlers: non-mobile infants, mobile crawling infants, or walking toddlers.

Instruction Type(s)

Lecture, Online Education Lecture