Advanced Growth and Development: Individual Planning for Children with Diverse Abilities

The following global ideas guide the design and delivery of this course:

1. Understanding of individual differences in maturation and growth among children requiring extra support is necessary for program planning.
2. Individual differences and special conditions and needs will affect the child’s development and impact upon the circumstances of the family.
3. The unique characteristics of the family and culture in which the child is raised will affect the course of the child’s development.
4. Gender, temperament, and learning styles are biologically and socially mediated and to varying degrees will affect the course of the child’s development.
5. Early Childhood Educators must be familiar with a variety of assessment tools that can be critically evaluated and used selectively to provide information for individual planning.
6. Individual planning involves the application of several principles and components.
7. Early Childhood Educators must be aware of current research, models and sound practice to optimally contribute to effective program planning.
8. Early Childhood Educators must view themselves as researchers in the pursuit of information about the children in their care.
9. Development in one domain will affect development in other domains.
10. Play based learning environments provide children requiring extra support optimal conditions for socially mediated learning and exploration.
11. Positive methods of supervision and guidance of children requiring extra support are best understood within the context of child, growth and development theory and an understanding of the unique qualities of individual children