This course provides an overview of early childhood programming for aspiring child care center and preschool lead teachers, assistant teachers, directors and day care providers. Focusing on the development of children from infancy through age eight, this course provides historical and current theories, types of early childhood programming, family communication and collaboration, and developmentally appropriate environmental experiences. An overview of Michigan’s Early Childhood Standards of Quality for Infant/Toddler and Preschool and the licensing and accreditation of child care centers, day care and preschool settings will also be reviewed. Students will spend a minimum of 10 hours of observation in diverse early childhood settings. This course is a required introduction for students interested in the Child Development program. Note: This course is not a part of the Teacher Education programming sequence. Prerequisites: None