Recipients of the Child Care Assistant (Enhanced Skills) credential have demonstrated concept proficiency and completed the following tasks:
Student will demonstrate an understanding of licensing and legal requirements for a childcare facility:
- Identify licensing agency for a childcare setting
- Recognize laws and regulations that pertain to licensing
Student can comprehend the discriminating factors that parents look for in choosing childcare facilities:
- List components of a quality child care setting (affectionate, nurturing adults; planned curriculum; parent involvement)
- Discuss the importance of child-staff ratios
Student can demonstrate knowledge of safety on the job:
- Use safety precautions
- Follow universal safety precautions
- Display a safe attitude when working
- Perform work in a safe manner without being told
- Identify potential dangers and understands their consequences in independent work situations.
- Identify possible safety hazards in and around the childcare setting, including playground safety and field trip safety.
- Identify products to help promote safety.
- Explain safe maintenance of toys, equipment, and materials
Student can keep necessary records associated with childcare facilities:
- Identify record-keeping and clerical functions in a childcare setting
- Monitor toddlers/infants
Student will describe health and illness situations and their appropriate management:
- Identify symptoms, characteristics, and precautions of common childhood diseases
- Explain the importance of sanitation practices
- Identify symptoms of children who may be ill and provide appropriate care
- Contact supervisor when first aid is needed
- Participate in reviewing CPR training
- Participate in reviewing emergency procedures training
- Recognize proper handwashing techniques
Student will be able to describe appropriate nutritional practices for infants and young children:
- Develop an appropriate menu for meals and snacks
- Feed infant or toddler
Student will describe language development in infants and young children:
- Describe the sequence of language development
Student will demonstrate knowledge and skills related to story telling:
- Describe guidelines for choosing appropriate literature at appropriate ages
- Demonstrate effective storytelling techniques
- Demonstrate correct social skills at all times
Student will demonstrate awareness of gross motor, fine motor, and sensory development stages:
- Explain the stages of fine motor – gross motor development
- Explain sensory development
- Hold/lift/carry infants appropriately
Student will demonstrate knowledge and techniques for enhancing physical development through age-appropriate activities:
- Select age-appropriate indoor and outdoor play equipment for physical development
- Describe conditions that encourage physical development
- List materials that encourage fine motor development in children
- List materials that encourage large motor development in children
- List materials that promote sensory development
Student will describe social and emotional development in infants and young children:
- List and describe common emotions of children
- Describe the child care worker’s role in identifying and effectively dealing with children’s emotions
- Comfort a crying infant/toddler
Student will describe methods for building trust and security when working with children:
- Identify techniques that aid children in building a sense of trust and security
- Discuss the relationship of love and affection to emotional and social development
- Hold/lift/carry infants appropriately
Student will demonstrate methods for providing positive guidance:
- Describe supervision of children exhibiting problem behaviors
- Comfort a crying infant/toddler
- Interact appropriately with infants/toddlers
- Describe how limits and rules should be set and managed
- Put infant/toddler down for a nap
Student will demonstrate knowledge of social play and social skills in toddlers and young children:
- Discuss care-giving techniques that develop social skills
- Name the stages of social play
Student will describe learning theory and its application to children in a childcare setting:
- Explain how children learn
- Identify/describe the stages of creative development opportunities of pretend, role play and free play
Student will demonstrate knowledge and techniques for enhancing development of creativity:
- Describe conditions that encourage children to learn (senses, concrete experience, play)
- List strategies for promoting creativity
- List materials and equipment that encourage children to role play
- List materials and equipment that encourage children to explore in art
- List materials and equipment that encourage children to explore and enjoy music
- Describe equipment that promotes cognitive development
- List materials and activities that encourage children to explore movement
Student will demonstrate knowledge and techniques for adapting curricular elements for children with special needs:
- List available community resources to help care for special needs children
- List basic rights of children with special needs
- Describe how to adapt the learning environment to accommodate special needs
Student will demonstrate job search, job survival and life skills:
- Completes a personal data sheet
- Completes a job application
- Conducts a job search
- Prepares a resume
- Prepares a cover letter
- Demonstrates effective interview skills
- Demonstrates effective job keeping skills
- Demonstrates life skills
Student demonstrates work ethics/employability skills:
- Reports to work area and dresses appropriately for work.
- Has all supplies needed to perform work
- Starts work promptly
- Asks instructor for assistance if needed.
- Stays on task. (Does not abuse bathroom or water breaks)
- Demonstrates correct social skills at all times.
- Asks instructor for work assignment if necessary
- Cleans up work area at the end of the period without being asked
- Works cooperatively with others on group projects
- Works independently after being assigned a task
- Accepts constructive criticism
- Notifies school/employer of absence or tardiness
- Accepts and performs additional tasks willingly
- List desirable employee traits