First Nations Child Care Certificate & Diploma
Program Overview
First Nations of Saskatchewan are developing child and youth services to meet their specific community needs. The design of the First Nations Child Care program is based on the following principles: community-based programming prepares students for the full range of occupations that make up the profession of child and youth care, provides a career ladder and is intended to be delivered generatively. The generative approach of program development and delivery is a method of providing bicultural education. Students learn the generally accepted theories and practices of the child and youth care field. At the same time, they also learn the values and culture of the local community with regard to childcare.
Courses
(click item to view course description)This course introduces students to normative child development from conception to toddlerhood. It includes theoretical perspectives and research findings in the areas of physical, intellectual and psychosocial development.
Contact Hours: 80
This course introduces students to normative child development from early childhood to the end of adolescence. It includes theoretical perspectives and research findings in the areas of physical, intellectual, psychosocial and moral development of children and youth.
Contact Hours: 80
This course introduces students to atypical child development. Students learn about many forms of exceptionality and approaches to caring for children and youth with special needs.
Contact Hours: 80
This course introduces students to three theoretical approaches to child guidance: the behavioural, Rogerian and Adlerian approaches. Students learn to describe and defend the theoretical basis for their own styles of interacting with children.
Contact Hours: 80
This course builds on understanding acquired in Introduction to Planned Change (PLAN 230). Students learn and practice skills necessary to the application of a model for helping, which is used by professional child and youth care workers to deal with medium intervention.
Contact Hours: 80
This course builds on knowledge acquired in Introduction to Play (PLAY 119) and Foundations of Curriculum Planning (CURC 120). It provides students with experience in designing and implementing program activities for early childhood education. Students further develop their philosophies of curriculum and program planning, and develop a set of criteria with which to judge materials and activities used in early childhood programs.
Contact Hours: 80
This course builds on knowledge acquired in Introduction to Play (PLAY 119). Students are provided with the knowledge and skills needed to plan culturally and developmentally appropriate programs for young children. Students are introduced to NAEYC's guidelines for curriculum planning, study three common philosophies of program planning and practice curriculum planning for young children.
Contact Hours: 80
The course focuses on providing a healthy, safe environment for children and youth using a community well-being perspective. It explores the needs of First Nation children in Canada, as well as educating and working with parents, families and community members to ensure healthy environments. Health, safety and nutrition guidelines and regulations for children and youth are introduced and critiqued from a multicultural perspective. Traditional ways of ensuring health and safety are contrasted to currently available resources, particularly in the context of the community in which the course is offered.
Contact Hours: 80
This foundation course introduces students to interpersonal communication concepts and skills. It emphasizes self-awareness, relationships and interpersonal skills. Students recognize and apply, at an entry level, positive empathic interpersonal communication skills.
Contact Hours: 80
An overview of the principles guiding the scientific study of human behaviour. Students learn terminology and theories that serve as a foundation for future course work in child and youth care.
Contact Hours: 80
This course introduces students to the components of a helping relationship and to a model of helping used by professional child and youth care workers.
Contact Hours: 94
This course introduces students to program planning for young children and the concept of learning through play. Students consider the merits of self-paced, child-controlled play. They also explore the relationship between play and development, stages of children's play, factors that influence play, the role of adults in relation to children's play and issues in play.
Contact Hours: 80
An orientation for students in the field of child and youth care. Students have an opportunity to meet local members of the profession and visit local programs and agencies serving children, youth and their families. Structure of services and supports to children, youth and families is explored within the context of a specific community. Students learn and practice methods of obtaining information about children's development through direct observation in formal and informal settings.
Contact Hours: 118
An opportunity for students to participate with young children in early childhood care and education settings. Students focus on observing young children in physical, emotional, social, cognitive and spiritual areas of development, and develop an understanding of how to respond to children's needs by planning and implementing activities that are developmentally and culturally appropriate.
Contact Hours: 168.5
This practicum builds on earlier opportunities. Students take increasing initiative and develop self-evaluative skills in planning and conducting activities and creating effective learning environments for children.
Contact Hours: 168.5
This course provides students with an opportunity to participate, under supervision, in program delivery in an early childhood care and education setting. The seminar component focuses on professional foundations for child and youth care. Students examine their own temperaments, personalities, beliefs, values and ethics, as well as the application of selected codes of ethics to child and youth care practice.
Contact Hours: 156
This practicum gives students the opportunity to focus on infant and toddler care. Practical exercises focus on the development of specialized skills to meet the developmental needs for these age groups. The development of resources and community contacts is an essential part of the practicum.
Contact Hours: 156
This practicum focuses on supported childcare for children with special needs. Students focus on the development of specialized skills to meet the developmental needs for this group of children. The development of resources and community contacts is also an essential component of the practicum.
Contact Hours: 156
This course provides students with opportunities to observe school aged children and youth in a wide variety of settings. The seminar component focuses on incident intervention. Students learn and apply a model of helping used by professional child and youth care workers to deal with crisis situations requiring immediate intervention.
Contact Hours: 156
This course prepares students to create supportive learning environments for young children. The focus is on day-to-day operations of a child care centre.
Contact Hours: 80
Students are introduced to the development of programs and care routines, with strong emphasis on exploring cultural ways of being, through consultation with respected community members. Students’ understanding of the typical and atypical is enhanced through development of routines and programs to support healthy development. Health and safety issues are covered along with models of service provision.
Contact Hours: 52
The essentials of administering a child care facility are explored, including staffing management, program development, policy development and regulations governing child care facilities. Students examine contrasting policies of First Nation facilities and build a set of policies and guidelines for a proposed child care facility. An area of focus is the professional practice of students within their own community.
Contact Hours: 80
