😁 UCDC Developments 😁

January 2020

UCDC Developments

Director's Corner

Dear Families,

Growing professionally is a very big part of working with children and a big part of working at UCDC. It’s important to stay current with research and new theory and it’s important to learn about new strategies and techniques to support and help children grow and thrive in our classrooms.

Each year, UCDC, along with CMU Children’s School, Falk Laboratory School and The Campus School of Carlow University host early childhood students from Duksung Women’s University in Seoul, South Korea. Not only is this an incredible learning opportunity for the 10-12 students that visit, it provides many professional opportunities for our teachers at UCDC, including the preschool teachers that will be hosting the students placed in their classrooms.

This year, we welcome MinJeong Kim to Preschool One and HeeSoo Kang to Preschool Four. Both Min and Soo will complete activities and assignments in the classroom with the children. They will share insights into their culture and family life while learning a lot about early childhood education in America. We are very excited to host the students and also excited about the many opportunities during the two-week visit.

In addition to that opportunity, our staff have also been engaging in additional in-house trainings and some other beneficial opportunities in the community.

Some of the UCDC teachers and administration recently read Uniquely Human- A Different Way of Seeing Autism by Barry M. Prizant and came together to discuss it during a three-part book club. This is a unique book that shows a deep respect for those with autism written by an author with four decades of experience. The mindset and respectful approach to interactions with all human beings was easily translatable to our lives and classrooms.

We also recently watched the documentary Minimalism, which challenged our perception of need versus want. The documentary also talked a lot about commercialism and the amount of “things” that people have in their lives and the intentionality that one could have when considering purchasing or using items. It brought up some very interesting talking points about our classrooms and our lives and we will continue to explore the topic.

In February, many of our staff will be attending a Saturday conference at the Falk Laboratory School, which will be co-hosted by UCDC, CMU and Carlow. This will be the third year that our professional group - PAUS (Pittsburgh Alliance of University Schools) will host over 100 of our staff at the conference. This year’s topic is Social Justice- Challenging our Ideas About Diversity. There will be a wonderful representation of speakers and leaders in the field, including faculty from the School of Education at Pitt and one of our UCDC parents who will present a workshop.

March will bring our two Professional Development Days that will fall on Wednesday, March 11th and Thursday, March 12th. We will complete some required trainings as well as welcome Erin Troup from the Sprout Foundation for a two-part training with all of our staff. Erin will focus on the importance of attachment and relationships as it applies to teaching as well as best practices. She will also spend considerable time focusing on self reflection of the teacher and how that affects their emotions and teaching style.

We always hope that the many different learning experiences we have helps to enrich us as educators, parents, colleagues and individuals. Challenging our perceptions of what we know and believe in an ever changing society and world is very important if we are to help shape and guide your children.

Feel free to ask questions or stop by to borrow the book, Uniquely Human if you are interested in reading it.

Warmly,

Mary Beth

Curriculum in the Classroom: Infant Three

Infant Three recently spent some time learning about inclined planes. Oftentimes, children will take toys on the climber to drop them down the slide. Because they are not all very coordinated as of yet, we like them to keep toys off of the climber. Seeking to encourage this exploration, however, gave us the idea of making a ramp that they could access from the floor so they could learn the same lessons they might learn by using the slide to roll balls and toys.

We chose four objects with a goal of seeing how far each would go; balls, baby dolls, cars and a scarf. The balls were the clear winner, rolling all the way to the wall! Cars were in second place, each went a different distance but most were half-way or two-thirds of the way to the wall. The baby dolls all were able to make it down our inclined plane, landing right at the bottom of the ramp. Lastly, the scarf needed some help! We put the scarf on the ramp several times but it would only move a few inches. We then showed the children that we could make it fall to the bottom by increasing the degree of the plane. By lifting our inclined plane from the original 30 degree angle (approximate) to around 50 degrees, the scarf slid down easily to rest near the baby dolls!

Teaching mathematical concepts through play is key to STEAM learning (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Math). At UCDC, our philosophy reflects this idea that, by designing activities as well as open-ended play with feedback and reflection from educators, these concepts help teach children about their world—yes, even the laws of physics and geometry! The children had a great time in the activity and learned a lot as well!

FYI

It's a new semester and we will start to host a variety of observations and experiences for students at the University. Look for more information to come!
It is clear that UCDC supports breastfeeding mothers by offering private spaces in the building, supporting on-demand feeding schedules for infants, and welcoming parents to nurse their children anywhere in our building. Fortunately, the larger University also supports breastfeeding by providing Lactation Rooms on campus. Click here for a list of spaces around campus.
To ensure all children's safety, please do not let them run ahead of you on the sidewalk or in the parking lot when coming into the building or leaving for the day.
Many parents arrive at the same time at UCDC so the parking lot can get crowded. Please be patient if you need to wait for a space and remember to only enter in the designated area in the front of the building and exit by the dumpster.

Preschool Wisdoms

Did you ever consider what it would be like to be a lion? An elephant? A chameleon? These are the creative thoughts of a preschooler on any given day! Take some time to find out what animal the children in Preschool Four would be if they could transform.

A cheetah because he can run so fast! - Avi
A puppy - they’re my favorite animal. - Markus
A bear because I like to eat meat and bears are predators. - Ryan
A cat because they chase people and dogs. - Marcela
A horse because I like them. -Ania
A chameleon. I love how they change their colors. - Theo
A triceratops to bang into trees - Kamden
A raccoon maybe. They eat bananas and a little grass for dessert. - Miles
A tiger - some of the orange colors on the tiger are my favorite. - Sophia
A lion because he’s powerful. - Austin
A kitty because I like kitties. - Fiona
A unicorn so I could do powers on my head. - Everett
An orca dolphin because they are the biggest dolphin. - Jesse
A black dragon because they’re toothless and they breathe fire. - Rowan
A giraffe - I like their long necks and horns and pretty colors. - Meara
A cat - they say meow. - Evan
A butterfly because they can fly. - Emily
A hamster because they squeak and live in a cage. - Lucia
A monkey - they like bananas. - Maria

Welcome to UCDC!

Please welcome our newest staff member to our UCDC family, Kala McCauley!

Hello everyone! My name is Kala McCauley and I am the new Assistant Teacher in Preschool One. I’m a current junior at Washington and Jefferson College studying Child Development and Education on the Pre-Law Track. I’m studying to be a child and family lawyer. Before UCDC, I worked at Aspire Educational Center, an integrated preschool and kindergarten. I also worked and continue to work at Sarah Heinz House, as a preschool counselor and the STEM and Robotics teacher at their after-school program. In my free time, I play college softball, travel with my family, and feed my shopping addiction. I am so excited to be a part of the UCDC staff!

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UCDC Philosophy

UCDC utilizes a child centered, extended family approach that is fostered by supporting the developmental needs of all children. We foster children's self esteem, creative abilities, sense of belonging and success by implementing a developmentally appropriate curriculum based on NAEYC and Keystone STARS standards, through a play-based approach to learning. We support families and partner with them to provide an environment that welcomes their collaboration and supports both cultural and family preferences.