Respectful Caregiving

Independent Study

This course is a similar level of time commitment as a college child development course. You can expect to spend around 4-6 hours on the course each week:

• 2 hours in a live Zoom class, doing group activities and participating in discussion

• 1-2 hours watching prerecorded lectures and other videos independently 

• 1-3 hours on reading, journaling, and other writing assignments

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Each week you will have one or two short assignments. Here are some examples:

• Practice techniques for respectful care with a child or adult in your life

• Read from assigned textbooks

• Practice vocabulary and strategies for setting limits

• Write in your reflection journal

• Prepare a five-minute presentation of a concept for your small group

• Write down your objective observations of an infant at play

Observations In the Field

Additionally, you will receive support to schedule live observations of infants and toddlers in parent infant classes or child care centers in your area. This gives you an opportunity to practice your observation skills and reflect on putting our principles into practice.

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Written Evaluations

At the midpoint and end of the course, you will write a short paper that shares the meaningful things you have learned. You will receive detailed feedback and recommendations for deepening your learning.

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All Students Are Treated With Respect

Respectful Caregiving courses welcome all families. As a woman in a nontraditional relationship with another woman, and as a person who lives in a community house with several other families, I understand how important it is to make sure all types of families and caregivers know they are are welcome in my courses. Same gender families, families with more than two parents, adopting families, trans parents, and all other forms of alternative families can join this course knowing that their pronouns, gender, sexual identity, and role in their family will be respected.  

Racial and cultural diversity is the norm in my courses. As a white woman, I do my best to educate myself in things outside my everyday sphere of life, and I encourage a student mindset that invites us to approach cultural differences with welcoming curiosity and thoughtful reflection instead of judgment.

I am committed to a high level of accessibility for my courses. As a neurodivergent person, I know that good course design is important and benefits not just students with disabilities, but all students. I am working to implement Universal Design For Learning in my courses. I offer multiple ways of accessing the course content and of demonstrating your knowledge. For example, you might submit your weekly journals and assignments written, typed, as recorded audio, as recorded video, or during office hours according to your learning style. All video content in my courses has subtitles and auto-captioning is available in the live Zoom sessions.

Please don’t hesitate to contact me if you have questions about fitting into the social or cultural space of my courses.

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Questions? 

Check out the FAQ below.

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Note:

In order to participate in this course, you will be asked to agree to a code of conduct. View the code of conduct here.