• Course: Early Childhood Practicum
• Term/ Year: Fall 2025
• Credit Hours: 2 
• Meeting Time(s) & Location(s): Online
• Description: The study of influences on children and families which impact child and family behaviors, values, attitudes, beliefs, and morals. Topics include parenting patterns, cultural, religious, and socioeconomic influences, peer, school, media impacts, community ecology, and public policy.
• Prerequisite(s): None
• Corequisite(s): None

• Instructor: Kelley Fritz, M.S.
• Email: fritz@klamathcc.edu (emails and Canvas messages may take up to 48 hours for reply)
• Phone Number: 541.880.2212
• Office Hours & Location: Monday 10:00-12:00, Tuesday 10:00-12:00 & Wednesday 12:00-1:00, or by appointment; Building 6, Room 6126

• Course Materials: Optional for EDU students 
  • Title: The First-Year Teacher’s Survival Guide
  • Author: Julia G. Thompson
  • Edition: 3th
  • Published Date: 2013
  • ISBN: 978-1-118-45028-4
  • Publisher: Jossey-BassLinks to an external site.
  • 

• Computer Requirements:
  
  • If students do not have access to a computer off-campus, there are many computers on campus (Buildings 3, 5, 6, 8, and LRC) students are welcome to use to participate fully in their courses. Most public libraries also have computers with internet access available.
  • Students will need to have an up-to-date browser and operating system. Students may need some additional software on their computers to take this class. Check the KCC Distance Education webpage for hardware & software requirements.
  • Some of the documents in this course may be available to you in PDF form. If you do not have Adobe Acrobat Reader software on your computer, you can download it by going to http://get.adobe.com/reader/ .

• Communicate effectively with young children.
• Use developmentally appropriate strategies to provide appropriate care and education of children age eight and younger.
• Develop assessment strategies to chart children’s progress on standard learning outcomes in their work setting.
• Demonstrate competent teaching methods and lesson planning.

Assignment Weights

Grading of assignments may take one to two weeks, depending on the complexity of the assignment and the instructor's workload.  Feedback, when needed, will be posted on the assignment in the Grades link in Canvas.  Not all assignments will receive feedback, so be sure to view those comments from your instructor to better understand your grade and the assignment. 

*** I do not give extra credit assignments to individual students as a way to save their poor grades.  It's imperative to complete all regular assignments throughout the term to earn points! 

Only work submitted by the due date and time will be graded. Any work submitted late will earn a zero. Please plan ahead and see what assignments are coming up and how long it may take you to complete the activity. If extenuating circumstances arise, please send me a message in Canvas or an email before the assignment is due so that we can discuss each unique circumstance. A message or an email to me does not guarantee late work will be accepted (each circumstance will be evaluated). Technology issues don't always guarantee late work will be accepted so come up with a backup plan if you have computer or internet connection issues. My goal is to help you to be successful so notify me early to discuss issues you may have. I will be unable to offer you help if you wait until the due date for the assignment has passed.

Students are expected to actively participate in the discussion board each week. Students are required to post an initial response to the discussion board prompt(s) no later than Wednesdays by 11:59pm of the current week’s discussion board. Then each student must respond to the initial postings of at least two classmates by Friday at 11:59pm.

If a student fails to participate appropriately, the following actions may be taken:

1. The student will be dropped from the course,
   OR
2. If the date for dropping a course without penalty has passed, the student will receive a failing grade, unless prior arrangements have been made between the instructor and student.

A student who seeks an exception to this policy must do so in advance of the absence and/or provide documentation of the emergency that caused it, as determined by the instructor.

• Generative AI tools can be used to streamline formatting, to create templates, to brainstorm, to outline, and to check/edit for grammar and spelling in written assignments.
• Do not outsource your thinking, imagining, or creating to generative AI tools. This includes, summarizing or responding to texts, generating discussion questions, compiling sources, and drafting sentences, essays, and reflections. Our class community will benefit from your thoughts, your words, and your voice—not Gemini’s.
• Document and cite your use of AI.