Professional Development Division

Since 1972, The Children's Center at Caltech (CCC) has been offering high quality child care and education for children ages six month to six years. In 2000, our research lead us to adopt STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) curricula as a focus of our early childhood program. As leaders in STEM Early Childhood education, we launched ECSTEM in 2011, and host an annual conference bringing together educators, policy makers, researchers and other vested community stakeholders to address the needs of our youngest citizens.

Due to the overwhelming demand for tours of our facilities, and requests for professional growth workshops, we have formed a Professional Development Division (PDD) that arranges tours, on-site visits and workshops at the CCC.

Fall Workshops at The Children's Center at Caltech

Music and STEM
Join us to awaken, develop, and refine your innate musicality through STEM based music and movement activities for early childhood years. The session will help build a strong foundation for future development of language, social-emotional, and motor skills for young children by introducing ear-training, singing games, solfege, finger plays, song-tales, echo songs, folk dance, playing patterns on non-pitched percussion instruments and pitched barred instruments.

Saturday, September 21, 2024 (9-12pm) Presenter: Dayita Datta, Music Specialist

Senses

This workshop will take you through a yearlong exploration of how a group of 2-3 year old children investigated their senses through interactions with the environment. Through their daily experiences, they were able to touch, see, hear, smell, and taste different objects, helping them understand their world. You'll find that there are even more senses than you think, and the important role they all play in learning.

Saturday, October 26th, 2024 (9-12pm)
Presenter: Janet Nunez, Lead Teacher

Systems and Interactions

Take a look at how a group of preschoolers developed an understanding of systems as interconnected parts influencing one another. Building knowledge about the parts of a system, for example how communities rely on roads and transportation, helps children see how things connect and function in the world. This workshop will take you through map making, pathways, direction, and more!

Saturday, November 23rd, 2024 (9-12pm) Presenter: Amanda Lawson, Lead Teacher

If interested in an Educator Tour of The Children's Center at Caltech, please call the office at 626.395.6860 to schedule your visit, then please fill out the educator tour form and mail to us at the address below.

For questions regarding Educator Tours or the PDD Workshop Series, please call 626.395.6860 or email ecstem@caltech.edu

Please complete the registration form and mail along with payment to: The Children's Center at Caltech, 1200 E. California Blvd. MC 1-133, Pasadena, CA 91125; Attention: PDD