New Canaan High School

UCONN Individual & Family Development

2014-2015 School Year
Instructor Information:
Donna Sapienza (Semester 1)
11 Farm Road
New Canaan, CT 06840

ROOM 103

Amanda Stirgwolt (Semester 2)

11 Farm Road
New Canaan, CT 06840
EMAIL:
donna.sapienzat@ncps-k12.org
*Use this email for submitting homework electronically. Please check email frequently
for any updates/changes in the course assignments.
DURING SCHOOL: I am free Periods 2 and 8. Check the preschool, Room 103 or Foods Lab
(Room 103E)
Semester 2: amanda.stirgwolt@ncps-k12.org
Free Periods for Mrs. Stirgwolt: Period 5, Period 8. Check the preschool or Room 103.
1. Course Description:
Individual & Family Development is an opportunity for academically motivated students to
study human development while earning college credit in high school. Students will study
human development throughout the lifespan by focusing on early childhood and emphasizing
family as the primary context. Students will gain an in-depth view of the following: human
development theorists, family structures, physical, emotional and psychological development
of the child, families and stress and impact of technology on the 21 st century child and family
throughout the lifespan. Students passing the course with a C or better and complete the
internship are eligible to receive 3 college credits in conjunction with the University of
Connecticut. These credits can be transferred to many other institutions.
2. Core Values, Beliefs & Expectations of New Canaan High School
New Canaan High School is committed to preparing all students to meet the challenges of
living in an increasingly global and diverse society. We believe that students learn best in an
environment that fosters respect for themselves and others. This allows students to be active
participants in their learning, to identify and solve authentic problems and to effectively share
their learning with appropriate audiences. In partnership with parents and the community, we
strive to inspire students to the habits of mind and character that will make them lifelong
learners.

3. Grading Policy
Grade Breakdown:
Projects & Labs --------------------------------Total50% of Quarter Grade
Internships & Reflection-------------20%
Projects
30%
Classwork & Participation---------------------------Total20% of Quarter Grade
Notes
5%
Classwork/ Homework
10%
o Class Worksheets
o Moodle Online Discussion Forum
Class Discussion Participation
5%
Quizzes---------------------------------------------Total--10% of Quarter Grade
Case Study Reflection Questions
In Class Vocabulary & Concept Quizzes
Unit Assessments---------------------------------Total---20% of Quarter Grade
Chapter Tests
Developmental Unit Reflection or Scenario
*Research paper is worth 20% of your Semester 1 grade and counts as your Midterm
Grade. Research Papers will be turned in prior to the exam day.
*The Final Project will be due in May (before Memorial Day) and will count as 20% of
the Semester 2 Grade. The Final Project will require students to apply and synthesize
the Psychosocial Approach to Human Development across the Lifespan.
4. UCONN GRADE: In order to earn college credit students must:
1. Get a C or better for the final grade.
2. Complete 40 hours of internship experiences
3. Complete the College Research Paper with a C or better
5. Online Gradebook
If an assignment is not turned in at the same time as the rest of the class, a ZERO will
be placed in the Gradebook with a missing work and late work icon. Once the work is
turned in, the grade will change and late points will be taken off. Collected work will
have a green check icon and will be graded as soon as possible.

6. Grading Category Descriptions

a. Projects & Labs (50%)

Projects & Labs (50%): Each quarter there will be one major project. The projects
require students to apply their knowledge of human development across the lifespan
to a specific age group.
Quarter 1 Projects:
Educational Communication Project (Bulletin Board)
Summer Movie Analysis Project
Personal Systems Theory Art & Reflection Project
Quarter 2 Projects:
Real Care Baby Project or Parenting Project
Parenting Culture Project
Quarter 3 Project:
Brain Dance Project on Mental Illnesses
Quarter 4 Projects: TBA
Labs/ Internships:
Students will be required to complete short internship experiences throughout the
semester. Students are encouraged to complete 5-7 hours of internship experiences
per quarter. Students will have to complete observations and reflections on their
internships and keep an internship site. Students will create a Google Internship Site
to Keep track of their Internships. The internship site must be kept up-to-date. The
internship documents and reflections will be due after each internship experience.
All students must complete 40 total hours of internship/ career experiences by the end
of the year to meet the UCONN requirements to receive credit. The hours must be
completed anytime from September to May. Students are required to complete half of
the internship hours (20 hrs) outside of school independently. The other half of the
internship hours (20 hrs) will be arranged during school hours and through class field
trip opportunities. All internships/ career experiences taking place outside of school
must be approved by Mrs.Stirgwolt. Internship experiences must be a variety of
experiences and not just from one source.
Example:

(Students are strongly encouraged to do 5-7 hours in the summer)

Time Period

Internship Experience
Hours
( Outside of School)

Classroom Career
Experiences
(in School)

Total Hours

Quarter 1

2 Preschool Lab hrs.

3 Quest Speakers

11 hours

Quarter 2

12 hours

Quarter 3

3 hrs guest speakers

2 Preschool Lab hrs.
1 in school activity
hour
6 Hr. Field Trip

Quarter 4

Any Make up hours.

3 hrs guest speakers

2 hrs in school

5 hours

12 hours

activity
Totals

18 hours

22 hours

40 HOURS TOTAL

Internship Categories:
Students must complete at least one internship hour in each of the lifespan categories
& a career category. The categories are listed below. An internship can be an interview
with an expert, an interview with a person in that developmental stage, an interactive
experience with others or a visit to a significant place.

Early Childhood (birth to age 7)

Middle Childhood (8-13)
Adolescence (14-18)
Early Adulthood (19-28)
Adulthood (29-60)
Later Adulthood (60-75)
Elderly/ Aging (75-100+)
Medical, Education or Social Services Career Fields

Preschool Lab: Each high School student must complete 4 volunteer hours throughout
the year in the New Canaan High School Preschool Program. The program is run by
the Child Development I students. The program runs from October to May on
Wednesdays and Thursdays for 2 hour sessions. Students are encouraged to visit the
NCHS Preschool Program during free periods to gain more internship hours during the
school day.
b. Classwork & Participation (20%): Classwork & Participation is comprised of 3
parts: 1. Class Discussion; 2. Classwork and 3. Notes.
Class Discussion: Students will be expected to participate in class discussion,
activities and presentations. Individual & Group Participation will be assessed using
the Class Discussion Participation Rubric. Students are expected to contribute
comments that make connections between:
1. Text to self
2. Text to Text
3. Text to World
Classwork Assignments include written responses to class discussions, worksheets
and question responses. Written classwork reflections must be clear, concise and
demonstrate the application of human development concepts.

Notes: Sections of the textbook will be expected to be read prior to the class
discussion. Students will be required to hand in notes for specific chapters of the
book. A variety of note-taking & academic study skills will be covered in this class.
Quarter 1: Build a Better Vocabulary List & Build a Better Notecard
Quarter 2: Cornell Note-taking Method & Mapping Method
Quarter 3: Charting Method & Outline Method
Quarter 4: Notetaking Methods during Class
c. Quizzes (10%): The quiz grade is comprised of two main components. The
Case study reflection questions and formal, objective quizzes given in class.
The case studies are located on Moodle and require students to apply their
knowledge of the age group to a scenario. Students will answer developmental,
contextual and application questions related to the scenario. Quizzes in class
are 10 to 20 objective questions that cover concepts and vocabulary in the
textbook or in class discussion.
d. Unit Assessments (20%): The unit assessment grade is comprised of two
main parts: 1. Unit tests and 2. Unit Reflections
1. Unit tests are given at the end of each unit from the UCONN test
bank. The unit assessment is only objective, multiple choice
questions. Students will be given a list of study items and a pretest. Students should be aware that the unit assessments cover
ALL the content in the chapter and not just the items that were
highlighted in class.
2. Developmental Unit Reflections are one page typed reflections
synthesizing all of the information in the chapter and requires
students to connect their understanding of the age group to real
world problems impacting that age group. Students must answer
the question: How does ____________impact human
development across the lifespan?
e. Mid-term & Final:
The midterm grade will be the Research Paper. Every student will complete an 8-10
page research paper on a human development concept. The research paper is a
required component for passing this course and receiving UCONN college credit. The
research paper counts as 20% of your semester 1 grade.
During the exam period, the class will participate in a group collaboration activity. All
students are required to come to the exam period even though there will NOT be a
formal test.
The final will consist of a take-home project that will cover all of the topics from the
entire school year. The final project will be assigned in April and will be due the end of
May. Students that qualify for the Senior Exam Exemption will be exempt from the
Presentation Portion of the Final Project. Since this is a college-level course, ALL
students must complete a final exam.

7. College Credit:
Students MUST register with UCONN to access the materials needed to be successful in
this course. UCONN provides over 2 billion dollars worth of online resources for students
to access.
College Credits: 3.0 from UCONN with a $90 fee
Three college credits will be awarded to students receiving a C or better in the
course from the University of Connecticut. This class is offered under the University
of Connecticuts Early College Experience Program. The three credits received
count for credit in UCONNs HDFS 190: Individual and Family Development across
the Lifespan course. Students not attending UCONN may obtain an official
transcript documenting the completion of the course.
UCONN will individually bill each student. All monetary transactions must be
completed with the University of Connecticut Bursars Office.
8. Computer/ Internet Use:
NCHS Google emails are utilized in this class. All class documents and
announcements will be posted to GoogleDocs and Google Calendar.
It is vital to have access to a computer/ internet access for this course.
Our class Moodle Site contains all case studies, course outlines, review sheets and
discussion topics.
9. Academic Support:
Any student that feels that extra help is needed on any assignment during the
semester may come for help during a free period, before or after school if prearranged with the teacher.
Second Semester: Mrs. Stirgwolt is available to Skype between the hours of 4pm
and 7pm if pre-arranged by the student.
Students are encouraged to utilize the NCHS Writing Center for help.

STUDENTS MUST BE PROACTIVE in notifying the teacher immediately when

needing academic support! It is better to ask too many questions than to not ask at
all.

In addition, each student will have access to the University of Connecticut online
academic support, library and informational databases.

10. Field Trip Possibilities (To Be announced)

Students will be attending the Brain Dance Exhibition at the Institute of Living in
Hartford, CT in the Spring. (see below)

11. Competitions:
As part of this class each student will be participating in and entering the Brain
Dance competition. Information about the Brain Dance competition is below:
o

The Institute of Living/Hartford Hospital is sponsoring an academic competition

designed to decrease the stigma of mental illness. The BrainDance Awards
encourage students to gain knowledge about psychiatric diseases and develop a
more tolerant and realistic perspective toward people with severe psychiatric
problems. The competition also aims to promote students interest in careers in
mental health care.

12. Student Supplies that will be needed for this course:

Item
Quantity
Purpose
2-- inch 3 ring binder with
1
Class notes and worksheets
paper for note-taking
1 -2 pocket folder to keep
1
Internship Portfolio (Internship documents
your internship documents
will also be posted to Google Site)
in.
College ruled notebook
paper

13. Late Work Policy:

Late work is not tolerated. Students have access to their grades and can check
assignments at any time. Students that turn in late work will receive of 5 pts off per day for
classwork/ internship assignments. Tests/ Major projects turned in late are 10 pts off per
day.
14. Assignment Grading: Students should expect to receive papers back in a timely
manner. Please note that it takes a longer time to grade Research Paper Assignments.
15. Text Books (All texts are provided)
Development throughout Life by Newman & Newman (hardcover)
o Newman B. & Newman P. (2003). Development through life: A psychosocial
approach. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth/ Thompson.
Lifespan Development Case Book (small blue book)classroom use only; all
readings will be available electronically.
Students will be given textbooks to bring home. Textbooks will be available in the
classroom for student use. The textbooks in the classroom are NOT to be taken out
of the classroom. Textbooks for this class are also available in the New Canaan
High School Library Media Center for use in the Library only.
o If a textbook is lost or damaged the cost for the textbooks are:
Newman & Newman text = $139.00
16. Academic Integrity:
7

Any activity that violates academic integrity (e.g. cheating or plagiarism) will NOT be
tolerated. The New Canaan High School policies and the UCONN ethics policies will be
followed. See NCHS Academic Handbook for policy.
UCONN Responsibilities of Community Life: The Student Code Part VI, Section A:
Academic misconduct includes, but is not limited to, providing or receiving assistance
in a manner not authorized by the instructor in the creation of work to be submitted for
academic evaluation (e.g. papers, projects, examinations); any attempt to influence
improperly (e.g. bribery, threats) any member of the faculty, staff or administration of
the University staff in any matter pertaining to academics or research, presenting, as
ones own, the ideas or words of another for academic evaluation; doing unauthorized
academic work for which another person will receive credit to be evaluated; and
presenting the same or substantially the same papers or projects in two or more
courses without the explicit permission of the instructors involved.
17. Any information on this syllabus is subject to change as needed by the instructor.
Students will be informed prior to any major changes. All changes will be made on the
class Google website.

Course Outline
Chapter 1

The Development Through Life Perspective

Chapter 2

The Research Process

Chapter 3

Psychosocial Theory

Chapter 4

Major Theories of Human Development

Chapter 5

Prenatal Development & Pregnancy

Chapter 6

Infancy: The 1st 24 months

Chapter 7

Toddlerhood: Ages 2 and 3

Chapter 8

Early School Age: Ages 4-6

Chapter 9

Middle Childhood: Ages 6-12

Chapter 10

Early Adolescence: Ages 12-18

Chapter 11

Later Adolescence: Ages 18-24

Chapter 12

Early Adulthood: Ages 24-34

Chapter 13

Middle Adulthood: Ages34-60

Chapter 14

Later Adulthood: Ages 60-75

Chapter 15

Old Age: Ages 75 and up

Chapter 16

Understanding Bereavement

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