Child Development is an option choice available to students in Years 10 and 11 at GCSE level. Students consistently achieve their target grades and for many students their highest GCSE result is in Child Development.
Students studying Child Development have the opportunity to learn about real life situations including pregnancy, child birth and how children grow and develop from birth to five years old.
A variety of health professional visit during the two year course to explain their roles. These include a midwife, a health visitor and a play group worker. The course involves practical activities such as observing young children brought into class, making books suitable for toddlers and preparing bottle feeds.
In addition, students take turns caring of our twins Daisy and Dave. These dolls have the appearance of real babies and give students a realistic experience of the demands of feeding, nursing, changing and nurturing a baby over long periods and through the night.
The Child Development qualification can lead to further study at AS and’A’ Level or allows entry into GNVQ and VCE courses in a variety of subjects. It also opens up career opportunities in nursery nursing, nursing, teaching and the caring professions.
The course is taught by Mrs K Haig: firstname.lastname@example.org . She is supported by one further member of staff.
Key Stage 4: GCSE OCR Child Development
The course consists of five lessons a week and covers the following topics:
- Parenthood and Pregnancy
- Physical, social, emotional and intellectual development from birth to five years
- Nutrition and health
- Intellectual, social and emotional development
- The family and community
Students are taught how to:
- Observe and interact with young children
- Carry out individual, original research
- Explore and investigate the needs of young children