01
Milestone charts without context
A chart shows what most children do by a certain age. Used as a checklist on its own, it can turn a child who develops differently into a label instead of a child you understand.
Camderson Academy · CA-EC-001
Understand how young children grow, and plan for each one.
A practical, self-paced course for early childhood educators in centers and homes. Follow development from birth to age five across all five domains, write observation notes that describe what you actually see, and turn them into next steps you share with families.
About 5.5 hours · 19 lessons with video · Beginner · Self-paced · Certificate of completion · 30-day money-back guarantee
Knowing what is typical is not the same as knowing each child.
02
Notes full of opinions
"He was bored." "She is shy." Notes like these say more about the adult than the child, and they cannot support a plan or a conversation with a family.
03
Concerns that wait too long
When something seems off, many educators are unsure what they can say or who to tell, so they wait and hope, and children and families lose valuable time.
Learning outcomes
What you will be able to do
Eight practical outcomes, each practiced in an exercise and checked in the final assessment or the capstone.
- Explain how early development unfolds through relationships, everyday experiences and the interaction of brain and body, and why that makes daily care developmental work.
- Describe the five developmental domains and use milestone checklists and early learning frameworks appropriately, respecting individual, cultural and linguistic differences.
- Describe typical infant development, from birth to 12 months, across all five domains.
- Describe typical toddler development, from 12 to 36 months, across all five domains.
- Describe typical preschool development, from 3 to 5 years, including early literacy and approaches to learning.
- Observe and document children objectively using several methods, and keep observation records confidential.
- Use observations, family knowledge and developmental frameworks to identify each child's strengths and plan individualized next steps.
- Respond to a developmental concern by observing carefully, sharing with families respectfully and following your program's referral process, without diagnosing.
The Camderson method
Four teaching tools for observing and planning for each child
The Watch, Write, Wonder, Plan cycle
Watch · Write · Wonder · Plan
Observe a child in everyday moments, record only what you see and hear, look across your notes alongside milestones and the family's view while asking questions rather than reaching conclusions, then choose a next step and share it with the family.
The same-picture test
Would another adult watching the same moment write the same thing?
A quick check for every note you write. If the answer is no, the note probably holds an opinion or a guess, and you rewrite it as actions, exact words, context and time.
The Whole Child Map
Physical and motor · Cognitive · Language and communication · Social and emotional · Approaches to learning
A one-page grid that sorts your observations into the five domains, starts with strengths in each one and shows what you have not yet seen, so your next steps fit the whole child.
The concern conversation
Strengths first · What you saw · What the family sees · Next steps together
A respectful way to share a question about a child's development with a family, without diagnosing, followed by the referral pathways open to families of children under 3 and children 3 to 5.
Watch. Write. Wonder. Plan.
Curriculum
Inside the course
Six modules, 19 lessons with classroom examples and video
01
Foundations of Early Development
How brains, bodies and relationships shape growth, serve and return, the five developmental domains, how milestone checklists and early learning frameworks differ, and why every child follows their own path.
02
Infants (Birth to 12 Months)
Movement, thinking, communication, feelings and relationships in the first year, from first smiles and babbling to looking for hidden objects and pulling up to stand.
03
Toddlers (12 to 36 Months)
Walking, climbing and problem solving, the jump from first words to word combinations, dual language learners, and big feelings with growing self-control.
04
Preschoolers (3 to 5 Years)
Fine and gross motor skills, early math and reasoning, conversation and early literacy, friendships, executive function, curiosity and persistence.
05
Observing Children Objectively
The Watch, Write, Wonder, Plan cycle, choosing an observation method for your question, writing notes that pass the same-picture test, and keeping records confidential.
06
From Observation to Planning and Partnership
Finding patterns with the Whole Child Map, planning next steps just beyond current skill, talking with families when you have a concern, and your Child Observation and Development Summary.
What is included
Everything you need to observe, understand and plan
- 19 lessons, each with a written lesson, classroom examples and diagrams, and a narrated lesson video, at your own pace on any device
- A workbook with a Try it exercise and reflection page for every lesson
- A milestones by age reference covering the 12 CDC checklists from 2 months to 5 years, with CDC credited on every page
- Observation forms: anecdotal record, running record, skills checklist, frequency count, time sample, work sample labels, a weekly observation plan and the Whole Child Map
- Planning and family templates ready to adapt: a child development summary, an individualized next steps plan, a family input form, a concern conversation planner and an observation schedule
- Quick reference cards for the five domains, serve and return, the 2022 milestone update, the Watch, Write, Wonder, Plan cycle and objective note writing
- The Bramble Hill Practice Pack, from a fictional child care center: rosters, scenario cards, sample notes to rewrite, work samples and a full observation file, so you can practice without using real children's information
- An optional visual companion PDF
- Knowledge checks for every module and a 20-question final assessment
- The Child Observation and Development Summary, a short capstone in which you observe one child and plan next steps, reviewed by a person
- A Camderson Academy Certificate of Completion when you pass the final assessment and the capstone
- Access to the Camderson Academy community
Is this course right for you?
This course is for you if
- You work with young children as an infant, toddler or preschool teacher, an assistant teacher or a family child care provider
- You are new to early childhood education, or you have experience but no formal training in child development and observation
- You are a director who wants a shared foundation in development and objective observation for your staff
It is not the right fit if
- You need a course that by itself meets state licensing, credential or annual training hour requirements (check with your regulator or credentialing body first)
- You want to learn how to screen, assess or diagnose developmental delays or disabilities (this course teaches awareness and observation, and shows you when and how to refer)
- You are looking for in-depth guidance on behavior support, curriculum planning or program administration (later courses in our Early Childhood Excellence school go further)
Your instructor
Meet your instructor
Sarah Tejada
BS
Founder & Principal Advisor · Early Learning & Organizational Development
Sarah Tejada brings more than 20 years of experience in early learning, curriculum development and implementation, program leadership, professional training and educator development. As a former child care program owner and operator, she knows the staffing, quality and regulatory pressures early childhood teams face firsthand. She holds a BS in Human Development and Family Studies from the University of Rhode Island and teaches the Academy's School 09 courses in Early Childhood Excellence. In this course she helps you understand how young children grow and turn careful observation into plans and conversations that support each child.
About
About Camderson Academy
Camderson Academy is the education division of Camderson Advisory Services. Camderson helps leaders build organizations that work without them in the room. Everything we teach has been used in a real organization first.
Training a teaching team?
We offer group enrollment for centers, family child care networks and programs that want staff to share one approach to development and observation. Email connect@camderson.com to talk through your team.
Frequently asked questions
What do I need to take this course?
No special tools. The workbook, observation forms, templates and milestones by age reference are included. If you work with children now, you can practice observation in your own setting, following your program's policies. If you do not, or you prefer not to use real children's information, the fictional Bramble Hill practice files give you everything you need to complete every exercise and the capstone.
I work in a family child care home, not a center. Will this still help?
Yes. The running example follows a fictional child care center, but development and observation work the same way in homes, centers and mixed age groups. The exercises ask you to apply each idea to the children and setting you know.
How long do I have access?
Your access does not expire. We review the course regularly, and any updates are added for you at no extra cost.
How long does it take?
About 5.5 hours in total, including the written lessons and their videos, the exercises, the knowledge checks, the final assessment and the capstone. Everything is self-paced. At a lesson or two a day, plan on about two to three weeks.
Does this course teach me to screen or diagnose children?
No. You learn what typical development looks like, how to observe and document objectively, and what to do when something raises a question: observe carefully, talk with your director, share with the family respectfully and follow your program's referral process. Educators never diagnose, and the milestone checklists are not screening tools.
Is the certificate accredited, and does it count toward licensing or a credential?
No. You receive a Camderson Academy Certificate of Completion after passing the final assessment and the capstone, a short Child Observation and Development Summary that a person reviews. It is not accredited, carries no continuing education credits, and does not by itself meet state licensing or other credential training requirements unless your regulator or credentialing body accepts it.
Is there a money-back guarantee?
Yes. You are covered by a 30-day money-back guarantee. If the course is not right for you, email connect@camderson.com within 30 days of purchase and we will refund you in full. No questions asked. Your course access ends when the refund is issued.
Where do the milestones in this course come from?
The milestones by age reference draws on the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's "Learn the Signs. Act Early." milestone checklists, as revised with the American Academy of Pediatrics in 2022, and CDC is credited on every page. CDC does not endorse this course or Camderson Academy. This course is general professional education and is not medical advice.
See each child more clearly, and know what to do next.
Self-paced, about 5.5 hours, with every form, reference and template you need to observe objectively, understand development from birth to five and plan with families.
Backed by our 30-day money-back guarantee.
This course earns a Camderson Academy Certificate of Completion. It is not an accredited credential, carries no continuing education credits, and does not by itself meet state licensing or other credential training requirements unless your regulator or credentialing body accepts it. The milestones by age reference draws on the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's "Learn the Signs. Act Early." milestone checklists, credited on every page. CDC does not endorse this course or Camderson Academy.