Iowa State’s School of Child Development Laboratory turns 100 years old

Iowa State University’s School of Early Childhood has reached its centennial milestone, continuing its leadership in early childhood care and education.

The Child Development Laboratory School turned 100 in January and officially celebrated a century of service on Thursday 24 October.

The school “offers year-round programs for infants, toddlers and preschoolers,” according to the ISU website, while also providing educational opportunities for ISU students “who are preparing to be teachers, administrators, and children and families. specialists.”

The State of Iowa was the first land-grant institution in the country to have a school for young children.

Classrooms incorporate many different cultures

The laboratory school has four classrooms and around 60 children are enrolled this year. Principal Elizabeth Lanz said the children come from a variety of cultures, noting that the families enrolled speak 15 different languages.

“It’s 100 percent a family care center,” Lanz said, which she believes is what sets it apart from others.

“Not only do we support play-based and hands-on learning by supporting our staff, but we really embrace the concept that family is the number one advocate,” Lanz said. “This is something that will continue with all families as their child ages out of our program.”

Lanz also noted that the school has “incredible educators” who make “all the difference with their intentional, kind and loving teaching.”

“They have a passion for kids and it’s something you see every day in each of our classrooms,” Lanz said. “They are truly shaping the future of early childhood; they are the reason we are as great as we are.”

100 years of innovative services

The first land-grant kindergarten opened in January 1924 in Ames. Kala Sullivan, professor of Human Development and Family Studies, said the school was originally founded to care for a number of foster children, while also helping to fill the need for preschools.

The first class had nine children in a morning program, which initiated the Child Care and Training Course.

“They really wanted to make sure there was an opportunity for people in the Home Economics program to practice with real kids,” Sullivan said. “Even then, they recognized how important it is to get that hands-on experience with how kids learn and grow to better understand what they’re learning in class.”

Sullivan said the lab school has changed over the years. There were times when the service was offered exclusively to children under five, although she also noted that the school did not always serve infants. Newborn to five-year-olds are today’s school priorities.

The mission of the laboratory school has responded to the needs of society throughout history. The activities and programs were developed in response to the emergency care needs of the Great Depression of 1933. Certification of pre-kindergarten and kindergarten teachers began in 1968 and when the Iowa Legislature mandated early childhood teacher licensure, the state of Iowa responded by offering the program . .

Children learn by playing

If you were to visit one of the Child Development Lab classrooms, you would not see children completing worksheets, but teachers playing with children.

Lanz said he’s even more involved than that. Toddlers and infants learn social and emotional skills, and preschoolers learn about math and other subjects through play.

“If you think back to when you were in school, you remember the fun times, like the experiments you thought were a blast,” Lanz said. “It’s almost like you forget you’re learning. But in that moment, you’ve taken in so much more. It’s the same concept in our classes.”

Practicum students also learn the importance of play for young children and how to integrate learning through play.

Managing early childhood development

Iowa State’s long-standing program has been a pioneer for the past century, College of Health and Human Sciences Dean Laura Jolly said, and continues to advance the curriculum.

“People looked to Iowa State for best practices and cutting-edge work in early childhood development,” Jolly said. “It’s still there today. It is critical to the needs of Iowans across the nation.”

In addition to providing excellent, high-quality care, the child development program excels in providing practicum students with hands-on learning opportunities.

“We value this hands-on learning at Iowa State,” Jolly said.

Celia Brocker is a government, forensics, political and education reporter for the Ames Tribune. She can be reached at [email protected].