Psychology Class Project
Children’s Books

While studying a unit on child development, the psychology class was assigned a project-create an original eight page story for ages 3-5.  The story had to use a holiday theme which taught a lesson not only about the holiday but also about counting, colors, places, language, or animals. 

The class studied children’s books to understand font size and style, color usage, page design and story development. They also reviewed Piaget’s theory on Cognitive Development.  After several weeks of revising their stories, checking for appropriate vocabulary, fixing grammar errors, and finding the perfect visual aids, the juniors and seniors were ready for the final grade – the approval of St. Mary’s Daycare students.

Miss Anna Rojas, the principal of the daycare, graciously allowed the Psychology class to read the stories to the different age groups.  The juniors and seniors soon realized if their stories held the interest of their audiences.  Overall, the daycare children were eager to ask questions and participate in discussions about Halloween costumes, Fourth of July fireworks, Santa’s eight reindeer, and Mardi Gras food.  

As a follow up, the Psychology students compared the attention spans and learning skills of the different groups.  They also applied their lessons on behavioral and developmental psychology as well as the unit on learning to their discussion class. They concluded that the project was a great success; with a sweet ending-candy canes for everyone!

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