Child Care & Education

Overview

The Child Care and Education Career Academy is a skills/attitude based program designed to assist graduating students in acquiring knowledge, skills, and appreciations essential to working in the fast-paced and rapidly changing field of education and child care. Credits earned in this academy will help the graduate enroll in a two-year Associate of Arts program designed to prepare candidates for a career as a paraprofessional educator, daycare provider, educator.

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REQUIRED COURSES:

• Child Care and Education
• Child in the Family
• First Aid/CPR
• The Psychology of Human Behavior and Personality
• Work Seminar
• Real World Experience

Foundational Skills Classes:
Bemidji High School Work Seminar

RECOMMENDED COURSES:

• Advanced Placement Psychology
• American Sign Language I 
• American Sign Language II
• Introduction to Public Speaking
• College Writing I
• Introduction to Sculpture
• Introduction to Drawing

Career Options

Daycare and preschool learning programs are a rapidly growing area of employment. Paraprofessional educators are often employed by school districts and private education agencies to help students succeed in coursework and academic/personal challenges.

Job Outlook

Childcare and Early Childhood Education job opportunities continue to grow. Expected growth in Northern Minnesota is 7.6% through 2024.

Paraprofessional Educator Careers are also growing. Expected growth in these jobs is 0.1% in Northern Minnesota.

Job Skills

In addition to having job-related skills, employers expect their paraprofessional educators to have other skills such as:

• Listening skills
• Effective communication
• Digital Citizenship
• Problem-solving skills
• Time management
• Manage instructional resources
• Professionalism
• Integrity

Academic Completion Standard

Successful completion of this Career Academy prepares the student for:

• Enrolling in a two-year AA program at an institution of higher education.
• To have a good work ethic by being on time and communicating effectively in an educational setting.
• To have a better understanding of how children learn and factors that affect children’s wellbeing.

Postsecondary Programs 

Upon successful completion of this program, trainees are eligible for enrollment in college, community college, or technical college programs in programs that will lead to careers as a child care provider, paraprofessional, and educator.

Business and Industry Experiences/Partners

Students in the academy will study how children learn. Students will learn how a child’s growth and development is affected positively and negatively by the child’s environment and the care the child receives. They will job shadow in various paraprofessional roles and successfully complete a semester internship in an educational or daycare setting. They may participate in paraprofessional educator training offered by Bemidji Area Schools and will be considered for employment at the conclusion of their AA/post-secondary program.

Jane Nord first experienced the Bemidji area as a child, camping at Lake Bemidji State Park with her family every summer. When she earned a teaching degree from North Dakota State University in 1974, she was fortunate to be hired by the Bemidji School District to teach Home Economics, allowing her to fulfill her desire to live here. She taught here for two years before returning to college and eventually moving elsewhere to raise a family and pursue other career interests. Every summer she returned to the area for visits and finally, in 2012, was able to move back. She joined the staff at Bemidji High School in 2015 as the Family and Consumer Science teacher. She teaches classes in child development and family relations, adult living skills, food preparation and nutrition, clothing construction and fashion merchandising. She is proud to be a part of the BHS staff and enjoys working with the students as they acquire knowledge and skills that will enhance their lives.