--- title: Lessons for the Littlest Terps date: 2023-08-16T05:30:00-04:00 author: University of Maryland canonical_url: "https://today.umd.edu/lessons-for-the-littlest-terps" section: Articles --- # Lessons for the Littlest Terps *August 16, 2023* — by [Karen Shih ’09](/author/karen-shih) > Center for Young Children’s Students Trek Across Campus to Understand the World *CYC Bug Field Trip 07172023 SC 7413 1920x1080 — Center for Young Children (CYC) kindergarteners Abigail Lynn and Nora Hurst examine a Bess beetle during a field trip to UMD's Insect Zoo, run by entomology Faculty Assistant Todd Waters, shown in the background. CYC classes regularly call on the expertise of UMD faculty and staff during their project-based lessons.* Students in protective glasses fidgeted beneath hanging glass beakers in a University of Maryland chemistry lab, awaiting a lesson on the states of matter with the attention span of 5-year-olds. So for this group of preschoolers, Senior Lecturer Lenea Stocker Ph.D. ’13 skipped the Bunsen burners. She instead pulled out red, white and blue Legos—familiar to her audience and a perfect metaphor for the subject. After all, she pointed out, atoms are the building blocks of matter. The field trip is one of dozens that the [Center for Young Children (CYC)](https://education.umd.edu/research/centers/cyc), a pre-K and kindergarten program in the [College of Education](https://education.umd.edu/), takes its classes on each year across the University of Maryland campus. Celebrating its 75th anniversary this year, the CYC has long used labs and gardens and construction sites as an extension of its building just beyond the Denton Community (even if the 3- to 6-year-olds sometimes need a fruit pouch pick-me-up before they walk back). “Hands-on experiences are essential for our program. The children can interact, question the experts, and draw conclusions,” said teacher Cecilia Fowler ’03. “On our way here, a child pointed to the bricks and told me, ‘That’s a liquid.’ I said, ‘Hmm, that’s interesting. Why do you think that?’ And now, on the way back, we’ll talk about it again.” The CYC takes a “project” approach, in which its 90 children delve deeply into a particular topic for weeks or even months. It’s a research-based method of teaching that makes the curriculum accessible for learners of all levels, including children who are multilingual or have disabilities. That’s because the CYC is not only a school, but also a lab for UMD human development and early childhood investigators, as well as a demonstration site for College of Education students. “What UMD students see when they come here is what research tells them reflects the way that children learn and become the most successful,” said CYC Director Jennifer Smallwood-Holmes. *young students wearing protective goggles watch "elephant toothpaste" — Center for Young Children students gasp in awe as foam bubbles out of a giant beaker during a chemistry lab demonstration. (Photo by Riley N. Sims Ph.D. '23)* --- *young student holds tarantula — Kindergartener Chen-shih Lee holds a 20-year-old tarantula during a trip to the Insect Zoo, as teacher Cecilia Fowler looks on the background. (Photo by Stephanie S. Cordle)* --- *lecturer wearing white lab coat and goggles demonstrates for class — Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry Senior Lecturer Lenea Stocker holds up dry ice as part of a demonstration on states of matter. (Photo by Riley N. Sims Ph.D. ’23)* --- *young students wear goggles for science demonstration — Students don fuzzy gloves to hold bubbles of carbon dioxide gas as part of a lesson on states of matter. (Photo by Riley N. Sims Ph.D. ’23)* **Topics:** [Campus & Community](https://today.umd.edu/tags/campus-community) **Tags:** [Child Development](https://today.umd.edu/topic/child-development) **Units:** [College of Education](https://today.umd.edu/topic/college-education)