Early Childhood Classroom Observation

My observation was during outdoor play time at Child Development Center in Milpitas. There are 40 children ages from three to five and four staff when children. In the play yard has two playground equipment. The bigger play set has swings and climbing. Each staff cover and supervise different areas in the playground.

This paper contains observations of a preschool classroom in Bay Ridge, Brooklyn. The observation was conducted in a Pre-K classroom with approximately ten students present. Observations are presented with regard to dramatic play, the presence of gender roles, and themes that emerge during preschool play. Peer relationships and levels of friendship between students will also be discussed. Relationships with adults in the classroom with in terms of attachment styles and general interactions involving teachers and parents will be reviewed. Observations are also described in relation to self-control, self-regulation, aggression,

As a toddler teacher, I was interested in attending an ECFE class with children between the ages of 16 months and 24 months. Therefore, I contacted the STMA (St. Michael/Albertville) school district to set up an appointment for their Terrific Toddlers class. After getting a background clearance, I was contacted to set up a time to observe the Terrific Toddlers class. On October 24, 2017, I observed this ECFE class. The class goes from 8:30am to 10:00 am, and it was led by parent educator Ms. Liz. The class was a non-separating class, as the children are at the side of their parent(s) the entire time. I was particularly interested in attending a non-separating class because as a toddler teacher, I have never been in a classroom setting with both the child and parent(s) present. This ECFE class meets for eleven weeks every Tuesday; therefore, I observed their 5th session. In this class, the majority of the participates are stay at home mothers.

It was 9:45am on Tuesday, October 20th, 2015: The children were taking part in an art activity. On the piece of paper, each child had a drawn out bubble lettered number one. They were given each given four popsicle sticks and a small pile of glue. The teacher instructed them to use the paint brush to spread the glue out inside the number one and then place the popsicle sticks on top.

For each shelf, center, table, chair and anything that can hold a label, I would like to have it label with a little clip art picture on it. For the chairs around the eating tables, which are rectangular, I would like to have the children's name printed on them. That way the children know what is there chair and they see their name each time they want to sit on it. I believe that it is very important for children to associate the letters in the word with the actual object. Such as associating the letters S.I.N.K with the actual sink.

For my second practice observation, I watched an 18-month old boy, who I will be referring to as B. The setting takes place in a classroom where two other children are present, two teachers are there as well, and plus the observers. The room had a dramatic play center because it had a dress-up center and kitchen center. It also had a block center. I observed by watching a 5-minute video from 5:40-5:45 p.m. on January 27th, 2018. B played with a ramp, blocks, bottles, balls, etc. He played with a lot of toys in this short video.

In an early childhood setting, being observant gives professionals and family members a helpful portrait of the children in their care, and as future professionals it helps us see how intellectual, emotional, social, and physical development occurs in children. Observing, documenting, and assessing young children shows how they progress from one stage to the next or when there is a delay in progression. The reason we observe young children is that “there is so much that demands attention and response; at the same time, by building in systematic observation, teachers can improve their teaching, construct theory, assess children, assist families, and solve problems” (Gordon and Browne, p.180). It gives dynamic information about each child’s learning styles, interests, abilities, and needs. Observation helps teachers improve teaching by making them become more objective and self-aware of biases they may have. It encourages us to remember that early childhood development is highly individualized, so customizing activities to benefit each child will help them utilize their abilities to their fullest potentials, and through this we will be able to recognize what behaviors are typical of various age groups. The reason we document our observations is so that we can keep records and show proper evidence of each child’s individual growth and participation in classroom activities. With good documentation, family members will able to see the progression made by their child.

The child’s engagement in imaginative or fantasy play is typically of a preschooler’s functioning level. Preschoolers delight in fantasy and play and engage their newly found cognitive abilities to extend their world of make-believe (Timberlake & Culter, 2005). He appeared to delight in fantasy play with his action figure and was able to create sound effects to further expand upon the fantasy, suggesting his age and development is consistent with the expectations of a preschooler. According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) social and emotional developmental milestones for a four-year old child, the child under observation appears to be meeting established benchmarks as observed by the child’s enjoyment in participating in activities, creativity with make-believe play, preference to engage with another child rather than by himself, and cooperation with another children (Important Milestones: Your Child By Four Years, 2016).

I did my child care observation at The Children’s Center here in Asheboro. I observed a classroom that was made up of 2-3 year olds. The classroom was very spacious and was sectioned off into different centers where the children were able to play. The class had about 12 children and there were 2 teachers in there supervising and guiding the children. Thus showing that the class was in compliance with the teacher/ratio state rule. I actually talked to the director there and she said that they never reached the maximum group size that was allowed because she wanted every child to get the maximum attention and care that a teacher could provide the children with. I also did have the opportunity to talk to the teachers and find out more about them. Both teachers did have their credentials and one had her

For my practicum placement, I observed at P.S.8 The Isaac Varian School, which is a part of the New York City Public Schools district, located in the Bronx. The school is grades kindergarten through 5th, with inclusion classrooms with students with special needs. Some classrooms are special needs classrooms and other are inclusion classrooms. The classroom that I observed in was an inclusion classroom. There were two teachers in the classroom, with about 30 or so kids. The instructional mode of the teachers, was to have the students come to the meeting area in front of the room, and they would brainstorm what the lesson that they were learning would be about. Then they would teach the students the lesson, practice some problems together as

The early childhood site I observed at is Associated Students Inc Children’s Center. It is a site catered to preschool children. It is located in the city of Sacramento, the capital city of the United States and state of California. This particular community that surrounds the site is a suburban area. It is a culturally diverse area with ethnicity ranging from Caucasian, Latino, Asian American, African American, Pacific Islander and other multiracial ethnicities.

The observation began in the hallway, as Robert and his class was heading to the library to have their school pictures done. Robert was in line with his class as they were given instructions to stay in line and proceed to the library. As the teacher turned to walk with the class, Robert was in the mid back of the line and he proceeded to run and maneuver his way to the mid front of the line. He was pushing students to get to the front of the line.

8:35-9:30 As I walk into the classroom the breakfast table is set-up for breakfast. Children put their things away outside the classroom in their cubbies and then Andre comes to the door and lets the children into the classroom. Andre is at his desk during breakfast time and Annette is sitting and talking with the children. Andrea leaves the classroom. Annette stays at the table with the children and they begin to talk about Christmas and what they want! How many presents they have under the tree. Andre returns to the classroom and goes back to his desk to take attendance. As soon as the children finish breakfast they clean up their area and go to the book area and read a book. Annette cleans the table and puts things away. A couple of the boys find popup tents and

In the preschool, snacks for the children are provided 'buffet style' in an open kitchen area furnished with two connecting child-size picnic tables. Snacks and juice are accessible to the children in this area for a 45-minute period followed by free play time. Children are free to sit with one another as they please.

While in my clinical I have been observing a preschool classroom at Starlight. During my observation, I have witnessed some strengths, areas of improvement and some things that I would change if I were the head teacher.