10:00-11:00
Free time: When I came into preschool, Meghan was working on a puzzle with one another girl. I went over and joined them. While working on this, she started to tell me how she could count. She counted to up to thirty for me! We finished the bug puzzle and then moved on to a block activity. We had different colored squares and had to make different patterns out them. Meghan seemed to have a very good grasp of this. She appears to be a spatial learner. While doing this, we talked about the shapes that we were making. One of the patterns was the message "hi". She was able to read this to me and make the letters.
After this, Meghan went over to blocks. She worked with a group of students, building a road and playing with little cars. She stayed here for quite a while. She then went to snack, where she spent the rest of free time.
Circle time: We started out circle time with a song. We had rhythm sticks, which we used along with the music. Meghan did a good job of keeping with the rhythm of the song. I couldn't tell if she enjoyed it or not, since she was very quiet during this. She usually does a good job of following along whenever we sing or do actions during circle time. I'm not sure if she's musically inclined, but she can definitely handle it.
Friday, May 1, 2009
Meghan- April 23rd
Who: Meghan
Where: St. Norbert College Children's Center
When: April 23rd 9:00-10:00
circle time:
Meghan sat still and payed attention as usual. She raised her hand two or three times and answered Ms. Bonnie's questions.
free time: Meghan went over to the computer right away. She played here for ten minutes. Then, we went to the writing table. She wrote her first, last, and middle name for me. We took some of the preschoolers names and worked on writing those. Meghan did very well at this. Her fine motor skills are well advanced and she seems to have a good grasp of her letters. After this, she went over to snack. She stayed here for a while, talking with her friends. Then, Meghan went to the reading area. Three other girls were sitting there. Two were pretending to be the teachers and were "reading" the books to the other girl. Meghan joined them and sat on the floor, listening. She stayed here for the rest of the time. All of the girls seemed to be enjoying themselves quite a lot. Meghan was very attentive to the girl reading the book. She went along with the game and was very interested.
I can tell that she loves to be around her friends, just by looking at the centers that she chooses. She spends a lot of time at the blocks area, snack, or the writing table.
Where: St. Norbert College Children's Center
When: April 23rd 9:00-10:00
circle time:
Meghan sat still and payed attention as usual. She raised her hand two or three times and answered Ms. Bonnie's questions.
free time: Meghan went over to the computer right away. She played here for ten minutes. Then, we went to the writing table. She wrote her first, last, and middle name for me. We took some of the preschoolers names and worked on writing those. Meghan did very well at this. Her fine motor skills are well advanced and she seems to have a good grasp of her letters. After this, she went over to snack. She stayed here for a while, talking with her friends. Then, Meghan went to the reading area. Three other girls were sitting there. Two were pretending to be the teachers and were "reading" the books to the other girl. Meghan joined them and sat on the floor, listening. She stayed here for the rest of the time. All of the girls seemed to be enjoying themselves quite a lot. Meghan was very attentive to the girl reading the book. She went along with the game and was very interested.
I can tell that she loves to be around her friends, just by looking at the centers that she chooses. She spends a lot of time at the blocks area, snack, or the writing table.
Meghan- April 20th
Who: Meghan
Where: St. Norbert College Children's Center
When: 10:00-11:00
During circle time Meghan was her usual, attentive self. She was very quiet and well behaved.
Once circle time was over she went over to the art table. She worked on the activity for a while, talking to her friends. I had her sample using a scissors for me, to test her fine motor skills. She did very well at this. After this, she went to snack. She stayed here for a while. I asked her about her trip to Georgia and she told all about the things that she did. I noticed that she did a very good job at communicating. She described specific stories and events.
After staying at snack for a while Meghan went over to blocks. There were already three boys there, each working on a separate thing. Meghan came and got them all to join together. Then, they all worked together to build one big bridge and road. I could see Meghan talking to her classmates and cooperating with them.
Where: St. Norbert College Children's Center
When: 10:00-11:00
During circle time Meghan was her usual, attentive self. She was very quiet and well behaved.
Once circle time was over she went over to the art table. She worked on the activity for a while, talking to her friends. I had her sample using a scissors for me, to test her fine motor skills. She did very well at this. After this, she went to snack. She stayed here for a while. I asked her about her trip to Georgia and she told all about the things that she did. I noticed that she did a very good job at communicating. She described specific stories and events.
After staying at snack for a while Meghan went over to blocks. There were already three boys there, each working on a separate thing. Meghan came and got them all to join together. Then, they all worked together to build one big bridge and road. I could see Meghan talking to her classmates and cooperating with them.
Wednesday, April 22, 2009
Miles 4/20/09
Who: Miles
Where:Saint Joseph School, Inc.
Age: 4 years old
Gender: Male
Time: 3:00-5:00
Inside: Gym
Miles wanted to make a paper airplane in the gym. He knew the first few steps and did the folding on his own. I helped him with the last few steps. I put the paper where it should be and he folded it. I was talking to a few of the children and we were talking about middle names. Miles knew what his was and he told me. Then he flew the paper airplane. He pinched it with his two fingers and his thumb and always threw the airplane in the direction he wanted it to go. As he flew, he made alterations to the plane to change the way it flies. He added staples to it, and he also added some folds. A few boys tried to create challenges and wanted Miles to join. He acknowledged the boys but then continued to fly the airplane on his own. Eventually he took turns flying the airplane and chasing it with the boys. He talked extensively with another boy about both of their airplanes. They both built different versions. After a while, he drew on his airplane to decorate it. I would say he played on his own 90% of the time we were in the gym.
Inside: Snack
During snack we went around and told stories again. Miles told a story about fog and how he woke up and saw fog and it scared him (he said this was a pretend story). His story eventually turned into snapping turtles and alligators that went into the pool at the hotel he stayed at over spring break (he said this was a real story). A few children asked him questions about his story and he answered them with believable answers for both stories. He initiated this topic because he was the first to tell the story. When other students were telling stories, he asked questions. Sometimes he would interrupt and tell his own story. One student telling the story said he wanted to ask a question. I asked him if he wanted to ask a question or tell a story and the student said ask a question. Miles said the student was going to ask himself a question. The student then told a story and Miles said that was a story not a question. Even though we were telling stories in a circle, Miles argued with another boy about who was going to tell the story first.
Inside: Project
During the project, Miles was asked to sit out for a while. When he came back, he painted his maracas with many different colors.
Inside: Free Play
Where:Saint Joseph School, Inc.
Age: 4 years old
Gender: Male
Time: 3:00-5:00
Inside: Gym
Miles wanted to make a paper airplane in the gym. He knew the first few steps and did the folding on his own. I helped him with the last few steps. I put the paper where it should be and he folded it. I was talking to a few of the children and we were talking about middle names. Miles knew what his was and he told me. Then he flew the paper airplane. He pinched it with his two fingers and his thumb and always threw the airplane in the direction he wanted it to go. As he flew, he made alterations to the plane to change the way it flies. He added staples to it, and he also added some folds. A few boys tried to create challenges and wanted Miles to join. He acknowledged the boys but then continued to fly the airplane on his own. Eventually he took turns flying the airplane and chasing it with the boys. He talked extensively with another boy about both of their airplanes. They both built different versions. After a while, he drew on his airplane to decorate it. I would say he played on his own 90% of the time we were in the gym.
Inside: Snack
During snack we went around and told stories again. Miles told a story about fog and how he woke up and saw fog and it scared him (he said this was a pretend story). His story eventually turned into snapping turtles and alligators that went into the pool at the hotel he stayed at over spring break (he said this was a real story). A few children asked him questions about his story and he answered them with believable answers for both stories. He initiated this topic because he was the first to tell the story. When other students were telling stories, he asked questions. Sometimes he would interrupt and tell his own story. One student telling the story said he wanted to ask a question. I asked him if he wanted to ask a question or tell a story and the student said ask a question. Miles said the student was going to ask himself a question. The student then told a story and Miles said that was a story not a question. Even though we were telling stories in a circle, Miles argued with another boy about who was going to tell the story first.
Inside: Project
During the project, Miles was asked to sit out for a while. When he came back, he painted his maracas with many different colors.
Inside: Free Play
Tuesday, April 21, 2009
Who: Joey
Age: 5
Gender: Male
Where: SNC Children's Center
When: April 7 and April 10 (Inside), April 9 and 16 (Outside)
Circle Time:
Joey is usually a pretty good listener during circle time and large group activities. Sometimes, however, he is easily influenced by his peers and needs to move because he cannot help but talk to them. One thing with Joey that I have noticed is that he is very bright and has good questions, but if he can't ask them or talk when he wants to then he gets very upset, and that is when he begins to act out. I also noticed that Joey usually knows the answers to the questions that the teacher is asking, he just doesn't always share them. There have been several times where I have heard him say the answer under his breath, but he doesn't raise his hand. I often encourage him to raise his hand and share his answers with the class. Other times though Joey will just blurt the answer out and not show his teacher and peers proper respect.
Free Choice:
Joey is often quite the follower lately when it comes to free time. There is one child in particular that he is almost inseperable from. I noticed this a little bit last semester, but he was still content playing with me or other children, but it seems that this semester is has gotten worse and he almost refuses to go to an area without this other child. Joey is a big fan of the block area and is very good using them. He makes some very elaborate structures for a preschooler and he often surprises me. He also does a great job with patterning when using the blocks and can make his structures very symmetrical. I also noticed as I was observing that he is very aware of what blocks will balance where and when he uses the animals, he strategically places them on the blocks making sure that they aren't too heavy.
Joey is also very good when using the small manipulatives. He is able to make some very cool objects by connecting different small pieces into a much larger structure. I often see him making things and then his peers ask him to make them the same thing. He has a good understanding of which pieces will work together and he shows good hand eye coordination to be able to connect them and make them look like the final product that he is trying to create.
Outside Time:
Joey loves playing outside and running around with his friends! He often sticks to playing with the boys, but every once in a while they will chase some of the girls around the playground. He likes playing with the balls on the playground, sometimes this causes some rough behavior outside because they will tackle the person with the ball, trying to take it away from them. This at times needs to be broken up because it ends up being one child on the ground with about 4 other children piled up on top. He also enjoys racing around with the trucks on the playground. He likes to race other kids around the playground while each of them pushes a dump truck.
On top of using objects outside, he also uses his imagination to come up with games for him and his friends to play outside. They often play tag, or use the playground equiptment and some sort of large structure that only one person can be on and all the others want to get onto it. They also like to pretend that the woodchips are something else and that they can be stood on. They often laugh and me and tell me that it's not safe and I need to get to "safety." It amazes me how they can start something like that and it just takes off. It's like they can read eachother's minds because one child will come up with an idea and the others will just join in as though they came up with the idea themselves. I have noticed that Joey does tend to be a good leader when he isn't in one of his moods where he needs to follow the same child around. It seems to me that the others really enjoy Joey and he does a good child of using his imagination to create games for everyone.
Age: 5
Gender: Male
Where: SNC Children's Center
When: April 7 and April 10 (Inside), April 9 and 16 (Outside)
Circle Time:
Joey is usually a pretty good listener during circle time and large group activities. Sometimes, however, he is easily influenced by his peers and needs to move because he cannot help but talk to them. One thing with Joey that I have noticed is that he is very bright and has good questions, but if he can't ask them or talk when he wants to then he gets very upset, and that is when he begins to act out. I also noticed that Joey usually knows the answers to the questions that the teacher is asking, he just doesn't always share them. There have been several times where I have heard him say the answer under his breath, but he doesn't raise his hand. I often encourage him to raise his hand and share his answers with the class. Other times though Joey will just blurt the answer out and not show his teacher and peers proper respect.
Free Choice:
Joey is often quite the follower lately when it comes to free time. There is one child in particular that he is almost inseperable from. I noticed this a little bit last semester, but he was still content playing with me or other children, but it seems that this semester is has gotten worse and he almost refuses to go to an area without this other child. Joey is a big fan of the block area and is very good using them. He makes some very elaborate structures for a preschooler and he often surprises me. He also does a great job with patterning when using the blocks and can make his structures very symmetrical. I also noticed as I was observing that he is very aware of what blocks will balance where and when he uses the animals, he strategically places them on the blocks making sure that they aren't too heavy.
Joey is also very good when using the small manipulatives. He is able to make some very cool objects by connecting different small pieces into a much larger structure. I often see him making things and then his peers ask him to make them the same thing. He has a good understanding of which pieces will work together and he shows good hand eye coordination to be able to connect them and make them look like the final product that he is trying to create.
Outside Time:
Joey loves playing outside and running around with his friends! He often sticks to playing with the boys, but every once in a while they will chase some of the girls around the playground. He likes playing with the balls on the playground, sometimes this causes some rough behavior outside because they will tackle the person with the ball, trying to take it away from them. This at times needs to be broken up because it ends up being one child on the ground with about 4 other children piled up on top. He also enjoys racing around with the trucks on the playground. He likes to race other kids around the playground while each of them pushes a dump truck.
On top of using objects outside, he also uses his imagination to come up with games for him and his friends to play outside. They often play tag, or use the playground equiptment and some sort of large structure that only one person can be on and all the others want to get onto it. They also like to pretend that the woodchips are something else and that they can be stood on. They often laugh and me and tell me that it's not safe and I need to get to "safety." It amazes me how they can start something like that and it just takes off. It's like they can read eachother's minds because one child will come up with an idea and the others will just join in as though they came up with the idea themselves. I have noticed that Joey does tend to be a good leader when he isn't in one of his moods where he needs to follow the same child around. It seems to me that the others really enjoy Joey and he does a good child of using his imagination to create games for everyone.
Monday, April 20, 2009
Kavin
Who: Kavin
Date Observed: 4/20/09
Where:SNC Children's Center
Age: 4 years old
Gender: Male
Time: 1:00-3:00
Inside: Circle Time
It was very obvious that it was a rainy day today and the children had been stuck inside. During circle time, Kavin had a lot of difficulty knowing when it was his turn to talk and when it was time to listen to his friends or the teacher. He spoke out of turn a lot. He also had trouble sitting still. Although, whenever he did speak out, he had something important to say. He was always on task talking about the book, just was forgetting to raise his hand. Today we read the book ZOOM. It is actually quite an interesting book because it starts out really zoomed in on something and then as you turn the pages, you zoom out to see the bigger picture. They did an activity where the kids had the various pictures and had to put them in the correct order. Kavin was constantly helping his friends know when it was their turn. He could tell which picture came first and which one was a little more zoomed out. Kavin is a very observant child. He always notices even the smallest of details.
Inside: Free choice time
Kavin spent most of his time in the block area today. He was mainly playing by himself. He was creating different jumps with blocks that he would have some of the toy pigs jump off of. He also tested out the new sensory table. Since this week starts Earth week, the sensory table was full of dirt. Kavin would fill up some small pails with dirt, but he did not spend too much time there. I do not think he enjoyed getting dirty. Exactly why he did not participate in the art activity because the children were painting their hands and putting them on a picture of the Earth. When I asked if he wanted to make a dirt cup, his response was "ewww! I don't want that." I do not think he was able to realize that it was not real dirt.
Transition Time:
During transition time to go outside after preschool today, Kavin had trouble keeping his hands to himself. He did not like when other friends were touching him, but he was okay touching others. Today, we had a big reminder about keeping our body parts to ourselves.
Date Observed: 4/20/09
Where:SNC Children's Center
Age: 4 years old
Gender: Male
Time: 1:00-3:00
Inside: Circle Time
It was very obvious that it was a rainy day today and the children had been stuck inside. During circle time, Kavin had a lot of difficulty knowing when it was his turn to talk and when it was time to listen to his friends or the teacher. He spoke out of turn a lot. He also had trouble sitting still. Although, whenever he did speak out, he had something important to say. He was always on task talking about the book, just was forgetting to raise his hand. Today we read the book ZOOM. It is actually quite an interesting book because it starts out really zoomed in on something and then as you turn the pages, you zoom out to see the bigger picture. They did an activity where the kids had the various pictures and had to put them in the correct order. Kavin was constantly helping his friends know when it was their turn. He could tell which picture came first and which one was a little more zoomed out. Kavin is a very observant child. He always notices even the smallest of details.
Inside: Free choice time
Kavin spent most of his time in the block area today. He was mainly playing by himself. He was creating different jumps with blocks that he would have some of the toy pigs jump off of. He also tested out the new sensory table. Since this week starts Earth week, the sensory table was full of dirt. Kavin would fill up some small pails with dirt, but he did not spend too much time there. I do not think he enjoyed getting dirty. Exactly why he did not participate in the art activity because the children were painting their hands and putting them on a picture of the Earth. When I asked if he wanted to make a dirt cup, his response was "ewww! I don't want that." I do not think he was able to realize that it was not real dirt.
Transition Time:
During transition time to go outside after preschool today, Kavin had trouble keeping his hands to himself. He did not like when other friends were touching him, but he was okay touching others. Today, we had a big reminder about keeping our body parts to ourselves.
Thursday, April 16, 2009
Kavin
Who: Kavin
Date Observed: 4/16/09
Where:SNC Children's Center
Age: 4 years old
Gender: Male
Time: 1:30-5
Inside: Circle Time
Kavin did a great job sitting during circle time today. He was very attentive and was able to answer the questions that were asked. Kavin always provides thoughtful feedback and asks very intelligent questions. I can tell that his mind is always going. Kavin did a great job remembering the 4 stages of a butterfly (lifecycle). When we first sat down during circle time, he was being very social with a few other boys. Kavin is becoming much better at interacting with his peers.
Inside: Free choice time
It was a surprise to me that today Kavin did not opt to play on the computer by himself. Instead, he enjoyed playing in dramatic play with Nicklas. Kavin and Nicklas made the mail truck into their house but ended up being too rough with the toys that dramatic play was closed. Kavin's next idea was to play what they were playing in the block area. He is just so creative and can make a game out of practically anything. There was also a center with a multi-layered butterfly puzzle. Kavin loves doing puzzles and he is usually very dedicated to working on them until he finishes. Today he was not very into it. I think his frustration got the best of him.
Outside: playground
Kavin was very social on the playground today, interacting with mainly the boys. They were running around. At times the play did get a bit too rough. I ended up having to break up a fight between him and another boy in which he was on top of the boy and punching him. Kavin said the other boy punched him so that's why he did it. Kavin needs work on using his words to solve his problems, as do many children his age. He was racing the dump trucks around the equipment. Then, I started a game where the equipment was my castle and there were all these different animals or hot lava or something at the bottoms of all the exits. Kavin and a few other children took the game and let their imaginations run. They were jumping into snake pits and surviving when I sprayed them with my magical potion. It was really fun to see!
Date Observed: 4/16/09
Where:SNC Children's Center
Age: 4 years old
Gender: Male
Time: 1:30-5
Inside: Circle Time
Kavin did a great job sitting during circle time today. He was very attentive and was able to answer the questions that were asked. Kavin always provides thoughtful feedback and asks very intelligent questions. I can tell that his mind is always going. Kavin did a great job remembering the 4 stages of a butterfly (lifecycle). When we first sat down during circle time, he was being very social with a few other boys. Kavin is becoming much better at interacting with his peers.
Inside: Free choice time
It was a surprise to me that today Kavin did not opt to play on the computer by himself. Instead, he enjoyed playing in dramatic play with Nicklas. Kavin and Nicklas made the mail truck into their house but ended up being too rough with the toys that dramatic play was closed. Kavin's next idea was to play what they were playing in the block area. He is just so creative and can make a game out of practically anything. There was also a center with a multi-layered butterfly puzzle. Kavin loves doing puzzles and he is usually very dedicated to working on them until he finishes. Today he was not very into it. I think his frustration got the best of him.
Outside: playground
Kavin was very social on the playground today, interacting with mainly the boys. They were running around. At times the play did get a bit too rough. I ended up having to break up a fight between him and another boy in which he was on top of the boy and punching him. Kavin said the other boy punched him so that's why he did it. Kavin needs work on using his words to solve his problems, as do many children his age. He was racing the dump trucks around the equipment. Then, I started a game where the equipment was my castle and there were all these different animals or hot lava or something at the bottoms of all the exits. Kavin and a few other children took the game and let their imaginations run. They were jumping into snake pits and surviving when I sprayed them with my magical potion. It was really fun to see!
Wednesday, April 15, 2009
Megan
April 9th 2009
9:00-10:00
Circle time: Today was a crazy hair day so the preschoolers were very excited and full of energy. Megan was still very attentive to Ms. Bonnie however. She sat pretzel legged the entire time and was never talking to her neighbors or disruptive in any way. Bonnie read the class a book. When she asked the class questions about it afterward, Megan raised her hand and offered an answer. She was able to make a connection with the text, talking about how the characters were good friends to each other.
Free Time: At the beginning, Megan went right over to the computer. She played on this 10 minutes. Then, she went to the writing table. She immediately took a piece of paper and starting writing on her own. She wrote her first and last name, her mom and dad's names, and her phone number. All of this was without any assistance. Then, we looked for her address at the center. She used this and copied it down onto the piece of paper. There were only one or two times in which she asked me about a letter. For the most part, she worked completely on her own, reading it off to me. She stayed at the writing table past the required amount of time. Then, she went to snack. She stayed here for a while, talking to her friends and other teachers. Then, Megan went to the sensory table. She played here with three other girls. They were making conversation the entire time.
9:00-10:00
Circle time: Today was a crazy hair day so the preschoolers were very excited and full of energy. Megan was still very attentive to Ms. Bonnie however. She sat pretzel legged the entire time and was never talking to her neighbors or disruptive in any way. Bonnie read the class a book. When she asked the class questions about it afterward, Megan raised her hand and offered an answer. She was able to make a connection with the text, talking about how the characters were good friends to each other.
Free Time: At the beginning, Megan went right over to the computer. She played on this 10 minutes. Then, she went to the writing table. She immediately took a piece of paper and starting writing on her own. She wrote her first and last name, her mom and dad's names, and her phone number. All of this was without any assistance. Then, we looked for her address at the center. She used this and copied it down onto the piece of paper. There were only one or two times in which she asked me about a letter. For the most part, she worked completely on her own, reading it off to me. She stayed at the writing table past the required amount of time. Then, she went to snack. She stayed here for a while, talking to her friends and other teachers. Then, Megan went to the sensory table. She played here with three other girls. They were making conversation the entire time.
Megan
April 6, 2009
10:00-11:00
Free Time: Megan first went over to snack. She stayed here for a while and talked with her friends. Then, she asked me if I wanted to play Chutes and Ladders. We played this for around 8-10 minutes. She was a little confused about the direction of the board game and I had to help her count the spaces. I also explained the chutes and ladders concept. She was able to follow along with just a little assistance on my part. Another preschooler came and joined us, although he seemed to have more troubling understanding the game. After a while, someone else came over and said we should do a puzzle instead. Megan didn't like this idea, so she went over to dramatic play. She played here and then over at the sensory table for the rest of the hour.
Circle Time: Megan is very quiet and well behaved during circle time. Today was pretty typical behavior for her. She sat still the entire time and seemed to be paying attention. Bonnie read a book to the class and they talked about the author (who they are studying this week). Megan raised her hand a few times during the discussion.
10:00-11:00
Free Time: Megan first went over to snack. She stayed here for a while and talked with her friends. Then, she asked me if I wanted to play Chutes and Ladders. We played this for around 8-10 minutes. She was a little confused about the direction of the board game and I had to help her count the spaces. I also explained the chutes and ladders concept. She was able to follow along with just a little assistance on my part. Another preschooler came and joined us, although he seemed to have more troubling understanding the game. After a while, someone else came over and said we should do a puzzle instead. Megan didn't like this idea, so she went over to dramatic play. She played here and then over at the sensory table for the rest of the hour.
Circle Time: Megan is very quiet and well behaved during circle time. Today was pretty typical behavior for her. She sat still the entire time and seemed to be paying attention. Bonnie read a book to the class and they talked about the author (who they are studying this week). Megan raised her hand a few times during the discussion.
Tuesday, April 7, 2009
Kavin
Who: Kavin
Date Observed: 4/7/09
Where:SNC Children's Center
Age: 4 years old
Gender: Male
Time: 1:30-5
Inside: Circle Time
Kavin has improved immensely during circle time. He is able to sit for the entire time and actually does not get distracted away from the story. Kavin was great about raising his hand when he has a question. The book I read for opening circle was about flying cows and Kavin had a cute story to share about how he would ride on a flying cow if he saw one.
Inside: Free choice time
Kavin loves to play on the computer. The rule is that however many minutes you are on the computer, you must spend the same amount of time at the writing center. Kavin used to complain nonstop about going to the writing center. Now, he goes without complaint. Today was a day when he even stayed longer than he had to. Kavin enjoyed playing with K'nex today. He loves playing with toys such as that and configuring them in many different ways. He also created patterns on the overhead using colored chips. Kavin has a two color pattern down.
Outside: playground
Kavin is definitely not lacking with his gross motor skills. He is a very active child. I usually do not get much of a chance to see him on the playground so it was nice to watch him move and interact today. He was running around with a couple other boys kicking a ball around, and playing monkey in the middle. At times, he would pick it up and throw it. There was no lack of rough-housing. There were actually 2 times when I had to pull him and a few other boys off of each other. One time he was the one on the bottom crying, and the other time Joey was. Kavin was also very mobile, climbing up and down and all around the playground equipment. He went down the slide, but when that became boring, he decided to go down the slide head first.
Date Observed: 4/7/09
Where:SNC Children's Center
Age: 4 years old
Gender: Male
Time: 1:30-5
Inside: Circle Time
Kavin has improved immensely during circle time. He is able to sit for the entire time and actually does not get distracted away from the story. Kavin was great about raising his hand when he has a question. The book I read for opening circle was about flying cows and Kavin had a cute story to share about how he would ride on a flying cow if he saw one.
Inside: Free choice time
Kavin loves to play on the computer. The rule is that however many minutes you are on the computer, you must spend the same amount of time at the writing center. Kavin used to complain nonstop about going to the writing center. Now, he goes without complaint. Today was a day when he even stayed longer than he had to. Kavin enjoyed playing with K'nex today. He loves playing with toys such as that and configuring them in many different ways. He also created patterns on the overhead using colored chips. Kavin has a two color pattern down.
Outside: playground
Kavin is definitely not lacking with his gross motor skills. He is a very active child. I usually do not get much of a chance to see him on the playground so it was nice to watch him move and interact today. He was running around with a couple other boys kicking a ball around, and playing monkey in the middle. At times, he would pick it up and throw it. There was no lack of rough-housing. There were actually 2 times when I had to pull him and a few other boys off of each other. One time he was the one on the bottom crying, and the other time Joey was. Kavin was also very mobile, climbing up and down and all around the playground equipment. He went down the slide, but when that became boring, he decided to go down the slide head first.
Monday, April 6, 2009
Update on Kavin (last semester)
Kavin started the semester, last semester seeming to be a little behind his peers. He could not count past 7 and needed help spelling and writing his name. Kavin's handwriting has improved immensely. It is much less of a struggle to get him to go to the writing center. He is beginning to enjoy writing and creating words. I think that is because he is finally developmentally ready. He was always on target with his gross motor skills, he just struggled with fine motor skills. He has improved a lot but still struggles a bit. He continues to struggle with his social skills and using a "baby voice". He has become a much more vocal child. He is able to compare and contrast things and does a wonderful job answering questions and figuring out situations. When it comes to blocks, Kavin is a genius. He is so creative. He does not enjoy drawing or participating in art activities. I think that he has a fear of doing things wrong. He does a wonderful job with puzzles and creating different pictures. His counting and number skills have improved immensely. He can now count into the double digits. Kavin has developed immensely since the beginning of the year. It will be interesting to see how he changes throughout the next few weeks.
Miles 4/6/09
Who: Miles
Where:Saint Joseph School, Inc.
Age: 4 years old
Gender: Male
Time: 3:15-5:00
Outside Play:
As Miles put his jacket on, he was able to zip up his zipper all by himself. He even helped another child zip up his zipper. Outside, Miles threw a frisbee in a straight line and flat. He threw it directly to the child he was playing with. After, he kicked the snow on the snowhill for a while, and then he kicked ice chunks on the blacktop. Eventually he and a few other children found sticks. They used the sticks to write in the snowhill. Miles wrote an "H". Later he went over to a metal pole and hit the stick on there because it made a sound. He hit it a few times (in no particular rhythm). Another child hit the pole with a frisbee. Miles waited while this child hit the pole. When he was done, Miles hit the pole again with his stick.
Inside: Snack
Again Miles was able to open the hand sanitizer up and pump it on his hands, close it and stand in line. Before we said our Our Father in Signed English, Miles said it on his own. He knew almost every sign without help. We have been working on this for about three weeks. His signs were very accurate. At snack today, we told stories. Every child had a few chances to tell stories, either made up or real. Miles went last. At first he was very impatient and did not want to wait his turn. After a few children went he calmed down. When it was his turn, he mostly told stories similar to the ones he heard already. One was made up, and he was jumping off a cliff. I asked him some questions about his story and he was able to come up with accurate made up answers related to the scenario. The second story he told was real. It was about a movie he had a home that was scary. It was about a bad guy who wants to kiss a good girl. He talked about this movie after one of his friends told a story about a movie. When Miles wanted water, he took the pitcher and poured it on his own. He did not spill anything. After snack he cleaned up his garbage and threw it away on his own.
Inside: Project
Today we made maracas. The teacher had to show the children how to papier mache the balloons. Put the strips of paper in the mixture, pick it up, squeeze it off, and put it on the balloon. Miles was able to follow each step in order. He was able to squeeze off the extra mixture by placing the strip of paper between two fingers and pulling on one end.
Inside: Free Play
Miles wanted to look in his Spanish folder. As he did, he pulled out the papers, showed them to me and put them back in on his own. When he was looking at one of the papers, he started giggling because he colored a man's pants and shoes yellow. He said they were made out of mustard. During this time I asked him and another child if they could skip, and Miles could with no difficulty. We had a balloon that had popped, and Miles took a scissors and cut off the bottom of it to create a "basket".
Where:Saint Joseph School, Inc.
Age: 4 years old
Gender: Male
Time: 3:15-5:00
Outside Play:
As Miles put his jacket on, he was able to zip up his zipper all by himself. He even helped another child zip up his zipper. Outside, Miles threw a frisbee in a straight line and flat. He threw it directly to the child he was playing with. After, he kicked the snow on the snowhill for a while, and then he kicked ice chunks on the blacktop. Eventually he and a few other children found sticks. They used the sticks to write in the snowhill. Miles wrote an "H". Later he went over to a metal pole and hit the stick on there because it made a sound. He hit it a few times (in no particular rhythm). Another child hit the pole with a frisbee. Miles waited while this child hit the pole. When he was done, Miles hit the pole again with his stick.
Inside: Snack
Again Miles was able to open the hand sanitizer up and pump it on his hands, close it and stand in line. Before we said our Our Father in Signed English, Miles said it on his own. He knew almost every sign without help. We have been working on this for about three weeks. His signs were very accurate. At snack today, we told stories. Every child had a few chances to tell stories, either made up or real. Miles went last. At first he was very impatient and did not want to wait his turn. After a few children went he calmed down. When it was his turn, he mostly told stories similar to the ones he heard already. One was made up, and he was jumping off a cliff. I asked him some questions about his story and he was able to come up with accurate made up answers related to the scenario. The second story he told was real. It was about a movie he had a home that was scary. It was about a bad guy who wants to kiss a good girl. He talked about this movie after one of his friends told a story about a movie. When Miles wanted water, he took the pitcher and poured it on his own. He did not spill anything. After snack he cleaned up his garbage and threw it away on his own.
Inside: Project
Today we made maracas. The teacher had to show the children how to papier mache the balloons. Put the strips of paper in the mixture, pick it up, squeeze it off, and put it on the balloon. Miles was able to follow each step in order. He was able to squeeze off the extra mixture by placing the strip of paper between two fingers and pulling on one end.
Inside: Free Play
Miles wanted to look in his Spanish folder. As he did, he pulled out the papers, showed them to me and put them back in on his own. When he was looking at one of the papers, he started giggling because he colored a man's pants and shoes yellow. He said they were made out of mustard. During this time I asked him and another child if they could skip, and Miles could with no difficulty. We had a balloon that had popped, and Miles took a scissors and cut off the bottom of it to create a "basket".
Miles 4/3/09
Who: Miles
Where:Saint Joseph School, Inc.
Age: 4 years old
Gender: Male
Time: 3:00-5:00
Outside play:
Miles played in the snow for a while. He picked it up and threw it down on the ground to watch it break. He also chased another boy around for a while. He got into an argument with another child. He listened to the child and told the child his side of the story. Eventually they came to a compromise they could both agree on. After he got bored, I asked him and a few other children to do the hopscotch. As he did this, he was able to count the jumps he took but he could not count along with the numbers on the blacktop. Then I challenged the children to see how long they could balance on each foot. Miles had over 10 seconds on each foot.
Inside: Snack
Miles was able to open the hand sanitizer, use it, and put it back without teacher help or encouragement. During prayer, Miles followed along to the Our Father in Signed English. After snack he was able to pick up his garbage and throw it away without teacher encouragement. During snack a teacher read a book aloud. During the book, Miles was able to make inferences and state his observations, as well as ask questions relating to the story.
Inside: Project
The project was to make a cross out of popsicle sticks and glue, and then they could decorate the cross with markers, crayons, and provided sequins. Miles first put one popsicle stick down, and another going across to make a cross. Then he put one on the bottom sticking out to the left. When another child pointed out that was not a cross, he took it off. Then he put a huge glob of glue on his cross, picked up the sequins one by one, and stuck them on there.
Where:Saint Joseph School, Inc.
Age: 4 years old
Gender: Male
Time: 3:00-5:00
Outside play:
Miles played in the snow for a while. He picked it up and threw it down on the ground to watch it break. He also chased another boy around for a while. He got into an argument with another child. He listened to the child and told the child his side of the story. Eventually they came to a compromise they could both agree on. After he got bored, I asked him and a few other children to do the hopscotch. As he did this, he was able to count the jumps he took but he could not count along with the numbers on the blacktop. Then I challenged the children to see how long they could balance on each foot. Miles had over 10 seconds on each foot.
Inside: Snack
Miles was able to open the hand sanitizer, use it, and put it back without teacher help or encouragement. During prayer, Miles followed along to the Our Father in Signed English. After snack he was able to pick up his garbage and throw it away without teacher encouragement. During snack a teacher read a book aloud. During the book, Miles was able to make inferences and state his observations, as well as ask questions relating to the story.
Inside: Project
The project was to make a cross out of popsicle sticks and glue, and then they could decorate the cross with markers, crayons, and provided sequins. Miles first put one popsicle stick down, and another going across to make a cross. Then he put one on the bottom sticking out to the left. When another child pointed out that was not a cross, he took it off. Then he put a huge glob of glue on his cross, picked up the sequins one by one, and stuck them on there.
Tuesday, March 24, 2009
school play environment
Where: St. Nobert College Children's Center
When: Monday March 23rd 10:00-10:40
I observed the morning preschoolers during free time. I spent most of the time in the dramatic play area. This was constantly full with children. It was set up like a post office. There were girls stamping envelopes and addressing letters. One of them was writing down names from a list. She kept asking me to help her spell the names. The other girl was playing with a cash register and fake coins.
There was also a boy who was playing near mail car. He was loading packages into it and pretending to drive it around. He did this for most of the time. He would come over to me every few minutes, asking me to help me tie his shoes or fix the mailman outfit he was wearing. There was a girl playing with him, also loading packages. A few times they would accidentally bump each other in the car, which caused a few issues.
Eventually, one of the girls left the area and another child came in. He, too, put on the costumes and starting interacting with the other students. They spent a lot of time just stacking boxes and moving the envelopes around. They didn't have storylines developed, however, they all seemed very involved in their play. Other children asked if they could come in the area, but it was already full.
When: Monday March 23rd 10:00-10:40
I observed the morning preschoolers during free time. I spent most of the time in the dramatic play area. This was constantly full with children. It was set up like a post office. There were girls stamping envelopes and addressing letters. One of them was writing down names from a list. She kept asking me to help her spell the names. The other girl was playing with a cash register and fake coins.
There was also a boy who was playing near mail car. He was loading packages into it and pretending to drive it around. He did this for most of the time. He would come over to me every few minutes, asking me to help me tie his shoes or fix the mailman outfit he was wearing. There was a girl playing with him, also loading packages. A few times they would accidentally bump each other in the car, which caused a few issues.
Eventually, one of the girls left the area and another child came in. He, too, put on the costumes and starting interacting with the other students. They spent a lot of time just stacking boxes and moving the envelopes around. They didn't have storylines developed, however, they all seemed very involved in their play. Other children asked if they could come in the area, but it was already full.
Monday, March 23, 2009
Gym
Who: After School Program
Where: Saint Joseph School Gym
Ages: 4-8
Gender: 2 Female, 5 Male
Materials Provided: Various balls, children's own toys (stuffed animals)
Time Observed: 3:00-3:45
For the first 15 minutes, every child played alone:
One 4-year-old and one 5-year-old (both boys) played with footballs. The 4-year-old also played with his stuffed animal.
One 6-year-old and one 8-year-old (both girls) played with large rubber balls
One 4-year-old boy played with a basketball
One 4-year-old boy played with his stuffed animal
One 5-year-old boy played with a football but added various balls as he played.
Most activity was dribbling, kicking, bouncing balls off the wall, and shooting hoops.
After 15 minutes:
One 4-year-old boy tries to initiate play with another 4-year-old boy. (unsuccessful)
One 4-year-old played "football" (catch) with a teacher.
The orginal 4-year-old boys begin to play chase together
Two 5-year-old boys played catch with the football after 25 minutes
The two 4-year-old boys begin to play catch with the 4-year-old boy playing with the teacher
One of the boys switches to the football catch game with the 5-year-olds.
After 30 minutes:
The 6-year-old girl sits out
The 4-year-old boy goes back to the other 4-year-old boys and watches them play
The 6-year-old girl and a 4-year-old boy play with a ball. They throw it and measure the distance with their feet (because we didn't have a ruler in the gym).
The two 5-year-old boys play soccer: one is the goalie and the other kicks. After 10 minutes, they play a variety of games, including ball tag, make believe play, as well as creating challenges for each other
Where: Saint Joseph School Gym
Ages: 4-8
Gender: 2 Female, 5 Male
Materials Provided: Various balls, children's own toys (stuffed animals)
Time Observed: 3:00-3:45
For the first 15 minutes, every child played alone:
One 4-year-old and one 5-year-old (both boys) played with footballs. The 4-year-old also played with his stuffed animal.
One 6-year-old and one 8-year-old (both girls) played with large rubber balls
One 4-year-old boy played with a basketball
One 4-year-old boy played with his stuffed animal
One 5-year-old boy played with a football but added various balls as he played.
Most activity was dribbling, kicking, bouncing balls off the wall, and shooting hoops.
After 15 minutes:
One 4-year-old boy tries to initiate play with another 4-year-old boy. (unsuccessful)
One 4-year-old played "football" (catch) with a teacher.
The orginal 4-year-old boys begin to play chase together
Two 5-year-old boys played catch with the football after 25 minutes
The two 4-year-old boys begin to play catch with the 4-year-old boy playing with the teacher
One of the boys switches to the football catch game with the 5-year-olds.
After 30 minutes:
The 6-year-old girl sits out
The 4-year-old boy goes back to the other 4-year-old boys and watches them play
The 6-year-old girl and a 4-year-old boy play with a ball. They throw it and measure the distance with their feet (because we didn't have a ruler in the gym).
The two 5-year-old boys play soccer: one is the goalie and the other kicks. After 10 minutes, they play a variety of games, including ball tag, make believe play, as well as creating challenges for each other
Sunday, March 22, 2009
playground equipment
Where: McDonald's
Time: 7:00-8:00
I observed at the play area in McDonalds. There were only about 4-5 children there. When I first came they were running around through the tunnels. Two kids were in a plastic rocket ship, shaking back and forth loudly.
A boy was going down all the slides, one by one. The other kids eventually joined him and they went down the slides together, piling up at the bottom. Eventually, three of the children went to eat with their parents. The youngest boy kept getting distracted however, and would randomly run through one of the tunnels. The kids were shouting back and forth to each other a lot.
While they were eating there was only one little girl playing on the equipment. She was playing by herself while her dad talked on the phone. She climbed through the tunnels and went down the slides a few times.
Eventually the other children all left and it was just her. She asked her dad if they could leave, as well, but he told her to play more. After this, she started talking out loud and pretending that she had other people to play with. She seemed rather bored, but her dad didn't want to leave yet. When I left, she was still there, going down the slides.
Time: 7:00-8:00
I observed at the play area in McDonalds. There were only about 4-5 children there. When I first came they were running around through the tunnels. Two kids were in a plastic rocket ship, shaking back and forth loudly.
A boy was going down all the slides, one by one. The other kids eventually joined him and they went down the slides together, piling up at the bottom. Eventually, three of the children went to eat with their parents. The youngest boy kept getting distracted however, and would randomly run through one of the tunnels. The kids were shouting back and forth to each other a lot.
While they were eating there was only one little girl playing on the equipment. She was playing by herself while her dad talked on the phone. She climbed through the tunnels and went down the slides a few times.
Eventually the other children all left and it was just her. She asked her dad if they could leave, as well, but he told her to play more. After this, she started talking out loud and pretending that she had other people to play with. She seemed rather bored, but her dad didn't want to leave yet. When I left, she was still there, going down the slides.
Playground equipment
Where: Eden Prairie Mall- indoor play area
Ages: 2-9
Gender: mostly male, with a few female
Demographics: Caucasian, African American, Asian, Hispanic.
Time Observed: 5:10-5:30
Once again, I observed at the playground area in my mall. It was less crowded this time. At first, there were just a few boys and one or two girls. There was one little boy who was pushing his car toys up the slides, by himself. There was a boy and girl running around and playing in the tunnels. During one part, all the children disappeared in the structure. Two different dads got worried after a few minutes of this, and went to look for them. The children popped out of the tunnels and were fine though.
The brother and sister went over to a plastic, fake fire pit and started playing with it. They were pretending to be campers making chocolate over the fire.
The area eventually grew more crowded, as a group of moms appeared with their kids. Three girls went over the boat and jetski and started playing. They were pretending to race each other.
A number of boys also came and started climbing all over the various structures. One boy went and sat on the plastic ladybug, but he seemed confused as to what to do and soon got up. There was a little area that looked like a log platform. No one went over here, however.
One little boy, probably around 2 years old, occupied himself with going up and down a set of steps. He did this for about 5-8 minutes.
Later on, the girl and boy went over to the boat and pretended it was a rocket ship. They eventually left and another boy took over. He pretended to be rowing.
One little boy escaped from the play area, but his dad found him and brought him back.
Also, children again started running all over the couches. This appears to be a problem.
Ages: 2-9
Gender: mostly male, with a few female
Demographics: Caucasian, African American, Asian, Hispanic.
Time Observed: 5:10-5:30
Once again, I observed at the playground area in my mall. It was less crowded this time. At first, there were just a few boys and one or two girls. There was one little boy who was pushing his car toys up the slides, by himself. There was a boy and girl running around and playing in the tunnels. During one part, all the children disappeared in the structure. Two different dads got worried after a few minutes of this, and went to look for them. The children popped out of the tunnels and were fine though.
The brother and sister went over to a plastic, fake fire pit and started playing with it. They were pretending to be campers making chocolate over the fire.
The area eventually grew more crowded, as a group of moms appeared with their kids. Three girls went over the boat and jetski and started playing. They were pretending to race each other.
A number of boys also came and started climbing all over the various structures. One boy went and sat on the plastic ladybug, but he seemed confused as to what to do and soon got up. There was a little area that looked like a log platform. No one went over here, however.
One little boy, probably around 2 years old, occupied himself with going up and down a set of steps. He did this for about 5-8 minutes.
Later on, the girl and boy went over to the boat and pretended it was a rocket ship. They eventually left and another boy took over. He pretended to be rowing.
One little boy escaped from the play area, but his dad found him and brought him back.
Also, children again started running all over the couches. This appears to be a problem.
Playground equipment
Who:
Where: Eden Prairie Mall, Minnesota (indoor playground equipment
Ages: 2-8
Gender: female and male
Demographics: Caucasian, Indian, African American, Asian.
Time Observed: 2:30-3:00
I observed an indoor play area at my local shopping mall. For this afternoon it was quite crowded. There was a circle of couches surrounding a plastic playground structure. It was designed to resemble different climates. One side was warm, with fake flowers and logs. The other was supposed to be snowy. There were also little rides and games on the outside (you could play to play them) but I never saw any children go near them. The equipment consisted of a lot of tunnels, slides, and other structures to stand and climb on. There were children of a wide variety of ages integrating with one another.
The children frequently congregated ino the tunnels. The girls, in particular, liked to do this. Kids also liked to play hide and seek in the tunnels, or just pop out and suprise one another. The boys were running around the outer circle of the area, most of the time. They were either chasing each other, or sometimes just circling by themselves. There was a fake motorboat and jetski that had different children on it throughout most of the time. A group of girls were playing make believe while sitting on these, for at least twenty minutes or so. This particular area had children in it the entire time I was observing.
There were a few 1-2 year olds that were crawling around on the carpeted paths. The older children liked to climb on the top of the structures. The boys especially were jumping off of everything. The slides were also very popular with all of the children. There were a few plastic structures that resembled lady bugs (on the floor). These were the only equipment that I didn't see any children use at all.
I noticed some children falling, but for the most part everyone seemed safe. Most of the children had come in groups, however they all seemed to be mixing and playing with each other. Towards the end, a group of girls starting running around on the couchs. They stopped after their moms yelled at them. However, in a few minutes they were back at it. They liked to bounce on the couchs and seemed very excited about discovering this activity.
Where: Eden Prairie Mall, Minnesota (indoor playground equipment
Ages: 2-8
Gender: female and male
Demographics: Caucasian, Indian, African American, Asian.
Time Observed: 2:30-3:00
I observed an indoor play area at my local shopping mall. For this afternoon it was quite crowded. There was a circle of couches surrounding a plastic playground structure. It was designed to resemble different climates. One side was warm, with fake flowers and logs. The other was supposed to be snowy. There were also little rides and games on the outside (you could play to play them) but I never saw any children go near them. The equipment consisted of a lot of tunnels, slides, and other structures to stand and climb on. There were children of a wide variety of ages integrating with one another.
The children frequently congregated ino the tunnels. The girls, in particular, liked to do this. Kids also liked to play hide and seek in the tunnels, or just pop out and suprise one another. The boys were running around the outer circle of the area, most of the time. They were either chasing each other, or sometimes just circling by themselves. There was a fake motorboat and jetski that had different children on it throughout most of the time. A group of girls were playing make believe while sitting on these, for at least twenty minutes or so. This particular area had children in it the entire time I was observing.
There were a few 1-2 year olds that were crawling around on the carpeted paths. The older children liked to climb on the top of the structures. The boys especially were jumping off of everything. The slides were also very popular with all of the children. There were a few plastic structures that resembled lady bugs (on the floor). These were the only equipment that I didn't see any children use at all.
I noticed some children falling, but for the most part everyone seemed safe. Most of the children had come in groups, however they all seemed to be mixing and playing with each other. Towards the end, a group of girls starting running around on the couchs. They stopped after their moms yelled at them. However, in a few minutes they were back at it. They liked to bounce on the couchs and seemed very excited about discovering this activity.
Thursday, March 19, 2009
Who: After School Program
Where: Saint Joseph School Playground
Ages: 4-7
Gender: 2 Female, 7 Male
Demographics:
Materials Provided: Playground balls, chalk
Time Observed: 3:15-3:45
One 4-year-old boy and one 5-year-old girl played with the chalk almost the entire time. When they weren't playing with the chalk, they were either playing with a ball or doing cartwheels on the grass.
Three 4-year-old boys chased each other with a ball. They did this about 1/2 the time.
One 7-year-old boy and two 5-year-old boys played in the mud and grass for most of the time. Some of the other boys joined them randomly.
The three 4-year-old boys created a course to walk around on going all across the playground.
One 5-year-old boy laid down on the blacktop in the sun for nearly 10 minutes.
Where: Saint Joseph School Playground
Ages: 4-7
Gender: 2 Female, 7 Male
Demographics:
Materials Provided: Playground balls, chalk
Time Observed: 3:15-3:45
One 4-year-old boy and one 5-year-old girl played with the chalk almost the entire time. When they weren't playing with the chalk, they were either playing with a ball or doing cartwheels on the grass.
Three 4-year-old boys chased each other with a ball. They did this about 1/2 the time.
One 7-year-old boy and two 5-year-old boys played in the mud and grass for most of the time. Some of the other boys joined them randomly.
The three 4-year-old boys created a course to walk around on going all across the playground.
One 5-year-old boy laid down on the blacktop in the sun for nearly 10 minutes.
Tuesday, March 17, 2009
Who: After School Program
Where: Saint Joseph School Playground
Ages: 4-7
Gender: 2 Female, 7 Male
Demographics:
Materials Provided: Playground balls
Time Observed: 3:00-3:44
The children all enjoyed playing in the puddles and mud on the ground.
The older children played tag for a while.
A few 4-year-old boys played with the playground balls.
The 6-year-old boy played in the water on the playground the entire time.
A 7-year-old girl, and a 5-year-old boy and girl were doing somersaults and handstands for a long period of time.
A ball was played with almost the entire time by various children.
A group of 4-year-old boys played keep away with a ball for about 15 minutes.
Two 4-year-old boys created an adventure across the playground.
Where: Saint Joseph School Playground
Ages: 4-7
Gender: 2 Female, 7 Male
Demographics:
Materials Provided: Playground balls
Time Observed: 3:00-3:44
The children all enjoyed playing in the puddles and mud on the ground.
The older children played tag for a while.
A few 4-year-old boys played with the playground balls.
The 6-year-old boy played in the water on the playground the entire time.
A 7-year-old girl, and a 5-year-old boy and girl were doing somersaults and handstands for a long period of time.
A ball was played with almost the entire time by various children.
A group of 4-year-old boys played keep away with a ball for about 15 minutes.
Two 4-year-old boys created an adventure across the playground.
Friday, March 13, 2009
Informal Play
Observation Date: March 11, 2009
Observation Time: 6:30 - 8:30
Babysitting
Who: Ellie and Emma
Where: their home
Ages: Ellie (6) Emma (3)
Gender: 2 girls
Materials provided: Games,toys of all sorts, computer, TV, karaoke machine, dress up items, coloring items, paper
Play with the environment:
Ellie and Emma always play very well together. Ellie, being older, is always in charge, but Emma holds her own. I have always known them to be very creative with their play. Ellie will make up a game from anything that you give her. When I walked in, they were playing Guess Who. They quickly became bored with that. Ellie usually prefers to make up her own rules for games. They have rackets with suction cups on them so when you throw a ball it sticks to it. Ellie made up a game where her and I played and Emma was the score keeper.
Emma began playing with my purse and going through my wallet, wanting to play store and go shopping with my money. She always wants to play store or house and be the mom. Today she was pretending to read to me from a prayer book. She would mimic everything I think her teacher at preschool does. I thought that was hilarious.
We played with Mouse Trap but we did not follow the game rules. Ellie made up her own! Ellie and Emma both dressed up in silly outfits and put on shows for me. They love to sing and dance and make up silly songs.
I find that at times, without some direction, they aren't quite sure what to play. They want to know what we should play next.
Observation Time: 6:30 - 8:30
Babysitting
Who: Ellie and Emma
Where: their home
Ages: Ellie (6) Emma (3)
Gender: 2 girls
Materials provided: Games,toys of all sorts, computer, TV, karaoke machine, dress up items, coloring items, paper
Play with the environment:
Ellie and Emma always play very well together. Ellie, being older, is always in charge, but Emma holds her own. I have always known them to be very creative with their play. Ellie will make up a game from anything that you give her. When I walked in, they were playing Guess Who. They quickly became bored with that. Ellie usually prefers to make up her own rules for games. They have rackets with suction cups on them so when you throw a ball it sticks to it. Ellie made up a game where her and I played and Emma was the score keeper.
Emma began playing with my purse and going through my wallet, wanting to play store and go shopping with my money. She always wants to play store or house and be the mom. Today she was pretending to read to me from a prayer book. She would mimic everything I think her teacher at preschool does. I thought that was hilarious.
We played with Mouse Trap but we did not follow the game rules. Ellie made up her own! Ellie and Emma both dressed up in silly outfits and put on shows for me. They love to sing and dance and make up silly songs.
I find that at times, without some direction, they aren't quite sure what to play. They want to know what we should play next.
Wednesday, March 11, 2009
School Play Area
Observation Date: March 11, 2009
Observation Time: 1:45-2:45
Water Table Center
Time: 1:45 - 2:15
Who: Afternoon preschoolers
Where: SNC Children's Center
Ages: 4&5
Gender: 2 boys and 2 girls
Materials provided: water, bottoms of water bottles, toothpaste, toothbrushes
Play with the environment:
This group of preschoolers began by playing as they were shown. They flipped over the bottom of the bottles, grabbed a tooth brush and tooth paste and began to practice brushing teeth. After about 10 minutes of that, they started playing with the water. They would fill up cups and dump out the water like a water fall, get more tooth paste to make the water look soapy and put that in a bottle and cover it with another bottle and shake it all up. They were practicing pouring and mixing and even made some shakers out of the materials they had. They poured water back and forth between one another and even had boat races.
I have noticed that children always find creative things to do with the materials provided that is not what you had planned.
Block Area
Time: 2:15 - 2:45
Who: Afternoon preschoolers
Where: SNC Children's Center
Ages: 4&5
Gender: 3 boys
Materials provided: wooden blocks of all shapes and sizes
The boys began with the usual ideas of building a car, making tall structures and then after rolling the cylindrical blocks around they came up with the idea of bowling. They set up the skinnier cylindrical blocks like at a bowling alley, and moved to the other side of the block area to roll a larger one towards those blocks. Their goal was to knock them all down. They all took turns bowling and helping each other set up the pins. One of the boys even said lets him set up the pins so it goes faster. They experimented with arrangements of the blocks and even started stacking them and getting other blocks off the shelf.
I am always amazed how long the preschoolers can stay in the block area and come up with creative things to do. All they had was a variety of blocks and an open space and they could play for hours!
Observation Time: 1:45-2:45
Water Table Center
Time: 1:45 - 2:15
Who: Afternoon preschoolers
Where: SNC Children's Center
Ages: 4&5
Gender: 2 boys and 2 girls
Materials provided: water, bottoms of water bottles, toothpaste, toothbrushes
Play with the environment:
This group of preschoolers began by playing as they were shown. They flipped over the bottom of the bottles, grabbed a tooth brush and tooth paste and began to practice brushing teeth. After about 10 minutes of that, they started playing with the water. They would fill up cups and dump out the water like a water fall, get more tooth paste to make the water look soapy and put that in a bottle and cover it with another bottle and shake it all up. They were practicing pouring and mixing and even made some shakers out of the materials they had. They poured water back and forth between one another and even had boat races.
I have noticed that children always find creative things to do with the materials provided that is not what you had planned.
Block Area
Time: 2:15 - 2:45
Who: Afternoon preschoolers
Where: SNC Children's Center
Ages: 4&5
Gender: 3 boys
Materials provided: wooden blocks of all shapes and sizes
The boys began with the usual ideas of building a car, making tall structures and then after rolling the cylindrical blocks around they came up with the idea of bowling. They set up the skinnier cylindrical blocks like at a bowling alley, and moved to the other side of the block area to roll a larger one towards those blocks. Their goal was to knock them all down. They all took turns bowling and helping each other set up the pins. One of the boys even said lets him set up the pins so it goes faster. They experimented with arrangements of the blocks and even started stacking them and getting other blocks off the shelf.
I am always amazed how long the preschoolers can stay in the block area and come up with creative things to do. All they had was a variety of blocks and an open space and they could play for hours!
informal play environment
Who: After School Program
Where: Saint Joseph School Playground
Ages: 4-7
Gender: 2 Female, 7 Male
Demographics:
Materials Provided: Playground balls and frisbees
Time Observed: 3:10-3:40
At first, 7 of the children were playing on the snowhills. One 4-year-old and one 7-year-old played with the balls provided.
After 10 minutes:
-Two 5-year-old boys were the only ones playing with the slides on the snowhill.
-All balls and frisbees were abandoned
-Two 4-year-old boys were simply climbing the hills
-6-year-old boy was playing with snow in a puddle
-The rest were playing on the blacktop
After 20 minutes:
-The same 5-year-old boys were still playing with the slides
-The rest of the children joined the 6-year-old playing in the puddle. They were picking up chunks of snow and dropping it in the puddle. They would watch the snow melt and then repeat the activity.
Where: Saint Joseph School Playground
Ages: 4-7
Gender: 2 Female, 7 Male
Demographics:
Materials Provided: Playground balls and frisbees
Time Observed: 3:10-3:40
At first, 7 of the children were playing on the snowhills. One 4-year-old and one 7-year-old played with the balls provided.
After 10 minutes:
-Two 5-year-old boys were the only ones playing with the slides on the snowhill.
-All balls and frisbees were abandoned
-Two 4-year-old boys were simply climbing the hills
-6-year-old boy was playing with snow in a puddle
-The rest were playing on the blacktop
After 20 minutes:
-The same 5-year-old boys were still playing with the slides
-The rest of the children joined the 6-year-old playing in the puddle. They were picking up chunks of snow and dropping it in the puddle. They would watch the snow melt and then repeat the activity.
Tuesday, March 10, 2009
school play environment
I observed the morning preschoolers during their free time, as they played in the children's center. When I first got there the majority of the students were at the snack table. They were fairly quiet for the most part. They seemed to be concentrating on the snack, for the most part, which was carrots, crackers, and apple juice.
There were a few students at the art table painting. It wasn't anything themed today, just paint brushes and paper. I noticed that each student was doing something completely different with his/her drawing. One student sat down and didn't want to paint at all. They put the paint brush in his mouth, though, and then he started working!
The sensory table remained full the entire time. It was filled with water. There were cups and bottles floating in it and also toothpaste. The students had tooth brushes and were practicing brushing the bottles. This went along with their theme for the week.
There was also a table with a large toy mouth on it. There was always one or two students over looking at this. They were playing with it, moving the mouth up and down. This also went along with their theme.
There was a writing table with stencils, paper, pencils, white boards, and cards with names and adresses on them. There were a few boys and girls over at this table. Some were working on their writing with the help of the workers. Others were playing with manipulatives that happened to be sitting there. There was one boy, in particular, that I never actually saw writing. He was playing with the shapes, stacking them and creating stories about them.
Blocks was also open for the day. There were three boys over there. They had taken out all of the blocks and were using them. At first, they were pretending to play hockey with them. They were eventually told to stop. They then started building with the blocks. By the end, they had moved all of the blocks over to one side of the area. They were very reluctant when it came time to pick these up. We ended up having our closing circle time somewhere else, so that they could clean up after themselves.
There were a few students at the art table painting. It wasn't anything themed today, just paint brushes and paper. I noticed that each student was doing something completely different with his/her drawing. One student sat down and didn't want to paint at all. They put the paint brush in his mouth, though, and then he started working!
The sensory table remained full the entire time. It was filled with water. There were cups and bottles floating in it and also toothpaste. The students had tooth brushes and were practicing brushing the bottles. This went along with their theme for the week.
There was also a table with a large toy mouth on it. There was always one or two students over looking at this. They were playing with it, moving the mouth up and down. This also went along with their theme.
There was a writing table with stencils, paper, pencils, white boards, and cards with names and adresses on them. There were a few boys and girls over at this table. Some were working on their writing with the help of the workers. Others were playing with manipulatives that happened to be sitting there. There was one boy, in particular, that I never actually saw writing. He was playing with the shapes, stacking them and creating stories about them.
Blocks was also open for the day. There were three boys over there. They had taken out all of the blocks and were using them. At first, they were pretending to play hockey with them. They were eventually told to stop. They then started building with the blocks. By the end, they had moved all of the blocks over to one side of the area. They were very reluctant when it came time to pick these up. We ended up having our closing circle time somewhere else, so that they could clean up after themselves.
Tuesday, March 3, 2009
Informal Play Environment
Who: After School Program
Where: Saint Joseph School Gym
Ages: 4-6
Gender: 7 males 1 female
Demographics:
Materials Provided: Various balls (basketballs, volleyballs, footballs, soft balls), paper
After 5 minutes:
Two 4-year-olds playing with paper airplanes
5 children were playing with balls.
Mostly play in individuals and pairs using equipment provided
After 15 minutes:
Play shifted to creative play
Two 4-year-olds initiated a chase game with a 6-year old
Two 5-year-olds created a game with a ballwith a teacher with rules and expectations of behavior
-one 4-year-old tried to join in but did not follow the expectations (took the ball away from the game) and the children explained the rules
The 6-year-old pretended to have a car and talked to himself for a while. A few minutes later 2 boys (4-and 5-year-olds) came and joined him in a make believe car game.
-They walked around the gym
-6-year-old made up a song with a car in it.
Mostly group play using no equipment
Total play time: 30 minutes
Where: Saint Joseph School Gym
Ages: 4-6
Gender: 7 males 1 female
Demographics:
Materials Provided: Various balls (basketballs, volleyballs, footballs, soft balls), paper
After 5 minutes:
Two 4-year-olds playing with paper airplanes
5 children were playing with balls.
- 1 child was playing on his own (4-year-old)
- 2 children were playing in pairs (two 4-year-olds)
- 1 child was playing with a teacher (5-year old)
Mostly play in individuals and pairs using equipment provided
After 15 minutes:
Play shifted to creative play
Two 4-year-olds initiated a chase game with a 6-year old
Two 5-year-olds created a game with a ballwith a teacher with rules and expectations of behavior
-one 4-year-old tried to join in but did not follow the expectations (took the ball away from the game) and the children explained the rules
The 6-year-old pretended to have a car and talked to himself for a while. A few minutes later 2 boys (4-and 5-year-olds) came and joined him in a make believe car game.
-They walked around the gym
-6-year-old made up a song with a car in it.
Mostly group play using no equipment
Total play time: 30 minutes
Sunday, February 22, 2009
Non-Structured Play
Date: February 10, 2009
Today I watched as the afternoon preschoolers participated in non-structured play or centers. As always they had a ton of different options to choose from. What I find most interesting as I watch this type of play is how truly different and unique each of the children are. I find it fascinating how they can all take the same activity and each of them does something completely different with it. None of them really seem to get out a hand during this time either. They don't have a need to get out of control because everything they are doing is a choice. They pick where they play and for the most part what they do.
My favorite memory of this day was watching one of the kids play on the computer. He sat there for a while and was playing his own Diego game. After a while the kid on the other computer got up and left, leaving that same Diego game still running. The next time I looked he had one hand on each mouse and he was controlling both games. It was so funny to watch as his eyes went back and forth from both of the screens. When the next kid came up and wanted to play he willingly handed over the mouse and went back to his original game.
Today I watched as the afternoon preschoolers participated in non-structured play or centers. As always they had a ton of different options to choose from. What I find most interesting as I watch this type of play is how truly different and unique each of the children are. I find it fascinating how they can all take the same activity and each of them does something completely different with it. None of them really seem to get out a hand during this time either. They don't have a need to get out of control because everything they are doing is a choice. They pick where they play and for the most part what they do.
My favorite memory of this day was watching one of the kids play on the computer. He sat there for a while and was playing his own Diego game. After a while the kid on the other computer got up and left, leaving that same Diego game still running. The next time I looked he had one hand on each mouse and he was controlling both games. It was so funny to watch as his eyes went back and forth from both of the screens. When the next kid came up and wanted to play he willingly handed over the mouse and went back to his original game.
Structured Play
As I observed structured play in the afternoon preschool the other day, I realized that preschoolers change so much in a short period of time. I think that just since last semester a lot of them have matured a lot and are much better in these structured situations. Many people probably wouldn't consider circle time a play time, but I think it really is because if you sit through one, you will definitely see how much the children are really using their imaginations. Each day as we listen to stories I am amazed at the questions that these kids can come up with. They think of things so differently than adults do and it's really neat to see first hand. I think the children that really show this imagination are ones that are then able to take that into non-structured time or outside time and really let their imaginations soar. Some of the children that you really notice not focusing on the book or not being able to sit that long are the ones that are just doing what is told of them during centers and not going anywhere with it to show their own creativity. I think a lot can been seen about a child just based on structured play time.
Today (February 5) I observed "outdoor" play when I went to the gym with the students. There was a lot going on and a lot of things that I noticed. I think it's obvious that this split up based on gender. The boys play with the boys, while the girls play with the girls. Every once in a while though, they will come together and the girls with chase the boys or the boys will chase the girls. But it's as if they are on two separate teams and they can't actually be with the other gender.
The other thing I noticed is that even outside play seems more structured than when we were young kids. I don't know, but I feel like when we were younger outside play was more rough and tumble. I remember play "King of the Mountain" when there was snow and I remember the boys even sometimes sneaking in some "tackle football." I feel like nowadays we need to be so concerned with everyone's safety, which don't get me wrong is a good thing, that children aren't being able to fully release all of their energy.
The other thing I noticed is that even outside play seems more structured than when we were young kids. I don't know, but I feel like when we were younger outside play was more rough and tumble. I remember play "King of the Mountain" when there was snow and I remember the boys even sometimes sneaking in some "tackle football." I feel like nowadays we need to be so concerned with everyone's safety, which don't get me wrong is a good thing, that children aren't being able to fully release all of their energy.
Thursday, February 19, 2009
structured play time
Who: morning preschoolers
What: observation of children playing in a structured play time
Where: Children's Center on St. Norbert campus
Ages: 4 and 5
Gender: female and male
Demographics: all caucasian, mixture of low to middle SES
Today, I observed the morning preschoolers during their openening circle time. It took a little while for circle time to start, since Miss Bonnie was talking with preschoolers and helping them with check in. I waited on the carpet with a few of the children during this time. Some of the students were waiting very quietly. Some boys were singing to each other, while another kept getting up and changing spots.
While Miss Bonnie did finally come, she told them to quieten down and everyone did, right away. They talked about how they are going to a play tomorrow. Most of the preschoolers were participating in this discussion, since they seemed fairly excited about it. They had a lot of questions about it and kept wondering if they would have the same bus and bus driver as they did for the last field trip. There was one boy who was wearing a pair of bright orange shoes. He kept getting distracted by these and had to be told to pay attention. Once Miss Bonnie mentioned that she could take them away, however, he started to listen.
Then, they read the book The Rainbow Fish. Most of the students seemed to be paying attention, although there was one boy who had frequently had to be told to quieten down by one of the workers. The other students were listening and talking about the book. There were some comments that were very off topic, such as when one boy talked about going to Florida, but Miss Bonnie pointed this out, and they got back to the book.
After reading it, they talked about the moral of the story and how friends are supposed to share with one another. Some of the students raised their hands and talked about what toys they like to share. One boy talked about sharing his power rangers, which made all the other boys start talking about whether or not they had power rangers.
After this discussion, they reviewed the concept of odd and even numbers, which they had started earlier in the week. They counted dots on cut out mittens, saying whether or not they were odd or even. There was one little boy in particular, that knew the answers immedietly. Some other students were more quiet during the activity, particularly the girls.
Then, Miss Bonnie briefly went over the morning anouncements. When we introduced the art activity, all of the students started to get excited. They couldn't stop talking about it.
After this, circle time ended and the children went to the different centers.
What: observation of children playing in a structured play time
Where: Children's Center on St. Norbert campus
Ages: 4 and 5
Gender: female and male
Demographics: all caucasian, mixture of low to middle SES
Today, I observed the morning preschoolers during their openening circle time. It took a little while for circle time to start, since Miss Bonnie was talking with preschoolers and helping them with check in. I waited on the carpet with a few of the children during this time. Some of the students were waiting very quietly. Some boys were singing to each other, while another kept getting up and changing spots.
While Miss Bonnie did finally come, she told them to quieten down and everyone did, right away. They talked about how they are going to a play tomorrow. Most of the preschoolers were participating in this discussion, since they seemed fairly excited about it. They had a lot of questions about it and kept wondering if they would have the same bus and bus driver as they did for the last field trip. There was one boy who was wearing a pair of bright orange shoes. He kept getting distracted by these and had to be told to pay attention. Once Miss Bonnie mentioned that she could take them away, however, he started to listen.
Then, they read the book The Rainbow Fish. Most of the students seemed to be paying attention, although there was one boy who had frequently had to be told to quieten down by one of the workers. The other students were listening and talking about the book. There were some comments that were very off topic, such as when one boy talked about going to Florida, but Miss Bonnie pointed this out, and they got back to the book.
After reading it, they talked about the moral of the story and how friends are supposed to share with one another. Some of the students raised their hands and talked about what toys they like to share. One boy talked about sharing his power rangers, which made all the other boys start talking about whether or not they had power rangers.
After this discussion, they reviewed the concept of odd and even numbers, which they had started earlier in the week. They counted dots on cut out mittens, saying whether or not they were odd or even. There was one little boy in particular, that knew the answers immedietly. Some other students were more quiet during the activity, particularly the girls.
Then, Miss Bonnie briefly went over the morning anouncements. When we introduced the art activity, all of the students started to get excited. They couldn't stop talking about it.
After this, circle time ended and the children went to the different centers.
Monday, February 16, 2009
unstructured play time
Who: morning preschoolers
What: observation of children playing in a structured and non structured setting
Where: Children's Center on St. Norbert campus
Ages: 4 and 5
Gender: female and male
Demographics: all caucasian, mixture of low to middle SES
Today I observed the morning preschoolers during their unstructured set of free time.
When I first came in a lot of the students were over in snack with Miss. Bonnie. They were making french toast, which many were excited about, since they got to help flip it. Dramatic play was empty, which I don't usually see. There was one girl wandering around, aimlessly trying to decide what to do. There were a few others off on their own as well. One girl spent most of the time at the art table, painting with shaving cream, and another girl was playing alone with the fake snow. There were a few boys over the block area. They were all pretending to be police men and were driving their block vehicles around and arresting people. They had to be told a few times to quieten down, since they kept making loud siren noises. There was also a group of boy playing with manipulatives at one table. They were making ships and talking about going into battle.
As the time progressed some students did eventually go over into the dramatic play area. They started setting the table and putting on the outfits. A different set of students went over to the manipulatives this time two girls. They were making gymnasts and houses out of them.
There were also two girls on the computers. They stayed there for a while, then went to the writing table (which is a requirement), where they practiced writing all of the names. When it came time to clean up one of the girls wouldn't start until she could finish her writing.
The snack table stayed pretty crowded the entire period. There was also a table with puzzles, however these were never taken out.
What: observation of children playing in a structured and non structured setting
Where: Children's Center on St. Norbert campus
Ages: 4 and 5
Gender: female and male
Demographics: all caucasian, mixture of low to middle SES
Today I observed the morning preschoolers during their unstructured set of free time.
When I first came in a lot of the students were over in snack with Miss. Bonnie. They were making french toast, which many were excited about, since they got to help flip it. Dramatic play was empty, which I don't usually see. There was one girl wandering around, aimlessly trying to decide what to do. There were a few others off on their own as well. One girl spent most of the time at the art table, painting with shaving cream, and another girl was playing alone with the fake snow. There were a few boys over the block area. They were all pretending to be police men and were driving their block vehicles around and arresting people. They had to be told a few times to quieten down, since they kept making loud siren noises. There was also a group of boy playing with manipulatives at one table. They were making ships and talking about going into battle.
As the time progressed some students did eventually go over into the dramatic play area. They started setting the table and putting on the outfits. A different set of students went over to the manipulatives this time two girls. They were making gymnasts and houses out of them.
There were also two girls on the computers. They stayed there for a while, then went to the writing table (which is a requirement), where they practiced writing all of the names. When it came time to clean up one of the girls wouldn't start until she could finish her writing.
The snack table stayed pretty crowded the entire period. There was also a table with puzzles, however these were never taken out.
Wednesday, February 11, 2009
Observation of Play
February 10, 2009 3-3:30 PM
Who: childcare and preschool children
What: observation of play on a playground
Where: SNC children's center
Ages: 2.5-5
Gender:female and male
Demographics: mostly caucasian, one african american child
I was with Liz, yesterday, at the Preschool. We watched as they had went outside and played on the playground. It was interesting to see the various types of play and groupings that were going on. The younger children seemed to stick near each other. They would either cluster around the little play houses, or simply run around in circle. It was harder to sense exactly what they were doing. One boy, for example, simply closed his eyes and turned around in a circle most of the time. Some of the older children went off on their own. One girl spent most of the time sitting on a tree trunk, singing to herself. Every once in a while another child would join her, but it seemed as though she was content just to be by herself. A lot of the older students really wanted to interact with us. You could tell they wanted to include us in what they were doing. As Liz mentioned, there was one little boy who, at first, wouldn't let go of her. He was very attached and didn't want to go off on his own. I also had one little girl who kept running up to me with issues about her socks getting wet or her snow pants getting stuck. She kept asking me for help, even though I couldn't tell what she was always talking about.
Another thing I noticed was that there were some students that kept having to be reminded what they could or could not do. There were certain rules about going down the slides or avoiding certain areas. A few children had to be told this over and over again.
Also, towards the end one student tackled another. This had to be stopped and dealt with. Other than that, there weren't too many discipline issues, though.
Who: childcare and preschool children
What: observation of play on a playground
Where: SNC children's center
Ages: 2.5-5
Gender:female and male
Demographics: mostly caucasian, one african american child
I was with Liz, yesterday, at the Preschool. We watched as they had went outside and played on the playground. It was interesting to see the various types of play and groupings that were going on. The younger children seemed to stick near each other. They would either cluster around the little play houses, or simply run around in circle. It was harder to sense exactly what they were doing. One boy, for example, simply closed his eyes and turned around in a circle most of the time. Some of the older children went off on their own. One girl spent most of the time sitting on a tree trunk, singing to herself. Every once in a while another child would join her, but it seemed as though she was content just to be by herself. A lot of the older students really wanted to interact with us. You could tell they wanted to include us in what they were doing. As Liz mentioned, there was one little boy who, at first, wouldn't let go of her. He was very attached and didn't want to go off on his own. I also had one little girl who kept running up to me with issues about her socks getting wet or her snow pants getting stuck. She kept asking me for help, even though I couldn't tell what she was always talking about.
Another thing I noticed was that there were some students that kept having to be reminded what they could or could not do. There were certain rules about going down the slides or avoiding certain areas. A few children had to be told this over and over again.
Also, towards the end one student tackled another. This had to be stopped and dealt with. Other than that, there weren't too many discipline issues, though.
Tuesday, February 10, 2009
Observation of Play
February 10, 2009 3-3:30 PM
Who: childcare and preschool children
What: observation of play on a playground
Where: SNC children's center
Ages: 2.5-5
Gender:female and male
Demographics: mostly caucasian, one african american child
It was interesting to see how the large mix of ages play together. I noticed that the 2.5 year olds played by themselves. They did not mix with the older children. I think they felt more comfortable playing with children their own age and size. The 3,4, and 5 year olds all generally played together. Their is own girl who is almost 6, so older than all the rest and she seemed to keep to herself. When the middle ages played together many personalities shown through. It became obvious which children had very dominant personalities. During outside play the boys tended to get very physical and demonstrated more rough and tumble types of play.
One boy played into a discussion we had in class about children clinging to adults instead of interacting with their peers. As soon as we got outside, he clung to me and did not want to leave my side and play with any of the other children. It took him a bit to get used to the change of scenery, but he did warm up to his environment and start playing with some other boys his age. He tends to be a clinging child no matter what environment he is in. He loves to have an adult with him. I think the reason for this is that he is an only child and at home, he has his mom all to himself and is used to adults catering to his needs.
Who: childcare and preschool children
What: observation of play on a playground
Where: SNC children's center
Ages: 2.5-5
Gender:female and male
Demographics: mostly caucasian, one african american child
It was interesting to see how the large mix of ages play together. I noticed that the 2.5 year olds played by themselves. They did not mix with the older children. I think they felt more comfortable playing with children their own age and size. The 3,4, and 5 year olds all generally played together. Their is own girl who is almost 6, so older than all the rest and she seemed to keep to herself. When the middle ages played together many personalities shown through. It became obvious which children had very dominant personalities. During outside play the boys tended to get very physical and demonstrated more rough and tumble types of play.
One boy played into a discussion we had in class about children clinging to adults instead of interacting with their peers. As soon as we got outside, he clung to me and did not want to leave my side and play with any of the other children. It took him a bit to get used to the change of scenery, but he did warm up to his environment and start playing with some other boys his age. He tends to be a clinging child no matter what environment he is in. He loves to have an adult with him. I think the reason for this is that he is an only child and at home, he has his mom all to himself and is used to adults catering to his needs.
Monday, February 9, 2009
Observation of Play
February 9, 2008 from 1 to 3
Who:afternoon preschoolers
What:observation of play during structured and non structured time
Where:SNC Children's center
Ages:4 and 5
Gender:female and male
Demographics:all Caucasian, mix of lower and middle SES
Today the afternoon preschoolers were full of energy. I noticed that during the structured closing circle time, it was very hard for many of the preschoolers to sit still and hold their thoughts in their heads. They were very intrigued during opening circle time and loved watching a movie about trucks. They were fascinated by the different types of trucks and knew most of them on their own before they even watched the movie.
During free choice time, the preschoolers had many exciting things to choose from. Once again, the new boy had a lot of difficulty staying in one area for even a short period of time. He is such a busy body. I loved watching the children in the wood working area. They talked all about this area last semester, it is so neat to finally see it in action. I think that it is amazing that the preschoolers are able to see an every day object, like a VCR player, and take it apart. It always fascinates me to see how things like that work. That definitely helps the preschoolers with their motor skills and with their critical thinking. Another area that I loved watching them in was the science area where they had the gears out. They attached so many gears together it was awesome to see them all turn at the same time. For two of the boys, playing at this area together proved to be a little difficult. They are ones who always like to do things their own way. This was a time where they were able to practice working out their problems and taking turns, which are important skills for children to learn. This also brought a lot of questions about with how does it turn and why does that move and how does it work. All great questions to show that they are thinking.
Who:afternoon preschoolers
What:observation of play during structured and non structured time
Where:SNC Children's center
Ages:4 and 5
Gender:female and male
Demographics:all Caucasian, mix of lower and middle SES
Today the afternoon preschoolers were full of energy. I noticed that during the structured closing circle time, it was very hard for many of the preschoolers to sit still and hold their thoughts in their heads. They were very intrigued during opening circle time and loved watching a movie about trucks. They were fascinated by the different types of trucks and knew most of them on their own before they even watched the movie.
During free choice time, the preschoolers had many exciting things to choose from. Once again, the new boy had a lot of difficulty staying in one area for even a short period of time. He is such a busy body. I loved watching the children in the wood working area. They talked all about this area last semester, it is so neat to finally see it in action. I think that it is amazing that the preschoolers are able to see an every day object, like a VCR player, and take it apart. It always fascinates me to see how things like that work. That definitely helps the preschoolers with their motor skills and with their critical thinking. Another area that I loved watching them in was the science area where they had the gears out. They attached so many gears together it was awesome to see them all turn at the same time. For two of the boys, playing at this area together proved to be a little difficult. They are ones who always like to do things their own way. This was a time where they were able to practice working out their problems and taking turns, which are important skills for children to learn. This also brought a lot of questions about with how does it turn and why does that move and how does it work. All great questions to show that they are thinking.
Sunday, February 8, 2009
Observation of Play
February 6, 2009 from 1 to 3 PM
Who: afternoon preschoolers
What: observation of children playing in a structured and non structured setting
Where: SNC Children's Center
Ages: 4 and 5
Gender: female and male
Demographics: Caucasian, mixture of low to middle SES
This week, the afternoon preschoolers had a new child join the class. It has been interesting to see how he interacts with the other children and with his completely new environment. He has seemed very over stimulated to me. He is unable to play in one center for more than a few minutes because everything is just so new to him that he wants to do everything. I feel as though he has never been exposed to a structured environment and being in preschool is definitely an adjustment for him.
I love watching the children play in the dramatic play area. They come up with the greatest scenarios. They usually act like little adults in the dramatic play area because they are acting out what they see occur in the world around them. It was interesting to see a few of the children playing house and the way they grounded the other children. That must be the way they hear their parents talk. I also love watching them in the blocks section. The children make the greatest zoos and towers. The first thing that everyone does in the block area is stack the blocks, which is a sign of constructing and building their architectural skills.
Who: afternoon preschoolers
What: observation of children playing in a structured and non structured setting
Where: SNC Children's Center
Ages: 4 and 5
Gender: female and male
Demographics: Caucasian, mixture of low to middle SES
This week, the afternoon preschoolers had a new child join the class. It has been interesting to see how he interacts with the other children and with his completely new environment. He has seemed very over stimulated to me. He is unable to play in one center for more than a few minutes because everything is just so new to him that he wants to do everything. I feel as though he has never been exposed to a structured environment and being in preschool is definitely an adjustment for him.
I love watching the children play in the dramatic play area. They come up with the greatest scenarios. They usually act like little adults in the dramatic play area because they are acting out what they see occur in the world around them. It was interesting to see a few of the children playing house and the way they grounded the other children. That must be the way they hear their parents talk. I also love watching them in the blocks section. The children make the greatest zoos and towers. The first thing that everyone does in the block area is stack the blocks, which is a sign of constructing and building their architectural skills.
Thursday, February 5, 2009
Observation of Play
Today I observed children in the Children's Center during circle time as well as center time. There is a new student, so it was interesting to see how he acted compared to other students. The students who have been there a while are used to sitting and listening and know what the schedule is. The new student wanted to play, had difficulty sitting during circle time, and kept wanting to leave the room to play with a toy from the other room. However, I loved how he interacted with his environment. He was hesitant to play at certain centers but once he did he really enjoyed it. I noticed that some children played on their own, while some preferred to play with others. A student was working on a puzzle by himself so I went over and talked with him and he showed me how to put the puzzle together. He could pick up any piece in the puzzle and knew where it went. If he wasn't sure, he looked at the picture until he found the exact position. I observed the children during circle time when each child had the opportunity to write his or her phone number. The children sat and patiently waited for their turn. I was impressed, because the Kindergarten students in my Sophomore Block classroom would never have sat still that long.
On Monday I observed preschool students playing outside. They mostly played on snowhills. A few built a fort together. They went around looking for snowballs large enough to use for their fort. 2 students were looking for the snowballs while the friend put it together. I related this to Knowledge Under Construction because even though they weren't working with blocks, they were doing something very similar.
On Monday I observed preschool students playing outside. They mostly played on snowhills. A few built a fort together. They went around looking for snowballs large enough to use for their fort. 2 students were looking for the snowballs while the friend put it together. I related this to Knowledge Under Construction because even though they weren't working with blocks, they were doing something very similar.
Monday, February 2, 2009
Observation of Play
February 2, 2009 from from 1-3 PM
Who: afternoon preschoolers
What: observation of children playing in a structured and non structured setting
Where: Children's Center on St. Norbert campus
Ages: 4 and 5
Gender: female and male
Demographics: all caucasian, mixture of low to middle SES
I was able to observe the preschoolers in both the more structured setting of circle time, but also during their non-structured free choice time. During the structured setting of circle time, the children are less likely to creatively play because they realize that it is time to sit and pay attention. During free choice time you are truly able to see how they interact. It was interesting to see three of the girls playing with the animals in the block area. It started off with two girls, and they were not very happy to include the third. When the girls play, it usually seems to be more loving and kind. That is of course not always the case. There are definitely exceptions. When the boys are interacting, they are usually more physical and playful. There are many other times when most of the preschoolers play very independently. They like to do things on their own or with teachers.
Who: afternoon preschoolers
What: observation of children playing in a structured and non structured setting
Where: Children's Center on St. Norbert campus
Ages: 4 and 5
Gender: female and male
Demographics: all caucasian, mixture of low to middle SES
I was able to observe the preschoolers in both the more structured setting of circle time, but also during their non-structured free choice time. During the structured setting of circle time, the children are less likely to creatively play because they realize that it is time to sit and pay attention. During free choice time you are truly able to see how they interact. It was interesting to see three of the girls playing with the animals in the block area. It started off with two girls, and they were not very happy to include the third. When the girls play, it usually seems to be more loving and kind. That is of course not always the case. There are definitely exceptions. When the boys are interacting, they are usually more physical and playful. There are many other times when most of the preschoolers play very independently. They like to do things on their own or with teachers.
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