Enrolling in a course or attending workshops help in keeping an educator's teaching/learning style effective and updated to the changing times.
My recent school assignment required me to come up with programming centering on promoting physical activities in children. It should be a succession of the same activity in three days showing how educators manifest responsiveness to children's needs. Not only did I respond to the children's cues, but I also extended their interest thus, leading to more developmental opportunities.
There is one best way of doing learning stories/documentation, however, in this activity, we were given a specific format to follow. Educators can use this style.
My recent school assignment required me to come up with programming centering on promoting physical activities in children. It should be a succession of the same activity in three days showing how educators manifest responsiveness to children's needs. Not only did I respond to the children's cues, but I also extended their interest thus, leading to more developmental opportunities.
There is one best way of doing learning stories/documentation, however, in this activity, we were given a specific format to follow. Educators can use this style.
Day 1
Name of experience: Practice Climbing and Sliding Down Safely
Date of implementation: September 7, 2016
Age of Children: One 22 months old boy; One 19 months old girl
Rationale (How does this experience reflect the needs and interests of the children?):
The most recent time that we were at the park, E. (girl) slid over and out of the slide while coming down. I positioned myself close to the structure to watch her slide down and was quick to catch her from falling. When I informed her mother about it, she mentioned that it happened to E., too, while she was with her at a park. This is why she takes her shoes off when sliding down so she could use her bare feet to somehow drag her weight and not come down too swiftly. However, this would not be possible to do when the weather gets colder. To help E. gain appropriate physical skills, we schedule outdoor activities in the park (playground).
Objectives (What will the children learn? What skills will they develop?):
Development of skills are interconnected. While children are learning one task, they touch other domains of development, as well.
In this particular activity, children will develop their physical skills: eye-and-body coordination; balance; and the use of their large muscles (gross motor). While the activity is intended for E., A. (boy) will definitely gain the same objectives.
Along with it, the children will also develop cognitive skills: through modeling, E. can observe A. as he climbs up the stairs and come down the slide skillfully and hopefully, imitate the same way; memory recall; and language acquisition (widen vocabulary like climb, slide, up, down, and verbalize the words). They will develop socio-emotional skills: learn about space; roles (leader and follower); take turns; take risks; and develop self-concept and confidence by feeling a sense of accomplishment for having done the task successfully.
Materials needed:
We need to go a playground with climbing and slide structures. We need to wear proper attire depending on weather. We also need to bring snacks and drinking water should we linger in the park.
Procedure (Advanced preparation, potential open-ended questions):
I should allot a time when the children are in their best mood to play outdoors. They usually possess the most energy after waking up from their noontime naps.
I can ask questions like: “Where do we climb?” “Where do we come down?” These questions are significant and appropriate because children copy what they observe form other older children who have become more adventurous by doing the opposite actions. It is important that they learn what is the regular way of doing things. Also, at this developmental stage, their bodies are not that ready to perform more challenging tasks: climb up on slides rather than the stairs. This can be a potential fall hazard for the little ones.
Observations (Individuals and groups of children):
I let E. watch A. climbed up the stairs. A. sat up on the top of the slide, held on the sides, and proceeded to slide down. He used his feet to touch the sides of the slide to slow down his pace coming down. E. and I cheered when he reached the bottom. I said, “Your turn, E.”
E. climbed up the stairs. I said to A. that we wait for E. to get down before he takes another turn. When E. reached the top, she grabbed on the bar and swung on it. Then, she sat down. I asked her to hold on to the sides. She did. But as she was coming down, she let go of the sides. I was waiting at the bottom to catch her, if needed. She used her right foot to slow down her pace.
A. excitedly took his turn after. At the top of the slide, he copied E. – he grasped the bar and swung on it. He came down after.
Evaluation (Children's learning, adult role, changes and extensions):
Modeling is one of the potent ways that children use to acquire a new skill or enhance it more. This was evident in the two children.
I was hoping that E. would learn how to hold on to the sides of the slide while coming down just as A. would do. Children have their own set of adaptive skills – she used her leg to slow her pace down.
I was surprised to see that E. was not the only one who learned from this activity. It was A.’s first time to swing on the slide bar after having seen her do it.
Date of implementation: September 7, 2016
Age of Children: One 22 months old boy; One 19 months old girl
Rationale (How does this experience reflect the needs and interests of the children?):
The most recent time that we were at the park, E. (girl) slid over and out of the slide while coming down. I positioned myself close to the structure to watch her slide down and was quick to catch her from falling. When I informed her mother about it, she mentioned that it happened to E., too, while she was with her at a park. This is why she takes her shoes off when sliding down so she could use her bare feet to somehow drag her weight and not come down too swiftly. However, this would not be possible to do when the weather gets colder. To help E. gain appropriate physical skills, we schedule outdoor activities in the park (playground).
Objectives (What will the children learn? What skills will they develop?):
Development of skills are interconnected. While children are learning one task, they touch other domains of development, as well.
In this particular activity, children will develop their physical skills: eye-and-body coordination; balance; and the use of their large muscles (gross motor). While the activity is intended for E., A. (boy) will definitely gain the same objectives.
Along with it, the children will also develop cognitive skills: through modeling, E. can observe A. as he climbs up the stairs and come down the slide skillfully and hopefully, imitate the same way; memory recall; and language acquisition (widen vocabulary like climb, slide, up, down, and verbalize the words). They will develop socio-emotional skills: learn about space; roles (leader and follower); take turns; take risks; and develop self-concept and confidence by feeling a sense of accomplishment for having done the task successfully.
Materials needed:
We need to go a playground with climbing and slide structures. We need to wear proper attire depending on weather. We also need to bring snacks and drinking water should we linger in the park.
Procedure (Advanced preparation, potential open-ended questions):
I should allot a time when the children are in their best mood to play outdoors. They usually possess the most energy after waking up from their noontime naps.
I can ask questions like: “Where do we climb?” “Where do we come down?” These questions are significant and appropriate because children copy what they observe form other older children who have become more adventurous by doing the opposite actions. It is important that they learn what is the regular way of doing things. Also, at this developmental stage, their bodies are not that ready to perform more challenging tasks: climb up on slides rather than the stairs. This can be a potential fall hazard for the little ones.
Observations (Individuals and groups of children):
I let E. watch A. climbed up the stairs. A. sat up on the top of the slide, held on the sides, and proceeded to slide down. He used his feet to touch the sides of the slide to slow down his pace coming down. E. and I cheered when he reached the bottom. I said, “Your turn, E.”
E. climbed up the stairs. I said to A. that we wait for E. to get down before he takes another turn. When E. reached the top, she grabbed on the bar and swung on it. Then, she sat down. I asked her to hold on to the sides. She did. But as she was coming down, she let go of the sides. I was waiting at the bottom to catch her, if needed. She used her right foot to slow down her pace.
A. excitedly took his turn after. At the top of the slide, he copied E. – he grasped the bar and swung on it. He came down after.
Evaluation (Children's learning, adult role, changes and extensions):
Modeling is one of the potent ways that children use to acquire a new skill or enhance it more. This was evident in the two children.
I was hoping that E. would learn how to hold on to the sides of the slide while coming down just as A. would do. Children have their own set of adaptive skills – she used her leg to slow her pace down.
I was surprised to see that E. was not the only one who learned from this activity. It was A.’s first time to swing on the slide bar after having seen her do it.
Day 2
Name of experience: Practice Climbing and Sliding Down
Date of implementation: September 8, 2016
Age of Children: One 22 months old boy; One 19 months old girl
Rationale (How does this experience reflect the needs and interests of the children?):
Yesterday, at the park, the two children learned new ways of playing at the playground slide. E. learned how to use her foot/leg to slow her pace coming down. A. learned how to grab on the bar at the top of the slide. Today, we would be working on their practice skills. With consistency, they can master new acquired skills.
Objectives (What will the children learn? What skills will they develop?):
Development of skills are interconnected. While children are learning one task, they touch other domains of development, as well.
In this particular activity, children will develop their physical skills: eye-and-body coordination; balance; and the use of their large muscles (gross motor).
Along with it, the children will also develop cognitive skills: through modeling; memory recall; and language acquisition (widen vocabulary like climb, slide, up, down, and verbalize the words). They will develop socio-emotional skills: learn about space; roles (leader and follower); take turns; take risks; and develop self-concept and confidence by feeling a sense of accomplishment for having done the task successfully.
Materials needed:
We need to go a playground with climbing and slide structures. We need to wear proper attire depending on weather. We also need to bring snacks and drinking water should we linger in the park.
Procedure (Advanced preparation, potential open-ended questions):
We will be going to the park around the same time that we did yesterday. This will help in the children’s transition because they know what to expect in the succeeding activities.
I will ask the same questions: “Where do we climb?” “Where do we come down?” These questions are significant and appropriate because children copy what they observe form other older children who have become more adventurous by doing the opposite actions. It is important that they learn what is the regular way of doing things. Also, at this developmental stage, their bodies are not that ready to perform more challenging tasks: climb up on slides rather than the stairs. This can be a potential fall hazard for the little ones.
Observations (Individuals and groups of children):
I let the two children run to the playground once we reached the park. Both ran excitedly. They both made it without tripping. A. swiftly stepped down from the curb leading to the playground. E. stopped and slowly made her step down. She followed A. to the horses. A. hopped on to the horse by himself. E. looked around for me and said, “Alx,” while pointing to A. She giggled. She went to where the slide was. She went up. Just as she reached the top, I went over to the side of the slide. She swung on the bar, sat, and slid down. She did not hold onto the sides and used her foot again to slow her pace down.
When she reached the bottom, she walked under the structure, stopped, and picked up something. She came up to me and said, “Rock!” (The playground uses bark chips). A. was on his way to our direction, he saw the rock and tried to grab it away from E. E. held on to it. I told A., “Why don’t we look for another rock for you, A.?” I started walking and they both followed me. When I found one, I called A.’s attention and said, “Oh, look what we have here.” He came closer to me and tried to look for something. We waited for a few moments, then, he spotted a rock. He picked it up and said, “Ruh.”
The two children held on to their rocks and continued playing. When E.’s mother came to the park to pick her up, she showed her the rock. (I requested her to come to the park to meet with us because the children were still enjoying their time.) E.’s mother mentioned that her child has been collecting rocks and already has a little bag filled with her rock collection.
Date of implementation: September 8, 2016
Age of Children: One 22 months old boy; One 19 months old girl
Rationale (How does this experience reflect the needs and interests of the children?):
Yesterday, at the park, the two children learned new ways of playing at the playground slide. E. learned how to use her foot/leg to slow her pace coming down. A. learned how to grab on the bar at the top of the slide. Today, we would be working on their practice skills. With consistency, they can master new acquired skills.
Objectives (What will the children learn? What skills will they develop?):
Development of skills are interconnected. While children are learning one task, they touch other domains of development, as well.
In this particular activity, children will develop their physical skills: eye-and-body coordination; balance; and the use of their large muscles (gross motor).
Along with it, the children will also develop cognitive skills: through modeling; memory recall; and language acquisition (widen vocabulary like climb, slide, up, down, and verbalize the words). They will develop socio-emotional skills: learn about space; roles (leader and follower); take turns; take risks; and develop self-concept and confidence by feeling a sense of accomplishment for having done the task successfully.
Materials needed:
We need to go a playground with climbing and slide structures. We need to wear proper attire depending on weather. We also need to bring snacks and drinking water should we linger in the park.
Procedure (Advanced preparation, potential open-ended questions):
We will be going to the park around the same time that we did yesterday. This will help in the children’s transition because they know what to expect in the succeeding activities.
I will ask the same questions: “Where do we climb?” “Where do we come down?” These questions are significant and appropriate because children copy what they observe form other older children who have become more adventurous by doing the opposite actions. It is important that they learn what is the regular way of doing things. Also, at this developmental stage, their bodies are not that ready to perform more challenging tasks: climb up on slides rather than the stairs. This can be a potential fall hazard for the little ones.
Observations (Individuals and groups of children):
I let the two children run to the playground once we reached the park. Both ran excitedly. They both made it without tripping. A. swiftly stepped down from the curb leading to the playground. E. stopped and slowly made her step down. She followed A. to the horses. A. hopped on to the horse by himself. E. looked around for me and said, “Alx,” while pointing to A. She giggled. She went to where the slide was. She went up. Just as she reached the top, I went over to the side of the slide. She swung on the bar, sat, and slid down. She did not hold onto the sides and used her foot again to slow her pace down.
When she reached the bottom, she walked under the structure, stopped, and picked up something. She came up to me and said, “Rock!” (The playground uses bark chips). A. was on his way to our direction, he saw the rock and tried to grab it away from E. E. held on to it. I told A., “Why don’t we look for another rock for you, A.?” I started walking and they both followed me. When I found one, I called A.’s attention and said, “Oh, look what we have here.” He came closer to me and tried to look for something. We waited for a few moments, then, he spotted a rock. He picked it up and said, “Ruh.”
The two children held on to their rocks and continued playing. When E.’s mother came to the park to pick her up, she showed her the rock. (I requested her to come to the park to meet with us because the children were still enjoying their time.) E.’s mother mentioned that her child has been collecting rocks and already has a little bag filled with her rock collection.
Evaluation (Children's learning, adult role, changes and extensions):
The two children were able to recall their learning from the past day. It was like they took off from where they left off. This time around, it seemed natural for them, sort of already had become a routine, how they went about playing at the climbing/sliding structure.
I was able to support A.’s emotional development when I allowed him to find the rock by himself. Children foster their sense of self when they make new discoveries. They see themselves as capable individuals who continue to be motivated to learn and engage in new experiences.
The two children were able to recall their learning from the past day. It was like they took off from where they left off. This time around, it seemed natural for them, sort of already had become a routine, how they went about playing at the climbing/sliding structure.
I was able to support A.’s emotional development when I allowed him to find the rock by himself. Children foster their sense of self when they make new discoveries. They see themselves as capable individuals who continue to be motivated to learn and engage in new experiences.
Day 3
Name of experience: Practice Climbing and Sliding Down
Date of implementation: September 9, 2016
Age of Children: One 22 months old boy; One 19 months old girl; One 9 years old girl
Rationale (How does this experience reflect the needs and interests of the children?):
While we were practising the children’s physical skills, a spontaneous activity emerged – exploring the surroundings where the children found rocks in the park. We can continue working on developing their physical skills and, at the same time, leverage on their interests in exploring the park and looking for more rocks.
Objectives (What will the children learn? What skills will they develop?):
Development of skills are interconnected. While children are learning one task, they touch other domains of development, as well.
In this particular activity, children will develop their physical skills: eye-and-body coordination; balance; and the use of their large muscles (gross motor).
Along with it, the children will also develop cognitive skills: through modeling; memory recall; and language acquisition (widen vocabulary and verbalize the words). They will develop socio-emotional skills: learn about space; roles (leader and follower); take turns; take risks; and develop self-concept and confidence by feeling a sense of accomplishment for having done the task successfully and making new discoveries.
Materials needed:
We need to go a playground with climbing and slide structures. We need to wear proper attire depending on weather. We also need to bring snacks and drinking water should we linger in the park.
Procedure (Advanced preparation, potential open-ended questions):
We will be going to the park around the same time that we did yesterday. This will help in the children’s transition because they know what to expect in the succeeding activities.
I will ask the same questions: “Where do we climb?” “Where do we come down?” These questions are significant and appropriate because children copy what they observe form other older children who have become more adventurous by doing the opposite actions. It is important that they learn what is the regular way of doing things. Also, at this developmental stage, their bodies are not that ready to perform more challenging tasks: climb up on slides rather than the stairs. This can be a potential fall hazard for the little ones.
I will also extend our spontaneous activity by making statements like, “Let’s see if we can find more rocks in the park.” I will also ask, “What else can we find in the park?”
Observations (Individuals and groups of children):
Today, L. joined us after she came home from school. I took the small children out of the wagon to begin walking to the playground. L. called them to run with her.
L. proceeded to the monkey bars and swung her way from one end to the other. A. watched her and climbed to where the monkey bars were. A. lifted his hands and tried to reach the bars. I carried him and let him touch the bar. He hanged on. He let go after a few seconds. “Yes, it is high,” I said. He moved his legs as if telling me to let him go. I did. He went off to the horses.
E. spotted a rock again. She walked towards me and showed her rock, she said, “Rock.” I agreed, “Yes, another rock.” L. heard us and said, “I want a rock, too! I’ll go look for one!” She found it hard to look around the bark chips so she proceeded to the sod. A. and E. followed her. A. spotted something and picked it up. He showed it to me and I told him, “Oh, it’s a mushroom.” I took it from him because he might eat it. I asked him, “What else can you see around?” He looked around and found a big bark chip. I told them that A. found a piece of wood. L. finally found a rock and gave it to E.
We spent about half an hour walking, running around and searching for other items to find in the park.
Date of implementation: September 9, 2016
Age of Children: One 22 months old boy; One 19 months old girl; One 9 years old girl
Rationale (How does this experience reflect the needs and interests of the children?):
While we were practising the children’s physical skills, a spontaneous activity emerged – exploring the surroundings where the children found rocks in the park. We can continue working on developing their physical skills and, at the same time, leverage on their interests in exploring the park and looking for more rocks.
Objectives (What will the children learn? What skills will they develop?):
Development of skills are interconnected. While children are learning one task, they touch other domains of development, as well.
In this particular activity, children will develop their physical skills: eye-and-body coordination; balance; and the use of their large muscles (gross motor).
Along with it, the children will also develop cognitive skills: through modeling; memory recall; and language acquisition (widen vocabulary and verbalize the words). They will develop socio-emotional skills: learn about space; roles (leader and follower); take turns; take risks; and develop self-concept and confidence by feeling a sense of accomplishment for having done the task successfully and making new discoveries.
Materials needed:
We need to go a playground with climbing and slide structures. We need to wear proper attire depending on weather. We also need to bring snacks and drinking water should we linger in the park.
Procedure (Advanced preparation, potential open-ended questions):
We will be going to the park around the same time that we did yesterday. This will help in the children’s transition because they know what to expect in the succeeding activities.
I will ask the same questions: “Where do we climb?” “Where do we come down?” These questions are significant and appropriate because children copy what they observe form other older children who have become more adventurous by doing the opposite actions. It is important that they learn what is the regular way of doing things. Also, at this developmental stage, their bodies are not that ready to perform more challenging tasks: climb up on slides rather than the stairs. This can be a potential fall hazard for the little ones.
I will also extend our spontaneous activity by making statements like, “Let’s see if we can find more rocks in the park.” I will also ask, “What else can we find in the park?”
Observations (Individuals and groups of children):
Today, L. joined us after she came home from school. I took the small children out of the wagon to begin walking to the playground. L. called them to run with her.
L. proceeded to the monkey bars and swung her way from one end to the other. A. watched her and climbed to where the monkey bars were. A. lifted his hands and tried to reach the bars. I carried him and let him touch the bar. He hanged on. He let go after a few seconds. “Yes, it is high,” I said. He moved his legs as if telling me to let him go. I did. He went off to the horses.
E. spotted a rock again. She walked towards me and showed her rock, she said, “Rock.” I agreed, “Yes, another rock.” L. heard us and said, “I want a rock, too! I’ll go look for one!” She found it hard to look around the bark chips so she proceeded to the sod. A. and E. followed her. A. spotted something and picked it up. He showed it to me and I told him, “Oh, it’s a mushroom.” I took it from him because he might eat it. I asked him, “What else can you see around?” He looked around and found a big bark chip. I told them that A. found a piece of wood. L. finally found a rock and gave it to E.
We spent about half an hour walking, running around and searching for other items to find in the park.
Evaluation (Children's learning, adult role, changes and extensions):
We were able to extend the children’s interest by asking open-ended questions. The smaller children were still learning how to verbalize their feelings but they were able to “answer” the question by doing the task. They manifest the capability of a higher order of thinking.
It was also a great feeling to witness how smaller children are able to influence the bigger ones. L. was encouraged to search for rocks after having seen E. found one for herself. This is a manifestation of how potent social interaction is in children because this is how they learn from one another.
We were able to extend the children’s interest by asking open-ended questions. The smaller children were still learning how to verbalize their feelings but they were able to “answer” the question by doing the task. They manifest the capability of a higher order of thinking.
It was also a great feeling to witness how smaller children are able to influence the bigger ones. L. was encouraged to search for rocks after having seen E. found one for herself. This is a manifestation of how potent social interaction is in children because this is how they learn from one another.