Observation Culmination

Observation Culmination

Delilah Montecino
April 13, 2016
HD 450
Prof Bielecki

Observation Culmination

Out of the six observations, I did 5 of them at the Pasadena City

College Child Development Center and one at he Malabar Library in Boyle
Heights. My observations took place at various times of day between the
hours of 9 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. At the Pasadena center I did four of my
observations in the early primary class and one in their preschool class. At
the library the ages varied from preschool to school aged.
Most of my observations were done at the Pasadena City College Child
Development Center; the center is NAEYC accredited and is a training site for
Pasadena City College students studying child development. The center also
has an agreement with Pacific Oaks allowing students to observe there as
long as they show their P.O. ID and current syllabus. The center has programs
that serve infants all the way to early primary, which are children from ages
4 to 5 years old. I focused most of my observations on the early primary
class. I was able to observe that particular class indoors and outdoors: during
snack time, gross motor play, doing various small group activities and large
group time. I only observed their centers preschool class on one occasion
and it was during their outdoor playtime. According to the centers website
the early primary classroom is a transitional kindergarten, the class is
designed to prepare children for kindergarten/first grade (2006). The website
also states that the program runs from 8:30 a.m. until 12:30 p.m., after that
is what they refer to as an after school enrichment program (2006). The
center places an importance of parent involvement, requiring parents to
volunteer 10 hours each school year.

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The other site that I did my observation at was the Malabar Library in
Boyle Heights; they have a preschool aged story time every Wednesday from
3:30 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. I chose this site because it is my local library and I
hadnt visited it before I conducted the observation. The library is a small
one-story building; there are two rooms with shelves displaying books. The
childrens area was in the larger room next to the windows. All ages were
welcomed at the story time, one child mentioned that she was in fifth grade
and another was in TK. TK stands for transitional kindergarten and is the
same age group as the students in the early primary class, 4 to 5 years old.
The volunteer named Rosalie read 3 books to the group of 6 children and
then gave them a coloring activity.
All of the environments that I observed were clean and organized with
child-sized furniture for childrens use. Beautiful, orderly, child-sized
environmentsare part of Montessoris legacy, the environment is
important because children need to be able to move around comfortably and
independently (Mooney, 200,p38). The Pasadena center had more and a
wider variety of materials and equipment than the library. The librarys story
time program is free, made possible by volunteers and donations whereas
the Pasadena center charges a weekly tuition that funds its program.
I observed the volunteer reading to children at the library and the lead
teacher reading a story to her early primary class allowing me to compare
their two styles. Reading aloud helps children build phonological awareness,
which is being able to recognize the sounds of spoken language (Bredekamp

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& Copple, 2009, p. 147). Rosalie, the volunteer at Malabar library asked
open-ended questions connected to the stories that she was reading such as,
Why do you think that the pig cant get up stairs. They sang a few songs
together as a group; Rosalies singing and reading were accompanied by
facial expressions/smiles and hand gestures. The hand gestures utilized the
childrens fine motor skills. Rosalie read the children a story about digging for
bones; she started talking to them about dinosaurs and told the children that
dinosaurs used to live in Los Angeles. Some of the children in the group take
public transportation; Rosalie connected the dinosaur talk to the childrens
lives when she talked about how bones were found when contractors were
digging to build the metro rail stations.
The lead teacher of the early primary class, Ms. C, at the Pasadena
center read a book with phrases that rhymed. According to research songs
and rhymes are ready made for developing phonological sensitivity which
helps build childrens oral language (Schiller). As Ms. C read the book, I did
not notice her smile or make any facial expressions that went along with the
story. I didnt hear her ask any questions about the book, when she was done
reading she directed the children to go to their assigned activates. According
to Developmentally Appropriate Practice in Early Childhood Programs
(Bredekamp & Copple, 2009) reading aloud to children plays an integral role
in fostering childrens interest in books and an enjoyment of reading, reading
is further enhanced by reading expressively and actively engaging children
(e.g., asking them to predict what happens next) (p. 147). Both of these

Observation Culmination

adults were enhancing childrens literacy/language skills by reading aloud to

the groups but Rosalie extended the learning by being expressive,
connecting it to their lives and asking questions that caused the children to
think, stimulating them cognitively.
Doing most of my observations at the same center gave me a chance
to observe the early primary teacher, Ms. C, on different occasions at various
times of day. I noticed on multiple occasions that she would start to lead a
small group activity and then get called away by something else, sometimes
leaving the children with no adult at their table. Another time when she was
leading a kite making activity Ms. C pulled her cell phone out repeatedly
while sitting at the table with her students. When they were reading a short
story called, The Map, Ms. C realized that she and Brandon didnt have the
page with the story in their packets. Brandon also noticed that he didnt have
the required page and let Ms. C know, she said No you dont as she
grabbed his paper and told him to share with the student next to him. The
first time I observed her class, I saw Brandon trying to tell Ms. C about how
he knew which states were big, medium and small, she did not respond to
his comments. Most of the questions that I heard Ms. C ask her students
during the course of my observations were questions with closed questions
with right or wrong answers.
When observing the early primary class I did hear the associate
teachers facilitating conversation that was cognitively stimulating for the
students. During one snack time an associate teacher facilitated a

Observation Culmination

conversation that went from hypothesizing about how applesauce was made
to becoming super heroes when they get older then imitating animals. The
associate teacher engaged the students in a conversation where all were
encouraged to give their ideas and she followed the childrens lead when
they veered to another topic. According to Developmentally Appropriate
Practice in Early Childhood Programs (Bredekamp & Copple, 2009) such
conversations are valuable especially when they have multiple
conversational turns, complex ideas, rich vocabulary and include
decontextualized language (talks about events beyond the here and now)(p.
165). These types of conversations enrich childrens listening, speaking and
understanding skills as well as their cognitive abilities when they are using
their imagination and making predictions.
Dewey, Montessori, Vygotsky and Piaget believed that education
should be child centered; education must be both active and interactive; and
education must involve the social world of the child and the community
(Mooney, 2013, p.16), childrens learning is lasting when they are able to
connect it to their lives. The writing activities that I saw the children in the
early primary class do consisted of the students writing/reading words that
came out of a work book. These types of activities strengthen childrens fine
motor skills and hand eye coordination but lack the creative aspect. In When
Teachers Reflect (Tertell, Klein & Jewett, 1998) Brenda Julovich wrote about
her experience with a student in her class named Chad who had special
needs and needed an eye gaze chart and light talker to communicate

Observation Culmination

(p.124). Communicating and writing were difficult for Chad, leading her to
the conclusion that he should choose what he wanted to write about.
Otherwise it wasnt worth it for him to put so much concentration and effort
into the task (Tertell, Klein & Jewett, 1998, p. 127). Eventually Ms. Julovich
concluded that all of her students should have reading and writing activities
that were meaningful and worthwhile for them (Tertell, Klein & Jewett, 1998,
p. 127). In the book Teacher (Ashton-Warner, 1963) Ms. Ashton-Warner came
to a similar conclusion and had her students write and share books their own
books, connecting the academic content that they had to learn to their lives.
In chapter 5 of the book Puzzling Moments, Teachable Moments
(Ballenger, 2009) she wrote about a discussion of observing/measuring plant
growth that was sparked when two girls explained how they each perceive
the growth differently. The conversation about the differences in what they
saw as growth helped the other students in the class connect growth to their
own lives and gave the teacher a different perspective of plant growth
(Ballenger, 2009). In that conversation children were practicing their
communication skills as well as expanding their understanding of biology,
which is the science of living things. Vygotsky believed that children learn
from each other every day [and] interaction contributes to children
construction of knowledge (Mooney, 2013, p. 101). The students I observed
engaged in conversation and an exchange of ideas as the played outside and
during snack time. Growth in many different developmental domains occurs
when children are talking. I noticed that the associate teachers in the early

Observation Culmination

primary class facilitated conversations during snack time and small group
activities. I have been in classrooms that actively discourage talking between
students during certain times of day even though Vygotsky believed that
talking is necessary to clarify important points [and] that talking with others
helps us learn more about communication (Mooney, 2013, p.106).
Understanding Vygotskys theory allows us to see the role of languagequestioning, talking, joking, interrupting- in extending childrens learning
(Mooney, 2013, p. 107). I noticed Ms. C tended to discourage talking
between children during small group and individual activities.
Vygotsky also believed that teachers and peers scaffold other students
learning when they offer just enough assistance to a child on the brink of
acquiring a new skill (Mooney, 2013, p.101). On one occasion I observed
some children from the early primary class outside at the water table, this
sensory play made use of their fine motor skills, hand eye coordination,
cognitive abilities and social emotional skills as they shared space and
materials. Jacob watched Brandon use a funnel to fill up his bottle and then
Jacob adjusted the way he was using the funnel to mimic Brandon, this was a
form of scaffolding. Although Brandon did not explicitly tell Jacob how to
correctly use a funnel Jacob was able to learn by observing Brandon. I also
saw scaffolding between a teacher and student when I observed the
preschool classroom. At fist one of the young girls walked across a balance
beam while holding the hand of a teacher, later she walked across on her

Observation Culmination

own without any assistance. Accomplishing a new skill, such as walking

across a balance beam unassisted, can boost a childs confidence.
Reflecting on my 6 observations I have realized many things, like the
importance of funding for educational programs. The Pasadena center that I
observed at was a beautiful well-funded facility with lots of equipment and
materials. The story time program at the Malabar Library was a free program
powered by donations and volunteers, the environment was still neat with
plush animals, carpet and even a small tent in the corner but they had less
materials and furnishings than the Pasadena center. I wondered if the library
had funding, might they be able to provide different materials for activities
more meaningful than coloring a picture, activities that could stimulate
children cognitively and social emotionally. Public funding for libraries and
other educational programs is vital especially in low-income communities
where children dont have the same access to quality education/educational
experiences. Despite the lack of funding Rosalie enhanced the reading
experience with her expressive and friendly demeanor as well as the
questions and conversations that she engaged the children with during story
time. I have been greatly influenced by Vygotsky and his ideas of scaffolding
as well as the important role he believe interaction and communication play
in learning (Mooney, 2013). I was surprised to notice that Ms. C, the lead
teacher of the early primary class asked fewer open-ended questions than
any of the other teachers that I observed.

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There were a number of moments where I personally would have

further engaged students in conversation, for example during the applesauce
conversation one of the boys explained that he did not want to talk about
that topic or anything. I thought that the teacher could have asked him why
he didnt want to talk and that could have been a jumping off point to a
discussion about feelings, which could have benefited all of the students
providing them with an opportunity for social emotional growth. Because I
note things, I am able to recognize them as they change and develop. They
dont slide by me invisibly (Ballenger, 2009, p.67). I understand that it is
difficult to catch everything children say and do in the moment because
things move quickly, but as an educator/caregiver I think that it is our
responsibility not to let things slide by. In Puzzling Moments (2009) Ballenger
wrote about a practice she had of collecting childrens questions and ideas,
writing them down and coming back to investigate them at a later time
(p.34). Again because things in a classroom move quickly I think the practice
of noting questions and ideas that children have is a valuable and shows that
their ideas matter.
The three books that we read in class all mentioned the importance
role that observation plays in helping a teacher get to know their students. I
was surprised when I saw Ms. C pull out her cell phone while leading a small
group activity. Phones are a major distraction, when Im in a class observing I
leave my phone in my purse. Even when I watch my nieces I tend to put my
phone off to the side because I see the value for all of us in giving them my

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full attention. Maybe there was an emergency and Ms. C was waiting for an
important call but I know that when Im on my phone Im distracted from
important things that are happening right in front of me. I dont work in a
classroom but if I did I would like to use the project approach that was
mentioned in When Teachers Reflect (Tertell, Klein & Jewett, 1998, p.134). I
have some experience with this approach as part of the requirements to get
my associates degree in ECE.
The project approach requires an educator to observe their group, find
a topic/theme that interest them and plan a variety of activities related to
the theme. If done correctly this approach results in activities that are
meaningful/relevant to children, furthering their understanding of the subject
and encouraging them to dig deeper and explore. I think that it is important
to observe educators in various settings using different techniques and
approaches. Seeing how other teachers do things helps me grow as a
caregiver. Overall these observations were a valuable experience for me,
giving me new ideas for how I might conduct my own classroom one day and
also showing me things that I might do differently if I were teaching.

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References
Ballenger,C.(2009).Puzzlingmoments,teachablemoments:Practicingteacherresearchin
urbanclassrooms.NewYork:TeachersCollegePress.
Bredekamp,S.,&Copple,C.(2009).Developmentallyappropriatepracticeinearlychildhood
programs(3rded.).Washington,D.C.:NAEYC.
Curtis,D.,&Carter,M.(2008).Learningtogetherwithyoungchildren:Acurriculum
framework

forreflectiveteachers.St.Paul,MN:RedleafPress.

Mooney, C. G. (2013). Theories of childhood: An introduction to Dewey,

Montessori, Erikson,

Piaget, and Vygotsky. St. Paul, MN: Redleaf Press.

Programs.(2006).http://www.pasadena.edu/cdc/programs.cfm
Schiller,P.,Ph.D.(n.d.).SongsandRhymesasaSpringboardtoLiteracy.
http://www.earlychildhoodnews.com/earlychildhood/article_home.aspx?ArticleID=478

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Tertell,E.A.,Klein,S.M.,&Jewett,J.L.(1998).Whenteachersreflect:Journeystoward
effective,inclusivepractice.Washington,D.C.:NAEYC.

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