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Amy Benson

Brecheisen

ECE 252

22 February 2015

Play Observation

1. Description: I observed at the Cheyenne CSN lab in the toddler class and the average age

of the 10 children I observed was between 22 and 26 months. There was 1 master teacher,

2 assistant teachers and 1 parent volunteer in the class. Apparently, each parent is required

to volunteer 3 hours a month in their child’s class. When I got there the teachers greeted

the children and parents outside in a courtyard type area and I will describe this area first.

The parents/children came in from a fenced door and down a ramp. There was a chalk

board a painting board both attached to the walls. There was a sand area with a table and

chairs, buckets, shovels, rakes and kitchen area. There was a concrete area for tricycles,

scooters and wagons. There was an area with climbing and tumbling toys, a sensory tub

and a grass area with a cozy tent area with dress up clothes and books. There were two

sinks (child sized), with a paper towel holder and drinking fountain. Pots and pans were

attached to a fence near the sand area for making music. There was an area with potted

plants, child sized basketball hoops with many different types of balls for the children to

play with. Lastly, there were child sized shelves with all sorts of puzzles and manipulatives

for the children to play with. When I entered the class room, I came through the bathroom

and hand washing area. There was a half door that led to the main part of the class room.
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The actual classroom had two child sized tables, shelves, cubbies with the children’s

personal stuff that was labeled, a home living area with a table and chairs, dress up items,

plastic kitchen supplies, a mirror at the children’s height, This led to what I would call the

science area which had a table with some sensory bottles, and a basket with sea shells,

rocks and magnifying glasses. Next to that was a two floor area with books and pillows,

enclosed with plexiglass. I would consider this area a cozy corner for the kids. Next to that

was the classroom pet (Mr. Squiggles), a hamster that sat on a shelf. There was a cardboard

box with holes in it and in the holes were Christmas lights so the box was illuminated when

the children would go in it. There was an adult comfy chair with a book case and another

shelf for the teacher supplies and next to that was another area with pillows, curtains and a

hanging plant. On the carpet area was a block center with cardboard blocks, trucks and

cars. The shelf next to it had manipulatives, puzzles and beads. There were two child sized

easels on the tiled area which is where the art center was. In the bathroom area there was

three different sized toilets and a changing table. This class was obviously the potty training

class.

2. Cognitive Play:

a) There was a large sensory tub that was filled with water and had foam colored shapes

along with colanders, measuring cups and plastic utensils for poring and measuring etc.

The items in this tub were age appropriate, and was multi-sensory with the textures, shapes

and colors. It made for an educational experience in the children’s exploration of real

kitchen tools and with the water involved, the children could get a math lesson in poring,

stirring and measuring. In the home living area there were all sorts of old cell phones,
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sunglasses, dress up clothes and shoes and a medical or doctors kit. This center was set up

with real items such as phones and plastic jewelry which was safe and appropriate for this

age group and encouraged the children to engage in dramatic play or make believe. In the

block area there were cardboard blocks of different colors and shapes. These were easy to

manipulate for the children and safe for building with since they were make of cardboard.

They were light in weight and yet sturdy so the children could build with them on their

own with success. Throughout the room, all of the toys and manipulatives appeared to be

there for a purpose. They were age appropriate, open for a child’s interpretation and safe

with many things for the children to choose.

b) The cardboard blocks and trucks, the medical kit and dress up clothing, the art activity

and the sensory tub were just four of many choices that the children played with while I

was there.

c) One little boy was playing with the cardboard blocks and a dump truck in tandem for

about 20 minutes all by himself. I saw two little girls go up to the art activity on one of the

tables. This activity was tact paper and pink, red and purple tissue squares. This activity

was open for children to explore all by themselves with no instruction. The two girls that

visited this center were there for no more than 2 minutes each. The sensory tub was visited

by many of the children in the class. They seemed to stay there for about 10 minutes or

more per child. The medical kit was played with by 4 of the girls in class. They played with

this kit for about 15 minutes, going back to it from time to time.

d) The sensory tub seemed engaging to the children as I heard vocabulary such as “I

dumped it in” and “it’s raining”. They were smiling and trading items in the tub and
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working together to poor water in the colander. With the blocks and truck the little boy

would build with them and then added the truck. He then placed some books on the ground

for the truck to drive over and put the blocks in the back of the truck. He was very engaged

in what he was doing as there were other children playing with different toys right around

him and he didn’t seem fazed at all that they were there. He kept adding things to make his

tower bigger, or more complicated. The medical kit and dress up clothes were played with

by about 4 different children. They seemed engaged by this because of their conversation

not only with each other but also the teacher. They were checking each other’s

temperatures, giving each other shots and using the stethoscope. They were smiling and

using emotion when playing doctor with one another.

e) The children were learning cause and effect with these choices such as, if I add books to

the blocks then the truck can drive over it. Pouring water from one cup to another made

one full and one empty. The children were learning how to work together to get something

accomplished like using the stethoscope or draining water from the colander. They were

learning through exploration with open ended activities with little help from the teachers.

They were learning through using multiple senses such as touching, hearing, seeing etc.

They were learning spatial awareness through building with the blocks. All of these choices

were engaging the children’s vocabulary and social and emotional development in playing

with their peers.

3. Social Play:

a) The boy playing with the blocks and dump truck was engaged in solitary play for quite

some time. I watched as he seemed fully immersed in what he was doing with these toys.
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He didn’t seem to be fazed by other children around him. He kept adding toys and books

to change the outcome of how he played with the truck. He would add blocks to the tower

he was building and when it fell, he would just start over again. This activity held his

attention for a long time.

b) Two girls went into the home living area and found a medical kit. At first the girls fought

over who would carry it to the floor. One of the girls seemed to take charge by passing out

the items in the kit. One of the girls got the stethoscope and put it on and started listening

to the girl’s heart. Then the first girl got the needle and pretended to give the other little

girl a shot. They were talking about what they were doing to each other and with

expression. For example when the girl gave the other a shot she said, “Did that hurt?” Then

one of the children pretended to listen to the teacher’s heart and the teacher said, “Are you

giving me a checkup?”

c) The medical kit seemed to be made for more than one child to play with at a time. This

helped to engage both girls and eventually two more children as well. They had to work

together in order to play with the materials of the kit (example: stethoscope, thermometer),

so this aided the girls in playing together. They also took on roles as one was the doctor

and the other was the patient. They then involved one of the teachers in their play which

led to more communication and role playing.

d) There was adult interaction, but this only took place when one of the children engaged

the teacher. She got involved in the play and yet allowed the children to decide where this

pretend situation was going to go. She didn’t interrupt play, but rather enhanced it with
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ideas and vocabulary. She gave verbal cues to the children and then let them take the play

where they choose.

4. Conclusion:

a) One thing that I got to see during this observation was how to lead by example. Since

there was a parent volunteer in the room when I was there, I got to see her interaction with

the children as well as the teacher’s interaction. During a conflict between two children,

the parent tried to take over and resolve the problem herself. Instead of telling the parent

that what she did was wrong, the teacher went up to those children and validated their

feelings and helped them use their words in an attempt to help them solve their own

problem. By validating the child’s feelings and encouraging problem solving skills, the

teacher not only role modeled for the children, but also for the parent that was watching.

This made me realize how important it is as a caregiver to model behaviors in front of the

parents in order to encourage them to help their children develop social, problem solving

skills.

b) One recommendation I would make for this class would be to add some different

materials to the Science table as it seemed that very few children explored the area due to

the lack of materials it had. The second recommendation I would have made would be to

add different textured materials to the art craft. I felt the activity only having the tissue

squares didn’t hold the children’s attention for long. The teacher’s interactions with the

children were a perfect balance of engaging without interrupting their play. They

demonstrated a relationship with each child that was authentic and loving. Overall I felt

that this center and class was very developmentally appropriate and child centered.