"Children grow faster during the first 3 years, especially during the first few months, than they ever will again. By 5 months, the average baby boy's birth weight has doubled to 16 pounds and, by year 1, has nearly tripled to 23 pounds. The rapid growth rate tapers off during the 2nd and 3rd years. A boy typically gains about 5 pounds by his second birthday and 3 and 1/2 pounds by his third, when he tips the scales at 31 and 1/2 pounds. A boy's height typically increases by 10 inches during the 1st year (making the average 1-year-old boy nearly 30 inches tall) by almost 5 inches during the 2nd year(so that the average 2-year-old boy is approaching 3 feet tall), and by a little more than 3 inches during the 3rd year to top 37 inches. Girls follow a similar pattern but are slightly smaller."( Kuczmarski) as cited in (Papalia, Olds, Feldman, 2008, p.145) Children need to be closely monitored to see if they are growing at an adequate and healthy pace. Toddlers are now able to explore their environment freely. They don't need to be picked up to look around now, and can walk to many places. Toddlers think for themselves and are conveying these thought in many ways (mostly through talking.) Toddlers should be observed when in a preschool environment because For one, we can learn how to teach them according to their interests and preferences. Most physical disabilities become more apparent during this time, so observing children for common characteristics is important. We can also observe them and find their levels of cognitive and social development. By knowing these levels we are able to develop daily schedules that can work on the weak points in each individuals life. If a child really needs help with their fine motor skills an... ... middle of paper ... ...unteer in school adult programs. Works Cited Forman, G., & Hall, E. (2001). Wondering With Children: The Importance of Observation in Early Education: Five Reasons to Observe Children. ECRP: Early Childhood Research & Practice. Retrieved May 20, 2010, from http://ecrp.uiuc.edu/v7n2/forman.html (2010). Parent-Teacher Communication. University of Illinois Extension: Helping Children Succeed in School. Retrieved May 20, 2010, from http://urbanext.illinois.edu/succeed/communication.cfm (2010, February 08). Play Activities to Encourage Motor Development in Child Care. Extension: More Mind Reach. Retrieved May 20, 2010, from http://www.extension.org/pages/Play_Activities_to_Encourage_Motor_Development_in_Child_Care Papalia, D. E., Olds, S. W., & Feldman, R. D. (2008). A Child's World: Infancy through Adolescence. (11th ed.). Asheville, NC: McGraw-Hill Primis.
Shaffer, D. R., & Kipp, K. (2014). Infancy. In Developmental psychology: Childhood and adolescence (p. 158). Australia: Wadsworth.
Woodhead, M. and Montgomery, H. (Eds) (2003) ‘Understanding childhood: an interdisciplinary approach,’ Milton Keynes: John Wiley and sons in association with The Open University.
In this assignment I am going to describe a child observation that I have done in a nursery for twenty minutes in a play setting. I will explain the strengths and weaknesses of naturalistic observation through the key developmental milestones based in Mary Sheridan (2005) check-list and provide a theoretical explanation to support the naturalistic observation.
Graham-Clay, S. (2005). Communicating with parents: Strategies for teachers. School Community Journal, 15(1), 117-129. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com/docview/195462342?accountid=34899
Cook, G., & Cook, J. L. (2010). The world of children. (2nd ed.). Boston, MA: Pearson Education Inc.
Observation is very important in young children because that is how you get to know a child better. While observing how a child interacts with their peers, adults, and how they behave in different settings, you are getting to know the child without speaking to them.
The results of quality preschool programs can be seen early after they begin. Children learn many important life le...
My desire for children in my care is that their learning journey would be meaningful as they explore the ideas and activities they are interested in. This means that I believe that children are naturally motivated learners and should have the opportunity to learn through their own explorations and through collaboration with other children and educators. I believe this can be done through both teacher-initiated and child-initiated activities and supported through play. I also believe that play is a natural and enjoyable means through which children learn. In my practice I aim to encourage children’s natural ...
Infant growth is characterized by very rapid growth for the first eighteen months of life. The average infant weighs approximately seven pounds and eight ounces at birth, this weigh then doubles by the six month of life and will triple by twelve months. Along with rapid weight gain the infant will also grow rapidly in height. The average length of a newborn is twenty inches, the infant will then gain six inches in the first six months and another four to six inches by the one year mark (CIMC, 2011).
...in preschool and early intervention have the most normal life, be as independent as they can, and be at the same level as all of their peers and classmates. Watching my little brother with Down syndrome grow up and shadowing an occupational therapist in a preschool really shaped me into wanting to be an occupational therapist for young children. If my little brother did not have therapy when he was a child he would not be able to do most of the things he is able to do today. He can bathe himself, dress himself, and prepare his own food everyday now. If he did not have a therapist who helped him do these everyday life skills he most likely would not be able to do them to this day. I want to be able to help kids like my little brother, or like the kids I observed at the preschool be able to do whatever they want in life and not let their disabilities stop them.
Who multicenter growth reference study group and de Onis, M. (2006), Relationship between physical growth and motor development in the Who child growth standards. Acta Paediatrica, 95: 96–101. doi: 10.1111/j.1651-2227.2006.tb02380.x
Observation is important as the practitioner can find out what the child is interested in and what motivates them to learn alongside their progress and how they behave in certain situations, additionally at the same time it identifies if children need assistance within certain areas of learning or socially (DCSF, 2008). Furthermore the observations check that the child is safe, contented, healthy and developing normally within the classroom or early years setting, over time the observations can be given to parents as they show a record of progress which helps to settle the parent and feel more comfortable about their child’s education. Observations are not only constructive within learning about an individual child, they can be used to see how different groups of children behave in the same situation and how adults communicate and deal with children’s behaviour (Meggitt and Walker, 2004). Overall observations should always look at the positives of what children can complete within education and not look at the negatives and all observations should become a fundamental part of all practitioners work alongside reflection (Smidt, 2009).
The Head Start Center at Martin Luther King school is a great way to learn about the three domains of development of cognitive, phsycal, social and emotional. The observation took place towards the end of the school year. This observation consisted of observing an early childhood boy on April twenty-two, twenty fourteen, named Anth, with the age of 4 years, 2 months. The Head Start Center had a classroom that consisted of 16 children, between the ages of three to five years old, and a ratio of eight to one. I conducted my observation for a period of about half an hour in room 52 at Martin Luther King Jr Elementary School. My first impression of the classroom was a good surprise. The classroom reflects a great environment for a place for preschoolers to develop. It is an area where the children, are in a soothing room full of brilliant colors, and a childproof area where it is safe to leave a three to five year old for the day.
Office of Head Start by the University of Cincinnati. (2012). Physical and Motor Development [Video]. Available from the University of Cincinnati.
What Kids Really Learn in Preschool. Parenting. (Fall 99):Vol. 13 Issue 7, p 74. October