This week's observation seemed to go smoothly as far as being able to report the children's reactions and their cognitive development. The children are all so different and the way they interact with their environment and find things that keep their attention. The class is composed of mainly male students and they spend the majority of the time engaged in the same activities daily. I think that the children have their own system setup when it comes to things they want to do. I enjoyed observing the children this week despite feeling under the weather.
An activity that I observed were a group of students standing around the train table. Each student had a train or two in their hands and were pushing the trains around and around the train tracks. Students spend several minutes at this location. Students were engaged in discussions about which color their train was and where their train was going. Some trains begin to race their trains against each other, they would start off pushing the trains along with their hands and then they were holding them in their hands walking quickly around the table trying to get in front of the other student. The skills the students used were use of their motor skills, language development, and social development.
An activity that I would plan for the next day for the students would be to plan a field trip down to the train station and let the students learn about the history of trains.
Hi Janet
ReplyDeleteI know what class you're in! ;)
The children love the train table. I think i write about the train table every time i observe. So many different activities can be drawn from this one activity, because they are so interested in this area and with it being able to hold their attention. I do like the field trip idea you have. I also think having the word TRAIN spelled on the edge of the table would be great for starters, in an attempt to developing letter recognition.
It is funny when they pick up the train and just carry it around the track. From an adult perspective it's "cheating", especially if it's supposed to be a race. But if no one complains it's something I overlook. But if someone does throw a fit, then you have to step in and be a referee and remind them of the rules of engagement. :-)
ReplyDeleteIf you're observing at PCC, then it wouldn't be too far to walk to a metro platform I guess. Although it's not the safest part of town with all the traffic.
Wow! Your idea about having a field trip to the station is great! :) I remember I went to Travel Town by or in Griffith Park. It was a lot of fun because we could actually go inside the trains and make the horn sound and even got a ride on a mini train around. If I was right when I went and thought it was awesome I can only imagine how excited three or four year old would be! Great idea!
ReplyDelete