Introduction
Tom played with other kids in games that involved throwing a ball. The child showed different kinds of behavior during the process and engaged in various activities. Initially, Tom was afraid to approach playing kids, but his parents helped him. He was involved in competitive team games, one of which he won. He was resistant to passing the ball to other teammates in competitive games.
Skills You Observed
There were several skills that Tom probably developed during his social interactions. First, it was to be more initiative. He learned that by overcoming his fear of approaching others, he could find a lot of fun. Second, he learned the aspects of team play, like interacting with each other to achieve common goals. Third, Tom knew how to follow the rules during the play, which constitutes appropriate obedience.
Goals for Learning for This Child
- Tom will learn to take the initiative and do it more independently.
- Tom will learn how to share properly and the importance of this.
Support to Achieve the Goals
To develop initiative, Tom should be encouraged to do things by himself. This encouragement can come from practice, as a demanding task that involves taking the initiative and receiving satisfaction after the completion. Another helpful approach is to reward and acknowledge any other instances of initiative-taking from Tom.
To enhance sharing capabilities in Tom, a teacher can create more opportunities for kids’ playtime and encourage cooperation through choosing games where it helps to win. Another approach is to develop empathy in Tom. Answering questions about the feelings of others can help the child to understand people’s emotions better (Wells, 2018). This can provide additional evidence for Tom about the importance of sharing.
Personal Reflection
This documentation method was quite easy to use. However, it requires some filtration and understanding of a child’s behavior to record only relevant information. The method includes general directions for future development, which is important to know. I think I will use this method in the future.
Emotional Development
Observation Setting
- Date: 04.04.2022
- Start time: 15:05
- End time: 15:40
- Length of observation: 35 min
- Location: Playroom
Documentation/Evidence
Skills You Observed
During his play, Tom expressed his feelings of compassion and support by hugging and helping others. This indicates his ability to express his feelings, at least in some cases. Also, he showed respect to other children by calling them by their names and did not participate in any sort of bullying.
Goals for Learning for This Child
- Tom will learn how to express his emotions better.
- Tom will learn how to manage his emotion.
Support to Achieve the Goals
The first strategy to help Tom express his emotions better is to provide him with positive reinforcement when he shows prosocial emotional expression. In other words, when Tom describes his emotions of unsatisfaction, anger, and sympathy correctly, a teacher should show the child that he has done a good job. Another approach is to teach Tom emotional vocabulary that is necessary for describing the emotions correctly.
Personal Reflection
There are several strategies to teach Tom how to manage his emotions, especially when they are overwhelming. First, to confirm for the child that the event he is concerned about is really emotional and it is appropriate to experience emotions. As a result, Tom will feel less stressed about emotions because they are acceptable. Another method is to develop appropriate coping skills in Tom. For instance, when Tom feels upset about something, instead of crying, he can be encouraged to talk to his friends or teacher about it.
This method is useful and easy for the evaluation of the emotional development of a child. The counting of all the instances when a child behaves in prosocial and antisocial ways helps to acquire a better picture of emotional development. I believe I will use this method in the future.
Reference
Wells, S. (2018). Early Developmental Stages: Newborn to Toddler: Step by step stages of your baby’s Psychological Development. Aidie London.