Running head: SCHOOL AGE OBSERVATION

School Age Observation

John Mitchell
Ivy Tech Community College

SCHOOL AGE OBSERVATION

Name: John Mitchell

Class: EDUC 121
Date: March 25, 2015
Site: Monster Golf, Park, McDonalds, and Home
Dates of Observations: March 21st and 22nd, 2015
Number and Ages of Children: 3 children and ages 8,7, and 6
Small-Motor Skills
During this observation I noticed that the children like to use their hands excessively.
Touching and feeling everything including impulsively grabbing my phone and trying to guess
my password to unlock it so they can play on my apps. Their eye coordination was excellent
compared to the wondering of the toddlers because while driving we played a color game that
had to do with the objects we passed by. All of them were very competitive and were able to
distinguish colors and sizes, which took much attention and focus. Putting on clothing or shoes
was not a problem for any of the children and each of them knew how to tie their shoelaces.
Large-Motor Skills
The large motor skills I observed were the successful walking, running, climbing, lifting,
and swinging at the play area at McDonalds. I stayed for about 2 hours and the children were
physically active during the whole time and when asked to leave, they were disappointed
because they wanted to continue playing. I noticed they played a game like tag and the boy, who
was seven years old, was the fastest and strongest because he was able to run, slide, and climb
through the obstacle faster than his six and eight-year-old sisters.

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The Industrious Stage
Carson, the seven-year-old boy, was showing behaviors that implemented Eriksons
theory. When all of the children were playing together at McDonalds, they developed a game of
chasing each other around. When Carson was winning, he would take a quick break and run
down to tell me that he was winning and I naturally gave him a enthusiastic praise by saying,
Good job! I believe he told me to build up his self-confidence and also gave him more
motivation to play harder to impress me. Being industrious falls under the fourth stage of
Eriksons theory and it is the time of a typical childs life that they seek for self-acceptance in
their family or peers.
Social and Language Skills
Learning basic skills and working with others is what all of the children did while I
observed them. All of the children worked as a team at Monster Golf and also worked against
each other to win, which brought some competitiveness to the activity. Each child was patient
during everyones turn in the game and when the six year old struggled to hit the golf ball in a
straight line; Carson helped her with her technique so she could learn the basic skills of the
game. When anyone hit the ball in the hole, I made sure I praised them with a pat on the back

and by saying, Great Job!, which made them really happy. They reflected my actions and when
someone hit the ball in the hole then everyone gave praise and got excited.
When I was at their house, I had an idea that they should make a thank you poster for
their parents. To get the project started, I needed to get the workstation ready so each child had a
job. Carson had to clear the dining room table to make space and Madelyn and Katelyn went to
the basement to get materials. Madelyn, who is six, decided that she was going to draw and color
and Carson and Katelyn were going to write the words because they each have learned how to

SCHOOL AGE OBSERVATION

write in school. The children choosing their roles and understanding who fits best without
arguing is socially working together cooperatively. Madelyn cant write more than her name but
she is able to contribute what to put on the poster so, the children debated on what to write. The
children decided to let everyone get a chance to speak their opinion and then compromise at the
end. The six year old tended to just imitate whatever her older sister suggested to put on the

poster and that was a sign of her wanting acceptance from her sister and that is also a method for
children to develop their own language skills.
What Rules to Follow
The rules the children were able to follow were the instructions of the game that were
decided before the game started. The children played a basketball game known as pig, which was
taught by their parents. The six year old followed the rules of the game very strictly and if she
noticed her older brother taking additional shots, which was against the rules, she would tattle on
him because she believed it was immanent justice. According to Piagets theory of moral
reasoning, five to seven year olds believe that breaking a rule always leads to punishment (Kail,
2015). Carson, the seven year old, knew that taking an additional shot was against the rules but
the game was taking a long time and he made up the rule because he believed it would be more
fun getting two chances to make a basket. His older sister, Katelyn, agreed but his younger sister,
who tattled on him earlier, said that Mommy and Daddy never told her that. According to Piaget,
this behavior from Carson and Katelyn was called moral relativism, which is the understanding
that rules are created by people to help them get along (Kail, 2015). The most influential rule that
the girls follow is that they understand that their brother is physically stronger and faster than
them. The girls tend to not try as hard against him because they believe that he will beat them.
According to the Differences in Physical Development and Behavior in the textbook, girls have

SCHOOL AGE OBSERVATION

more fat than muscle on their bodies compared to boys, which can lead to girls desire to be
physically active can decrease and lower their self-esteem (Kail, 2015).
Children Handling Disputes
I believe that as a child grows older it starts with being dependent on the teachers for
enforcing the rules but progresses or changes to the children enforcing the rules because
development of moral reasoning comes into play. According to the textbook, five year olds look
at the world in one perspective, which is their own, and as soon as they get older they develop

understanding of other peoples perspectives or feelings (Kail, 2015). With that said, the children
already knew the rules of the basketball game and as I observed they enforced the rules and
developed new rules to make it equal between themselves. The parents told them the rules before
hand and the children took it amongst themselves to follow the rules even with Madelyn, the six
year old, showing immanent justice.
The way the children handled the dispute, that I witnessed, was through the
understanding of other perspectives. According to Selmans Social-informational and Selfreflective stages in Perspective Taking, the children know that perspectives differ because people
have access to different information and the thinking ability to view themselves as others do
(Kail, 2015). After the basketball game, the children were discussing on the next game they
should play outside. The six year old wanted to swing on swing set, the seven year old wanted to
throw the football, and the eight year old wanted to play tag. The six year old was determine to
swing and didnt care about what her older siblings wanted and the seven and eight year old were
trying to compromise because they were told by their mother that they need to play a game
together. The seven and eight year old knew that their six year old sister was not going to change
her mind because she is younger or not as smart as them so, instead of the argument continuing,

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they decided to swing because they knew it would make her happy. The older children not only

made this choice to make her happy but also they knew that she would most likely struggle with
the complex games that they had in mind because she was smaller, not as fast, and weaker than
them. According to the textbook, empathy and moral reasoning are some factors that implement
prosocial behavior, which are actions that benefit others (Kail, 2015).
Friendships
According to the textbook, friendship is a voluntary relationship between two people
involving mutual liking (Kail, 2015). I noticed at each place I observed the children, they were
always laughing, smiling, and having a good time. They stuck together between each hole at
Monster Golf, the outdoor games at home, and at the play area at McDonalds. Helping each
other with the games and having a good time showed that they were more than just siblings, they
were friends. I believe one of the reasons these children have good relationship is based on the
parents parenting style towards them. According to the textbook, the parents had a high level of
Authoritative parenting, which is the combination of fair degree of parental control with warmth
and responsivity to children (Kail, 2015). The fact that each child gets treated fairly brings no
motives of jealousy or envy towards one another. Enjoy playing together and liking each other is
the main reason for their friendship because at these ages, children what to have mutual likings
in physical activities instead thinking or talking about drama-personal thoughts, feelings, and
situations. According to the textbook, drama is usually later in the adolescent stage and that is
where friendships can get more complicated (Kail, 2015).

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Reference Page

Kail, R. (2015). Children and their development (7th ed., p. 10, 14, 326, 340, 356-359, 445, 473).
Pearson Education.