Christian Bakkal-Case Study By: Stacy Bloom Early Childhood Development Program Oakland Community College

Christian Bakkal is four years old and was born on October 12th 2007. He has short brown hair, brown eyes, and a bright smile. He has one younger sister, Lauren, who just turned two years old. His parents are Kristy and Steve. Christian lives in Commerce Township, Michigan with his mom, dad, and his little sister. He is outgoing, sociable, warm, and a gregarious child. He regularly has a beaming smile on his face, and is always excited to start his day at Maples Montessori. Christian is an extroverted child who often shares his opinion openly and with a vivid imagination. He is a healthy, active, and full of life. I chose to develop my case study on Christian for several reasons. When I first started teaching at Montessori he stood out from the rest of the children I had encountered. He approached me, with a smile, and said hello to me immediately with charm. He wanted to know who I was, how long I was going to be subbing for, and if he could show me his projects that he was going to do that day. He displayed such a mature and loving attitude toward his peers and teachers. I was instantly drawn to him and was intrigued by his colorful curiosity. Christian is in the Pre-K/ Kindergarten room. The age range in the classroom is three to six years of age. His teacher is Miss Jeanette, who is also the directress of the school program. The teacher/ child ratio is three adults for 31 students, which is in correspondence with Michigan state child care licensing rules. The Montessori method of education and philosophy is based on

consistency in a young childs life. By developing self discipline in children, a deep love of learning, peaceful, and self confident personality, children achieve the maximum benefit from the Montessori program. The teachers have a strong communication with parents, and believe cooperation between school and home is essential to each childs learning process. There is a teamwork approach that ensures a well balanced and nurturing environment. The environment is a critical component in the childrens success. Montessori encourages parent involvement by inviting parents to attend parent education meetings, parent conferences and welcomes parents to observe their child through the one way glass in the office and are welcome to discuss with the directress what they saw and felt. Bloomfield Maples Montessori has worked expertly for the past 25 years accomplishing exemplary strategies and methods of education.

Area of Development- Physical Christian is very active and involved in many areas of physical development. He runs, jumps, and climbs well. He expresses creativity in his movement and is continually playing in different areas outside and engaging in activities with other children. He climbs the equipment, plays in the sandbox, plays basketball on the court, and runs around with the other children. He also describes his movement and moves in different directions within the space. -When telling me what he likes to do at Shenandoah, Christian said, I went to Shenandoah and played with hula hoops. - At recess Christian said, Miss Stacy, will you watch me swing on the swings? He then jumped on the swing and started swinging. - On the basketball court at recess Christian said, Watch me shoot this basket. I love basketball and baseball. He ran around the court and shot many baskets and dribbled the ball. Recommendations: Christian should continue to be active at recess and play in different areas of the playground. Encourage him to explore a wide variety of sports and activities. Look for opportunities throughout the day to move and explore inside and outside. Provide the space needed for him to develop physically. Develop a wide variety of manipulatives and provide space. Watch and acknowledge his creative use of movement, and find opportunities to comment on how he is moving. Provide verbal directions as well as demonstrating directions. Climbing is an important form of locomotor movement for him.

Area of Development- Social/Emotional Christian is increasingly able to form relationships with his peers, shows consideration for others, and solves problems cooperatively. He displays good prosocial skills and is empathetic and compassionate toward others. He has many friends in class and deals with social conflict well. He expresses his feelings with words and engages in collaborative play. He is efficient at taking care of his own needs. He also loves to tell stories about things he likes to do, his family, and school. He has genuine conversations with his peers and adults. -During circle time Christian expressed, Everyone please move back, I cant see. -During story time in the morning Christian said, I love this book, its so funny, and the King is eating lunch in the tub. He then continued to listen to the story. -At circle time Christian turned to Nickolas, and said, Hey Nicky, do you want to play in the sandbox at recess? - During work time Christian looked out the window and said, Its raining out today, I dont think we are going outside for recess. Recommendations: Christian should continue to establish supportive relations with children, and continue to play with his peers and have opportunities for leading and following during collaborative play. Having genuine conversations will build trusting relationships with adults. Maintaining a stable group of children and adults will also help build relationships. Christian should continue to share toys, talk with his peers, and continue to interact with others. Encourage him while playing with other children to plan and recall what they are doing.

Area of Development- Language, Literacy, and Communication Christian often talks about his day, and is a very observant child. He can describe people, places and things well. He loves to listen to stories and often comments at story time. He also listens, reads, and writes well. He is often interactive with his peers and teachers. He talks about personally meaningful experiences and speaks freely with confidence. Christian is reading, writing, and working on comprehension in Miss Jeanettes class. -Miss Jeanette asked Christian, What is a word that rhymes with fig. Christian replied, dig -During Spanish time, Christian said, feliz, triste, and el fermo, when referring to the emotions of pictures the Spanish teacher was holding up for the children to guess. -Also during Spanish time Christian said, I am coloring juevos, when referring to the eggs he was coloring on a picture. -At lunch Christian said, I have a hamburger, pineapple, cucumber, and water today for lunch. He then continued to eat and talk with his peers. Recommendations: It is important for Christian to establish a comfortable environment in which he can communicate freely and play with others. Being available to listen and communicate with him throughout the day is essential to his learning environment. Its important for the adults to listen to what he is saying and then acknowledging what he is saying. It is also important for adults to adopt a problem solving approach to where Christian can communicate his ideas and solve his own conflicts. Continue to learn his interests as adults and support them as much as possible. It is important that he can utilize his reading and writing materials.

Area of Development- Approach to Learning Christian displays a wide range of curiosity when learning. He is confident, independent, and persistent. He often asks for help if needed, and takes initiative in problem solving. He expresses his choices when choosing his work and also makes decisions throughout the day. He carries out his intentions and verbalizes them as well. -When Miss Jeanette asked what number on the calendar comes after March 31st, during the morning calendar time, Christian said, One. -Miss Jeanette was talking about sounds and asked the children to be silent, and then to respond to what they heard while not talking. Christian said, I heard a sneeze. He continued to listen for other sounds. -When talking about what Christian did for Easter he said, I went on an Easter egg hunt, we had a party, my cousins, grandma, and grandpa where there. There were so many people. - I asked Christian if he had any siblings. He said, I have a sister Lauren, her birthday is April 12th, she is going to be two years old. Recommendations: To have a daily routine is important to Christian. Continue to offer him choices and ask questions often about what he is doing, seeing, and hearing throughout the day. Express and maintain interest in what he is doing and encourage his leadership skills. It is also important to give him time to make decisions, choices, and plans to carry out his activities. Encourage his problem solving skills and is substantial for adults to not interfere with his thought process by offering an adult interpretation. Let him describe what has happened, and what he intends to do.

Area of Development- Creative Christian is a creative child. He often draws and colors pictures to represent his feelings, creativity, represents his experiences, and ideas. He is motivated in his ideas, and is engaged in his learning and creative process. He has a good memory and often describes experiences colorfully and emphatically. He understands which helps him provide an avenue for building competence. He has a great representation from his experiences with other people and events. He has an evolving sense of creativity. -During lunch time, while talking with his peers, Christian said, Lets play Simon says. Simon says touch your water. Now touch the table. Simon didnt say. He continued to play the game and others took their turn as Simon. -When sharing information about his family, Christian shared, My cousin is ten; I have two cousins, Austin and Neta. -When showing me his plant project, Christian said, Look Miss Stacy, my plant is taller than all the other plants. He continued to talk about what he noticed about the other plants. At recess, Christian said, Look I found a dandelion; its so bright and yellow. Recommendations: Continue to encourage his unique interpretation of objects, people, and places. Show him how to appreciate art and encourage him to share his reactions to pictures, songs, and stories. For example, during spring time, ask him to describe what the weather is like, nature, sounds, and animals. Appreciate his creativity and make it meaningful in his everyday experiences. Playing

with blocks, painting, drawing, relating models, and pictures to real things will spark a lot of creativity.

THANK YOU

It was a pleasure observing Christian. He is a magnificent child, with a bright and promising future ahead. I would like to personally like to thank Christians parents for the opportunity to learn and further my education in early childhood. He showed me the extraordinary, amazing, and creative light through a childs eyes. I was truly inspired by this experience and will continue to always practice excellence in the education field. Children are the voice and adults of our future. Watching Christians everyday experiences and interactions with others makes me proud of our children and excited for what is in store for the future ahead.

Sincerely, Stacy Bloom