I.

II.

Observation 10:
Child Study
Grade:
Kindergarten

III.

Student:
1 Girl

IV.

Setting:
Lamonte Elementary School
Kindergarten Classroom
17 Students, 1 Teacher, 1 Student Teacher

V.

VI.

Pre-Observation:
The direction of this observation is to observe the progress of a single student over time.
During this initial observation, I observed the child during certain events throughout my
time in the classroom. Prior to going into the classroom, I researched what milestones
children should reach by the age of five. To collect my data, I used a checklist from the
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. I used my knowledge of the classroom
schedule to plan out when I would focus my observation on this student. I decided to
observe the students social, emotional, cognitive and physical development during
different classroom activities. Specifically, for this final observation, I chose to observe
the student during a social time: breakfast.
Data:
Social and Emotional Development
Milestone
Wants to please friends
Wants to be like friends
Agrees with rules
Likes to sing and dance
Is aware of gender
Can tell what is real and
what is pretend

Yes

Independence
Is sometimes demanding
and/or cooperative

No

Language and Communication

Milestone
Speaks very clearly
Tell a simple story
using full sentences
Uses future tense
Says name and
address

Milestone
Counts 10 or more
things
Can draw a person
with at least 6 body
parts
Can print some letters
or numbers
Copies a triangle and
other geometric
shapes
Knows about things
used every day, like
money and food
Milestone
Stands on one foot for
10 seconds or longer
Hops; may be able to
skip
Can do a somersault

Yes
Speech is becoming
clearer with extra help

No

Cognitive
Yes

No

Physical Development
Yes

No evidence the student

cannot do this, but no proof
they can, I believe they are
able to, no observation to

No

back this up
Uses for and spoon
and sometimes a knife

Can use the toilet

independently

Swings and climbs

VII.

No evidence the student

cannot do this, but no proof
they can, I believe they are
able to, no observation to
back this up

Analysis:
From my observation of this students social, emotional, cognitive and physical
development, I have found that this student has reached some important milestones. Over
my study of this child I have determined that the student may have a learning disability that
effects their communication skills. In my previous observations, I observed the student
during academic lessons and during gym class. For my last observation, I observed the
child in a more social way. I interacted with the student by asking them questions about
their weekend and their holiday. The student understands entirely what is being asked but it
often unsure how to answer. When I asked the student if they ate turkey at thanksgiving
dinner, the student replied yeah! I asked if they ate dinner with their family and they
replied no my mom didnt come here. I was confused by the answer but the teacher let
me know that they had a thanksgiving feast at school and the childs mother did not attend
the feast due to work. I observed the student during breakfast time, a time when the
students interact with one another. The student talked among their peers, but the other
students often can not understand what the student is saying. Compared to their peers, this
students speech is not up their level. The student can tell stories using simple sentences but
in order to understand I really had to focus on what the student is saying. The more I
interacted with the student, the more I could understand what they are saying. It is clear
that the extra help the student is receiving is helping their speech, but I still feel the student
is in need of additional guidance. I reviewed the students homework and saw that they did
not follow the directions at all (see appendix I). It is clear that, unfortunately, for this
student, they are not receiving the extra help they need at home. I understand why the
student is not getting help at home. This is because both of the students parents work long
hours. The student attends before care and after care, I was told until six in the evening
some nights. It is hard for all parents to provide for their children without working multiple
jobs. But it is apparent that this student needs more attention and help at home. In addition
to this, I also feel that the classroom environment is suitable for the needs of the students
who are on a higher level than this student. With one teacher in this classroom, I feel this
student is not getting all of the attention they need. With more attention, I believe this
student will overcome their speech delay and will be on the same level as their peers.

VIII.

IX.

Recommendations:
To continue the improvement of this students speech, they need to continue receiving extra
help. There has been some improvement as a result of this student receiving speech help
two days a week during school for thirty minutes and four days a week after school for
forty-five minutes. The student interacts more with their peers and is communicating more
than I had previously seen. But the student really only communicates when they are
interacted with by the teacher or other students. The student does not usually begin
conversations with the teacher or other students. When I start up a conversation with the
student, they are eager to interact with me. In this classroom of seventeen students, there is
only one teacher. The teacher does do an excellent job overall, but it is very hard for the
teacher to independently meet the needs of all of the students. I recommend that this
classroom have an additional teacher. An additional teacher could interact with students
and give more attention to those who need it. According to Edutopia.org, Co-teaching
allows more opportunities for small group and one-to-one learning, and stronger modeling
during lessons (2012). All of the students could benefit from having multiple teachers in
the classroom. It can take some weight off of the shoulders of the main teacher. The teacher
has told me several times how having me in the classroom even just one day a week makes
things a lot easier for her. Having an additional teacher in the classroom everyday can
absolutely benefit the students individual needs with their speech. As I stated above, the
student often interacts only when they have been interacted with. They often do not start
their own conversations. Therefore, having an additional teacher in the classroom could
further the students desire to conversate with their peers and teachers. Another
recommendation that I have is for the students home life. Although this is a long shot, I
believe the student could benefit from having more family time. If a parent could
potentially take a day off during the week to sit down and work on homework with the
child, they would be receiving necessary attention to help with homework and also their
communication skills. If it is not possible for the parents to take additional time off,
something as simple as this could help this student, Some parents awaken their families a
few minutes earlier each morning so that everyone can eat breakfast together and thus share
a few minutes with one another as the day begins (HealthyChildren.org, 2015). Just by the
student having extra time with family, they could do better on their homework which can
ultimately benefit them at school. Concluding this child study, I have high hopes that with
extra help this student will eventually develop proper communication skills and be on the
same level as their peers. Observing this student has been rewarding for the fact that I
watched them grow over the last few weeks and I am confident that they will continue to
grow emotionally, socially, physically and cognitively.
Post-Observation:
I go to Lamonte Elementary school every Tuesday from 8:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m., during
my time there I observe different classroom activities. For this observation, I specifically
observed a single student. I chose this student because I am interested in seeing them
grow socially, emotionally, intellectually as well as physically. They stand out among the
other students because they are not as developed as they are. I feel from this warm,
supportive and positive classroom environment, the student has shown growth in the

communication area. As I conclude this child study, I feel the student has shown some
positive growth, but definitely needs to continue receiving extra help for their
communication skills.
X.

Citations:
CDC | Milestones 5 Years | Learn the Signs. Act Early. | NCBDDD. (2016). Retrieved from
http://www.cdc.gov/ncbddd/actearly/milestones/milestones-5yr.html
HealthyChildren.Org. (2015). How Do The Kids Fare When Both Parents Work? HealthyChildren.org. Retrieved from
https://www.healthychildren.org/English/family-life/work-play/Pages/How-do-theKids-Fare-When-Both-Parents-Work.aspx
Kaplan, M. (2012). Collaborative Team Teaching: Challenges and Rewards | Edutopia.Org
Retrieved from https://www.edutopia.org/blog/collaborative-team-teachingchallenges-rewards-marisa-kaplan

I.

Appendix 1:

II.

Appendix 2: