Date Created: December 6th, 2016

Date Submitted: Fall 2016

Title of Artifact: Observation 4: Child Study
New Jersey Professional Standards for Teachers: Standard One Learner
Development

I am placing my artifact, Observation 4: Child Study, under Standard One Learner

Development as evidence of continued mastery of understanding the various techniques
of teaching and learning. Through this observation, I had the ability to observe several
ways to differentiate lessons to reach all student capabilities. Through discussion of the
cognitive, physical, social and emotional domains I have a greater understanding of how
students progress and develop. This observation proves my ability to recognize patterns
of learning and development through research of developmentally appropriate and
challenging educational practices.

References:
New Jersey Professional Standards for Teachers. (2014, August 4). Retrieved from
http://www.state.nj.us/education/code/current/title6a/chap9.pdf

I. Observation 4:
 The Four Domains of the Child

II. Grade:
Preschool
III. Student(s):
Age 4
IV. Setting:
Self-Contained Preschool Classroom
V. Pre-Observation:
Prior to completing this observation I spent time brainstorming which student

would be most effective to observe for this topic. I wanted to challenge myself

to learn more about how children develop throughout early childhood. Pre-

Observational research was needed for me to gain a greater understanding of

the four domains of the child. I have previous recognition of learning about

them in Child Development and Early Childhood Education at my high school

but it was necessary to read through updated academic scholarly articles.

Authors of Developmental Dynamics of Emotion and Cognition Processes in

Preschoolers, Blankson et al. explain, Understanding the developmental

dynamics among emotional and cognitive processes can enhance our

understanding of the complex interplay across domains that are often

investigated as if they were independent. Longer term longitudinal work that

includes measures of both cognitive and emotional functioning assessed using

different methodological approaches is likely to unravel more of the reciprocal

relations among these processes, (p. 358). I discovered how crucial it is to

recognize the connections and relations between the four domains. By

understanding these similarities it makes teaching to the whole child entirely

more efficient.
VI. Data:
*View attached appendices*
VII. Analysis:
In a matter of only a few months I have seen this student make great strides in

many aspects of their development. The student began this school year with

delays for their age in all four domains. As for their cognitive development,

they were struggling with memorization, number sense, and simple problem

solving. As the school year went by they began to grasp the concept of

classification. They were able to identify and distinguish between different

pictures and photographs. The teacher I have been observing had the child

working on processing skills everyday. They were asked to sit still for at least

10 to 15 minutes and complete a variety of activities based on the childs

developmental needs. Anytime the student got distracted or when off topic she

was able to bring them back on track and focused on the activity. According to

Darling-Churchill and Lippman, authors of, Early Childhood Social and

Emotional Development: Advancing the Field of Measurement, state,

Research indicates that social skills and accompanying process skills (e.g.,

attention and approaches to learning) evident at school entry (i.e. by about age

5) are the best predictors of later social and emotional competencies, such as

managing behavior, making social connections, and tolerating frustration with

peers, (2016, para. 6). By the teacher aiding the student in attention and

processing skills it will help them down the road with other areas of their

development. Although at the students age they struggled to maintain strong

relationships with adults and peers. They were able to play in solitude without

any issues but when another student was brought in conflicts started to occur.

The student I was observing started to break down because he wanted to play
alone. This could have been due to outside factors on that specific day

although, it is crucial to make note of any out of the ordinary behavior.

Emotionally this child started the year with delays in this area. I recall the

teacher having discourse with me about this student going through personal

family issues at home, which could severely impact their behavior at school.

Although, through the school year I saw this student and teacher develop a

strong rapport. When the student was in the main classroom they shut down

and were quiet but when they got pulled out into the speech therapy room they

opened up and began participate freely in all of the activities planned for the

day. According to Berry et al., author(s) of Household Chaos and Childrens

Cognitive and Socio-emotional Development in Early Childhood: Does

Childcare Play a Buffering Role, state, Notably, young children raised in

high-risk contexts spend substantial amounts of time in environments outside

of their homes in some sort of formal (i.e., center-based) or informal (e.g.,

home-based, neighbor, and relative) non-parental childcare. A growing

number of findings from large-scale longitudinal studies of children in context

suggest that childrens childcare experiences may play a buffering role against

the detrimental effects of high-risk contexts on development, (2016, para. 6).

As a teacher it is crucial to be someone the child looks up to and feels

comfortable with. It is our responsibility to help children find the passion to

learn. Although this child may have delays in aspects of their development,

their physical domain is flourishing. They had no issues with any gross motor

skills. There were some minor challenges with fine motor skills such as
 holding a pencil and cutting. I had the opportunity to see the child interact on

the playground and this area of their development seems to be exceeding the

others.
VIII. Recommendations:
The first recommendation I would have for this speech therapist is to

incorporate more physical activity into her lesson plans and daily activities.

With children of this age, it is hard for them to sit and keep their attention for

long periods of time. I would recommend taking a minute break after working

for a good period of time in order to keep the students focus. Carson et al.,

authors of Review: Systematic review of Physical Activity and Cognitive

Development in Early Childhood, state, Early childhood represents a period

when life-long habits for physical activity can be formed; therefore, regular

physical activity should be promoted to optimize life-long cognitive health,

(2016, para. 25). With that being said, it is crucial for students at this young

age to be participating in activities that get them to be more active. It is crucial

for parents and teachers to be involved as well. Krakow, author of Physical

Activity in Early Childhood: Setting the Stage for Lifelong Healthy Habits,

claims, Research has shown that young children tend to be more active if

their parents participate in physical activity and are active with them, and if

they spend more time outside, (p. 2). If parents and teachers become more

actively involved in their children and students every day life, it is proven that

their children will be more active and have stronger cognitive development.
IX. Post-Observation:
After completing this observation I feel as if I have learned more than I ever

expected I could have. Being able to be out in the field and have the
 opportunity to observe first hand and see what works and what can be

improved upon is extremely helpful in my educational development. I feel as

if I was more challenged with observation than any of the others prior. It

required hours of teacher action research and analysis. There is more to

teaching than anyone could ever imagine. Authors of Assessing Early

Childhood Social and Emotional Development: Key Conceptual and

Measurement Issues, Jones et al. explain, With sufficient understanding of

contexts, in conjunction with individual children's skills, we will be better able

to understand and make judgments about what may be a young child's

legitimate responses to harsh and challenging environments, and perhaps

identify a need for a setting-directed intervention, (para. 14). As a teacher it

is extremely important to be aware of and understand each individual students

needs and abilities in order to properly provide them with the education they

need.
X. Citations
Berry, D., Blair, C., Willoughby, M., Garrett-Peters, P., Vernon-Feagans, L., &

Mills-Koonce, W. R. (2016). Household chaos and childrens cognitive

and socio-emotional development in early childhood: Does childcare

play a buffering role?. Early Childhood Research Quarterly, 34115-

127. doi:10.1016/j.ecresq.2015.09.003
Blankson, A. N., O'Brien, M., Leerkes, E. M., Marcovitch, S., Calkins, S. D.,

& Weaver, J. M. (2013). Developmental Dynamics of Emotion and

Cognition Processes in Preschoolers. Child Development, 84(1), 346-

360. doi:10.1111/j.1467-8624.2012.01841.x
Carson, V., Hunter, S., Kuzik, N., Wiebe, S. A., Spence, J. C., Friedman, A., &

... Hinkley, T. (2016). Review: Systematic review of physical activity

and cognitive development in early childhood. Journal Of Science And

Medicine In Sport, 19573-578. doi:10.1016/j.jsams.2015.07.011

Darling-Churchill, K. E., & Lippman, L. (2016). Early childhood social and

emotional development: Advancing the field of measurement. Journal

Of Applied Developmental Psychology, 45(Measuring Social and

Emotional Development in Early Childhood), 1-7.

doi:10.1016/j.appdev.2016.02.002
Jones, S. M., Zaslow, M., Darling-Churchill, K. E., & Halle, T. G. (2016).

Assessing early childhood social and emotional development: Key

conceptual and measurement issues. Journal Of Applied

Developmental Psychology, 45(Measuring Social and Emotional

Development in Early Childhood), 42-48.

doi:10.1016/j.appdev.2016.02.008
Krakow, E. (2011, April). Physical Activity in Early Childhood: Setting the

Stage for Lifelong Healthy Habits. Retrieved from

http://www.excellence-earlychildhood.ca/documents/parenting_2011-

04.pdf