E.B.

Prof. Westfall

ECE 232

27 April 2018

Experiences

Class average age (in months): 19 months

Area: Sensory

Activity Plan: Getting hands-on with gelatin.

Primary Objective: Experiencing the sensory properties of gelatin – its texture, its translucency,

and its ability to be easily pierced and squeezed.

Secondary Objective(s): Strengthening fine motor skills with grasping and squeezing.

Experience description: Caregiver places several different objects, such as a plastic spoon, lids,

and plastic eggs, into a shallow plastic tub. Tub is filled with gelatin mixture until objects are

covered, then refrigerated until firm. The tub is then brought into the classroom and put on the

floor in front of the children. Children will then touch and experiment with the gelatin,

eventually digging out the toys.

Materials: plastic tub; variety of objects (spoon, eggs, lid); gelatin mix; washcloths

Scaffolding (child’s prior knowledge to build on): This activity builds on the child’s prior

knowledge of object permanence – that objects are still there even when they’re out of sight. The

activity described here takes that concept in a different direction; rather than out of sight, the toys

are out of hand. The child can see them, but can’t touch them, until they experience digging
through the gelatin to get to the toys.

It also builds on their knowledge of water, which is both translucent and something you can put

your hands into. However, gelatin is not a liquid – it’s a solid, albeit a soft solid. This activity

will build on their current knowledge and expand it.

Plan for carrying out experience (what caregiver will do): The caregiver will place the tubs on

the ground near the children and encourage them to touch the gelatin and notice the objects

underneath. She will give hints and cues on how the children might obtain the objects,

demonstrating if necessary by poking into the gelatin with her hand. As the children poke at the

gelatin and experience its properties, the caregiver will reflect what is happening back to them,

with comments like “Ooh, it’s a little cold huh? Can you squeeze it? It’s pretty squishy! How can

we dig that spoon out?”

Outcome (was activity of interest to children – why/why not, was outcome what was expected,

did something happen that wasn’t expected, what might be changed/added to make experience

more interesting to children, or other): (Note: Since this involved three boys of the same age, I

will refer to them as A, B, and C.) I brought the tub out during outside time, and immediately

two boys came up to me to see what I was doing. I said, “You’re looking to see what I have in

my hands.” I placed the tub on the table. One boy tugged at the lid, and I said, “Can you help me

take this lid off?” I pried part of it off, then let him remove it. This boy, A, was the first to put a

hand it. He touched the surface of the gelatin, then looked at me with a big smile. He touched it

again and laughed. “That’s a new texture, isn’t it? It’s cold too!”

The other boy, B, joined in at this point. He was more hesitant. When he did touch it, he smiled

too, then began working on freeing a plastic egg from the gelatin. This seemed to be more

interesting to him than the overall texture.

Meanwhile, A was touching the gelatin with a flat hand. I commented, “It’s pretty wiggly and

bouncy!” while pushing on the gelatin with one hand. With some encouragement and modeling

(“Try poking it!”), he pushed a finger into the gelatin. After more experimentation, he poked

more finger in, then eventually started grabbing handfuls of gelatin. At one point, he took his

gelatin-covered hands and wiped them all over the table.

While A experimented, B was retaining interest in the gelatin, but didn’t seem to enjoy the

texture on his hands. He would play for a minute, then ask for his hands to be cleaned. After he

had gotten the egg out, he worked on freeing a cup. He pulled on it for a bit, then looked at me

and sort of shrugged with a questioning look. I pulled on the cup with him to show it could be

freed, then said “Can you get the rest of the cup out?” He said, “No.” He put his hands in the

gelatin for another moment, then got his hands cleaned and left the table.

Another boy, C, was riding a bike in another part of the outdoor area. He rode over at this point,

got off the bike, ran over, and stuck his hand in the gelatin. His eyes widened and his mouth

opened a bit. He squished his hands in the churned-up gelatin that A had created. He didn’t stay

long, maybe a minute or two.

A, however, had come back from rubbing his hands on the table, and pulled out the cup that B

had loosened. He saw that the cup was full of gelatin and tried to pour it out! When it didn’t pour

out, he gave me a confused look and babbled. I said, “You’re right, it’s not coming out! It’s

stuck! Let’s poke a finger in there and get it out.” I poked one finger in and loosened the gelatin,

then A shook it out. He then pressed the cup down into the gelatin repeatedly, almost like you

would with a cookie cutter. After that, he used the cup to scoop and pour the gelatin. He also

grabbed handfuls of gelatin and put them into my hand, to which of course I said, “Oh thank

you.” He combined these methods and used the cup to scoop gelatin out of the tub, then pour it
into my hand!

The scooping, pouring, and putting into my hand were unexpected but welcome variants. All of

the children were interested in the activity, but one in particular displayed the experimentation

that I was hoping for.

Assessment:

A. How do I determine the success of this activity? I determine the success of this activity by

observing the children’s reactions and behaviors with the gelatin. What I most want them to take

away from this experience is fun playing with a new texture, but also to display recognition of its

properties by sticking a hand completely in the gelatin.

B. Did children change knowledge based on this experience? (Do I see this new knowledge

being displayed in other areas, when not being prompted by caregiver, etc.) I have seen these

three boys frequently put their hands into containers of water after realizing it wasn’t empty –

that there was actually water in there. As they have had no other experiences with gelatin, they

have not shown this new knowledge anywhere else.

Next step (Were children not ready for this experience and activity/expectation be lowered, does

experience need to be repeated for further exploration, should another aspect of experience be

explored by children, or other – be specific): This was a new concept for the children (I

specifically asked if they had experienced gelatin before, and they had not). Similar to ice or

water, but different enough that I would like to repeat it to see if they remember gelatin’s

properties. No child fully stuck their hand down into the bottom of the tub. They stayed within

an inch of the surface.

Also, retrieving objects was only a priority for B. This wasn’t a problem or set-back, but I

thought it would have been more of a focus. I have seen B have a fascination with buckles, lids,
and other things you can pull apart and put together. This is likely why he was interested in

getting the objects out, even when he didn’t entirely like the texture of the gelatin.

Class average age (in months): 16 months

Area: Motor

Activity Plan: Fine motor skills and shape sorting.

Primary Objective: Strengthen fine motor grasping skills.

Secondary Objective(s): Use precise movements to place lids in correctly-sized holes;

cooperate with other children playing at the same time.

Experience description: Children are provided with plastic lids and two cardboard boxes, each

with three different holes: one large round hole, one more like a slot, and a large flap on the

bottom to let the lids out. They are then shown how to grasp the lids and place them into the

holes to the best of their abilities.

Materials: 2 cardboard boxes with holes of varying sizes; plastic lids of varying sizes

Scaffolding (child’s prior knowledge to build on): Whole arm and whole hand strength; previous

experience with grasping or pincher motions; experience with shape-sorting toys; awareness of

the presence of others.

Plan for carrying out experience (what caregiver will do): Caregiver will place boxes next to

children and verbally encourage children and model how to place the objects in the holes. If

children have difficulty placing objects in, caregiver will hold a lid in the correct spot and
encourage the child to push it into the hole, or with the older child, simply suggest turning the lid

to better fit.

Outcome (was activity of interest to children – why/why not, was outcome what was expected,

did something happen that wasn’t expected, what might be changed/added to make experience

more interesting to children, or other): Three out of the four children in the room participated. It

held one girl’s attention for a minute or two, a boy’s for three minutes, and another girl’s for five

minutes or more! This girl was deeply engrossed in the activity, and one caregiver said that she

had shown previous interest in shape sorter toys. She and the boy found the “back door” flap on

the bottom, which easily lets all the lids out of the box. I didn’t expect them to use this flap! All

of the children preferred the large round hole over the skinny slot, and all reached their hands

into this large hole to retrieve the lids.

The two younger girls could put lids into the slot after seeing me model it, and when I held a lid

over the slot for them to push in. The boy could do it only after seeing me do it once.

Assessment:

A. How do I determine the success of this activity? If the children involved spend time picking

up the lids, exercising their fine motor skills, that’s success. Further success would be placing the

lids in the boxes, but grasping the lids satisfies the purpose of the activity.

B. Did children change knowledge based on this experience? Later in the day, after we had done

the activity, the boy had taken a lid from the box and attempted to fit it into a shape sorter toy!

He was showing that he had learned – whether it was that the box activity was similar to a shape

sorter, or that the round lid could fit elsewhere, I’m not sure. But this seemed to be evidence that

he really got the concept. I’ve also seen another boy fitting objects in the space between the

bookshelf and the wall, and he turns objects if they do not fit right away.
Next step: The boy is more prepared for something that requires rotating or manipulating objects

to fit than the girls are. I think all the children were ready for it; the boy was more successful on

his own than the others, and the girls were challenged by it. It could definitely be repeated for

more exploration. It could be slightly changed to include different shapes, or for the lids to be

further rotated into differently-shaped holes, requiring the lids to be inserted at an angle.

Class average age (in months): 17 months

Area: Language

Activity Plan: Modelling words through an art experience.

Primary Objective: Demonstrate word knowledge and comprehension.

Secondary Objective(s): Enjoy a sensory experience.

Experience description: While outside, the caregiver will invite children to use sponges to

experiment with chalk paint. She will label colors, shapes, textures, and the actions of the child,

and take note of whether the child can demonstrate word knowledge (i.e., if the caregiver says

“Why don’t you try a green sponge?”, the child looks toward, touches, or picks up the green

sponge).

Materials: labelled plastic bottles containing chalk “paint” (sidewalk chalk mixed with water) of

three different colors; several sponges of varying colors, shapes, and textures; 2 small baskets

Scaffolding (child’s prior knowledge to build on): Experience with color, shape, and texture

words being said and demonstrated; grasping fine motor skills.

Plan for carrying out experience (what caregiver will do): The caregiver will put the sponges

on the ground outside, in reach of the children. The chalk paint, however, will stay out of reach.

She will start with one color, pouring some paint onto the concrete, and slowly add all three

colors. If no children have expressed interest at this point, she will model how to soak in paint

with a sponge, how to “paint” using the sponges to spread paint across the concrete, and say to

the children “Would you like to play in the paint? We have lots of different colored sponges to

try!” Afterward, she will facilitate the activity by labelling the children’s actions and modelling

language.

Outcome (was activity of interest to children – why/why not, was outcome what was expected,

did something happen that wasn’t expected, what might be changed/added to make experience

more interesting to children, or other): While a couple others joined for a brief moment, only one

child participated fully. I believe this was due to the time of day (late afternoon rather than

mornings when they’re more energetic) and the fact that another caregiver was engaging some

children with a hose. However, it could be that it just wasn’t an interesting activity to them!

The child who participated watched me intently as I removed the bottles and sponges from a bag

and placed them on the cabinet. I placed the sponges in baskets and put the baskets on the

ground. The boy pointed at the bottles and whimpered. I said, “You are interested in these

bottles! I have some chalk paint for you. Which one would you like first?” He pointed to the pink

one and babble a word. “You want the pink one?” He said “Yeah”, so I uncapped the bottle and

poured out the liquid onto the concrete.

He watched the puddle form, then picked up a pink sponge. I said, “A pink sponge to go with the

pink paint!” He smiled and dabbed at the paint with the sponge. He also touched it with his

hands. I said, “The sponge is soaking up the paint! Squeeze it!” He squeezed the sponge and
watch the paint drip to the ground, smiling. He looked at the other sponges and lightly touched

one of the scrubbers. I said, “That one is rough and scratchy! Can you feel that different

texture?” The boy picked up the scrubber and squeezed it.

He asked for blue paint and then yellow, in the same manner he used for the pink paint. Each

time, he pointed right at the one he wanted and babbled the same kind of word, which sounded

like “bahboo” and perhaps “bahloo”. At first I took this to mean “blue”, but he used it every

time. He used different sponges, squishing them into the paint and dragging them around. I

watched, labelled his actions, and once modelled what could be done with the sponges.

At one point, the boy walked through the paint with his bare feet and left a trail of footprints. I

said “Look [Name]! The paint on your feet left footprints on the ground!” The boy looked down

and grinned.

The pink paint began to run into the yellow, making a peach-orange color. I drew the boy’s

attention to this: “The colors are combining! There’s a new color now!” All he did to

acknowledge this even was pat the orange with his hands a few times before going back to

squeezing his sponge.

The activity ended when the boy decided to join the other children on the other side of the

outdoor area.

Assessment:

A. How do I determine the success of this activity? Success in this activity means that one or

more children was able to respond to the caregiver’s statements or questions, whether verbally or

(more likely) physically. This could be as simple as the child touching a sponge lightly when the

caregiver notes that “it’s scratchier than the others”, or as complex as the child verbally

answering a question with “yes”, “no”, or with another word. Children can understand so much
more than they’re able to verbally express, so this activity is looking for behavioral signs of that

understanding.

B. Did children change knowledge based on this experience? (Do I see this new knowledge

being displayed in other areas, when not being prompted by caregiver, etc.) With the boy who

participated, I have often seen him ask for things in his own babbling language. Sometimes the

caregivers understand, and sometimes they don’t. But he is able to point to things and do his best

to talk. He only knows a few true words, so if those words don’t apply to the situation, all he can

do is use his babble words.

Next step (Were children not ready for this experience and activity/expectation be lowered, does

experience need to be repeated for further exploration, should another aspect of experience be

explored by children, or other – be specific): Having the child ask for more paint worked well.

There wasn’t really an aspect that was too advanced for him. Repetition at a different time with

more children would be interesting and would likely reveal new facets of the activity.

Class average age (in months): 19 months

Area: Health/Nutrition

Activity Plan: An early experience with toothbrushes.

Primary Objective: Gaining experience and familiarity with holding and utilizing a toothbrush.

Secondary Objective(s): Strengthening fine motor muscles.

Experience description: Caregiver hands out small toddler toothbrushes and water cups to the

class, and models how to use them with a toothbrush of her own. If children retain interest, the

caregiver will show a photo of children brushing their teeth.

Materials: small toddler toothbrushes; water cups; printed picture of toothbrushing children;

plastic tray

Scaffolding (child’s prior knowledge to build on): Knowledge of what toothbrushes are and

what they are used for; prior observance of family members using toothbrushes; grasping and

pincher motion skills.

Plan for carrying out experience (what caregiver will do): Caregiver will provide visual

representation via the picture and her own demonstrations. She will verbally encourage toddlers

in their activities – “Yes, the toothbrush goes in your mouth! It’s to keep your teeth clean!” She

understands that children won’t be able to independently or skillfully brush their teeth until

they’re older and keeps that in mind during this fun practice activity.

Outcome (was activity of interest to children – why/why not, was outcome what was expected,

did something happen that wasn’t expected, what might be changed/added to make experience

more interesting to children, or other): Two boys, both 19 months old, participated. One saw me

carrying the water cups and immediately showed interest; the other followed closely behind.

They were both straining to see what I was holding.

When I put the cups and brushes down on the tray in front of them, one of them pulled the brush

out by its handle, looked at it, and touched the bristles with his fingers. I asked, “Have you seen

that before? What do you do with that?” He stuck it in his mouth, as did the other boy. They

moved the brushes around in their mouths, similar to how an adult would brush their teeth.
“Wow, you know what to do with those brushes! Their toothbrushes, to clean your teeth!” The

other caregiver in the room sang the “When You Wake Up in the Morning… Brush Your Teeth”

song, and she and I demonstrated the brushing motions.

This activity had some social-emotional components as well as fine motor. One boy kept

attempting to dip his brush into the other boy’s water cup, even when we repeatedly reminded

him “you have a water cup right here”. This boy also lost interest in the “brushing teeth” long

before the other boy. He ended up tapping his brush onto the tray and table and tipped his water

out. He enjoyed looking at the picture of children however.

The other boy stayed at it for a solid six, seven minutes or more. He methodically dipped his

brush into the cup, brushed around in his mouth, then dipped again. He laughed and spun around

sometimes as he did so. He seemed to really enjoy it.

Both boys seemed very familiar with the brushes. It’s likely that they have their teeth brushed by

their parents at home. Overall, I would rate this activity a success. They had some prior

knowledge of what the brushes are for, they could hold them and utilize them well, and I was

able to model how to brush and to label the brushes as “toothbrushes for cleaning the germs off

your teeth”.

Assessment:

A. How do I determine the success of this activity? What I’m looking for is a reflection of prior

knowledge – that the children already know what to do with a toothbrush. With this age of the

children, I don’t really know what to each. The younger children may only have experienced

having their gums wiped down with a soft cloth, but the year-and-a-half-old children might have

even used a toothbrush with their parents. At the very least, it’s likely that they’ve seen their

parents brush their teeth. In any case, while I’m very interested to see prior knowledge, I most
want to see if the children can learn through this experience what a toothbrush does, or at least

what actions go along with it (i.e. putting it in mouth, brushing).

B. Did children change knowledge based on this experience? (Do I see this new knowledge

being displayed in other areas, when not being prompted by caregiver, etc.) I have not seen this

knowledge displayed anywhere else, as there is no toothbrush object or activity in the classroom.

Next step (Were children not ready for this experience and activity/expectation be lowered, does

experience need to be repeated for further exploration, should another aspect of experience be

explored by children, or other – be specific): The boys who participated were definitely ready for

the experience, but it would be interesting to repeat it with the younger children, like the 12-

month-old or 14-month-old. Do they also have knowledge of toothbrushes?

Class average age (in months): 19 months

Area: Social/Emotional

Activity Plan: Bubble fun.

Primary Objective: Taking turns, being aware of other people, cooperation while playing

together.

Secondary Objective(s): Motor skills with grasping, blowing, and running – a mix of fine and

gross motor skills.

Experience description: The caregiver will blow bubbles for the children, watching them

interact with the bubbles however they choose. She will offer to let those interested to attempt

blowing bubbles themselves.

Materials: large bubble tube

Scaffolding (child’s prior knowledge to build on): Walking; running; blowing out air; grasping

skills; awareness of the presence of others.

Plan for carrying out experience (what caregiver will do): The caregiver will get out the

colorful tube of bubbles and say, “Would anyone like to play with bubbles?” If no children come

near, she will begin blowing bubbles to see if it sparks a child’s interest.

If at least one child is close and appears interested in the activity, the caregiver will say, “Would

you like a turn blowing bubbles?” and will hold out the bubble wand to the child. The caregiver

will model and encourage the child to blow on the wand to make bubbles but will let them

choose to interact with the wand however they choose.

Outcome (was activity of interest to children – why/why not, was outcome what was expected,

did something happen that wasn’t expected, what might be changed/added to make experience

more interesting to children, or other): The two oldest children, two 19-month-old boys,

participated. Another caregiver and I blew bubbles for them for a bit, then offered the wands to

them. I held onto the bubble tube while the boy clenched the wand, waved it, and repeatedly

stuck it back down in the tube, all without blowing bubbles. He did eventually attempt to blow

bubbles, three times, and was successful twice. He used the wand to try to pop the bubbles, and I

could hear him saying “pop, pop” quietly.

This boy attempted to take the tube from me, but I held it firmly and said, “I’m going to hold this

part, but you can hold the wand!” He also attempted to take the other boy’s wand, but I told him

that he already had a wand all to his own. After these first attempts, the boy didn’t try to grab

anymore.

What I didn’t expect was the boy held out the wand to me! He dipped it down into the tube, then
pulled it out and held it close to my face while looking at me. I said, “Oh, you want me to blow

bubbles? Thank you for holding it for me!” before blowing. It was almost as if he was thinking,

“Well we’re all taking turns, so she should get a turn too!” It was a social-emotional awareness I

wasn’t expecting in the slightest.

Another social-emotional aspect that was unexpected was when the same boy flicked soap into

my eyes on accident. As I took my glasses off and rubbed my eye, I said, “Miss Elisabeth got

bubbles in her eye! Ouch.” The boy took the wand and held it up close to his own eye and said,

“Eye?” I replied, “Yes, my eye is hurting.”

Also unexpectedly, the boys enjoyed putting the green wand on the red tube and the red wand on

the green tube. It was fun to see them almost working together for the same goal, whether that’s

what they intended or not.

Assessment:

A. How do I determine the success of this activity? The success of this activity largely hinges on

at least two children being involved. More children involved means more opportunities for

children to learn about taking turns, not grabbing from other children, and being aware of other

people. If there is only one child involved, the goal is that they will at least learn that the

caregiver is going to hold the wand for them and that they cannot grab in this situation. At its

root, this activity is about learning regulation and controlling impulses.

B. Did children change knowledge based on this experience? (Do I see this new knowledge

being displayed in other areas, when not being prompted by caregiver, etc.) The boy pointed to

his own eye when I said my eye hurt. I have seen him (as well as the other boy) doing this in

response to other children’s injuries or even injuries in books. If a book character bumps their
head, the boys will rub their own head, sometimes saying “ow!”. Or if they see another child fall

down, they may say “ow” or rub their arms. It’s as if they can remember how getting hurt feels.

Next step (Were children not ready for this experience and activity/expectation be lowered, does

experience need to be repeated for further exploration, should another aspect of experience be

explored by children, or other – be specific): The children involved were definitely ready for this

experience. What might have made it more challenging is having only one tube of bubbles, and

only one caregiver’s attention. Two boys each having a caregiver and a bubble tube to interact

with made “taking turns” less impactful, but as they are grabby toddlers, they still had to control

their impulses for this activity!

Having only one coveted item would really make the children have to wait their turns and be

more aware that others want to enjoy the same thing they’re enjoying. Repeating this experience

with more children and/or only one bubble tube would likely create the right balance to foster

this awareness.