Inquiry 1
| Site: | MoodleHUB.ca 🍁 |
| Course: | Early Learning and Child Care 30 Modules |
| Book: | Inquiry 1 |
| Printed by: | Guest user |
| Date: | Thursday, 18 September 2025, 3:26 PM |
Description
Created by IMSreader
1. Inquiry 1
Session 3: Observing Young Children
Inquiry 1: Why Observe Children?
Watching and recording what children do and say can be an effective way to get to know them. Children are continually processing information, watching others play, attempting new skills, deciding on different activities, and absorbing the environment around them.
Child care providers who watch and record children’s facial expressions, body language, oral language, and actions learn about children’s development and developmental needs. With this information, child care providers can set up activities and programs that focus on the likes, interests, and developmental needs of the children in their care. Observation also encourages teamwork among child care providers, as it provides a chance to explore new ideas and make changes to the program.
The Value of Child Care Providers’ Observations of Children
Important: It is important to remember when observing children that the notes child care providers take and share with others (e.g., colleagues, family members, community agencies) are discussed in a positive way. Sharing information from observations should be done to enhance the child’s development and to identify areas of growth.
When child care providers observe children’s behaviour in a natural child care setting, the benefits are as follows:
- increased sensitivity and understanding of each child’s uniqueness, and the opportunity to plan appropriate activities
- increased sensitivity and understanding of all children and their needs
- the ability to set up the environment (room arrangement, equipment, materials) to appropriately meet the needs of individual children
- the ability to establish an appropriate daily schedule based on the children’s needs
- the opportunity to provide more appropriate experiences for children based on the knowledge of what children want to learn
- the opportunity to sequence learning and to introduce new ideas regarding learning that fit the children observed
- more effective guidance of the children’s behaviour
- more accurate information provided to parents, co-workers, and community referral agencies
- modelling of respect for, and interest in, others
- demonstrated personal insight into professional understanding
- increased satisfaction with the profession of being a child care provider
1.1. Learning Activity 1
Session 3: Observing Young Children
Learning Activity 1: Learning from Observing
Focus
Watching and recording what children do and say can be an effective way for child care providers to get to know the children and to plan programs that are developmentally appropriate.
Directions
Step 1: Watch the video clip “Learning from Observing.”
After you have finished watching the video, complete Part 1 of Learning Activity 1: Learning from Observing.
Step 2: When making observations it is important to remember to focus on only one child, as doing so will provide more detailed and useful observations. Watch the video clip “Learning from Observing” for a second time. This time, choose one child to observe closely. Remember to pay attention to the child’s facial expressions, body language, oral language, and actions. Then complete Part 2 of Learning Activity 1: Learning from Observing.
Step 3: Watch the video clip “Learning from Observing” for a third and final time. This time, record observations about the child you observed in Step 2 while you watch the video. Then, complete Part 3 of Learning Activity 1: Learning from Observing.
Checking In
Save your completed learning activity in the appropriate sub-folder of your course folder.