Inquiry 4
| Site: | MoodleHUB.ca 🍁 |
| Course: | Early Learning and Child Care 30 Modules |
| Book: | Inquiry 4 |
| Printed by: | Guest user |
| Date: | Thursday, 18 September 2025, 3:25 PM |
Description
Created by IMSreader
1. Inquiry 4
Session 3: Observing Young Children
Inquiry 4: Making Thoughtful Inferences
inferences: conclusions based on facts gathered from observations
Inferences, or interpretations of patterns, are conclusions based on facts gathered from observations. Child care providers can find clues to children’s behaviours and responses that help them plan appropriate programming for the future. When a set of behaviours is repeated, such as when a child acts aggressively to a situation or withdraws quickly during different situations, you can see a characteristic pattern for that child.
An inference statement includes an interpretation of the behaviour, feeling, or ability. Thoughtful inferences are the conclusions reached about the collection of observations and their patterns after careful consideration. They are based on what is developmentally appropriate for the child. You will learn more about children’s development as you progress through the Early Learning and Child Care courses.
Thoughtful inferences should follow these guidelines:
- be a tentative statement (best guess based on knowledge of the child and the collection of data)
- be based only on that observable behaviour
There are different ways to word inferences. Some examples follow:
- It appears that . . .
- It seems that . . .
- Maybe this shows that . . .
- I think that . . .
- A possible explanation is . . .
- Perhaps the child is able to . . .
- This could mean that . . .
- The child probably understands . . .
Important: Always make sure that you gather information in a way that ensures the information remains confidential. Never leave your notes where children or their family members could read them.
A child care provider’s personal history and experiences can affect the way the provider observes and interprets children’s behaviour. Being aware of how your thinking is shaped by your understanding of culture, upbringing, language, and traditions can help you recognize your biases when making inferences or interpretations of observations and to remain as objective as possible. Acknowledging a child’s cultural practices, values, and traditions can help you identify whether or not there should be concern about the observable behaviour.
Checking My Understanding
Recording Observable Behaviour
Directions
Complete the multimedia activity “Recording Observable Behaviour.” As always in this course, the names and situations are fictitious.
1.1. Learning Activity 4
Session 3: Observing Young Children
Learning Activity 4: Cultural Effects on Observations
Culture and experiences affect every activity, every choice, and every decision you make, whether the choice is conscious or not. Your family’s traditions and experiences affect the way you react to stimuli in the environment and draw conclusions about what you see.
A caregiver’s personal history and experiences can affect the way he or she observes and interprets children’s behaviour. Being aware of these factors helps caregivers remain as objective as possible. Caregivers’ personal understandings of culture, upbringing, language, and traditions can help them recognize their own biases when making inferences or interpretations regarding observations. Acknowledging a child’s cultural practices, values, and traditions can help identify whether or not there should be a concern about the observable behaviour.
Focus
Child care providers may interpret children’s behaviour differently because of their own cultural backgrounds and experiences with their families and at school. Think about your own background before determining an outcome to observable behaviour.
Directions
Step 1: Read the scenario Lunch and consider the corresponding circles of influences. As always in this course, the characters in this scenario are fictitious.
Step 2: Complete Part 1 of Learning Activity 4: Cultural Effects on Observations.
Step 3: Read the scenario Pancakes, and then consider the corresponding circles of influences.
Step 4: Complete Part 2 of Learning Activity 4: Cultural Effects on Observations.
Step 5: Complete Part 3 of Learning Activity 4: Cultural Effects on Observations.
Step 6: Review the Student Checklist for Learning Activity 4: Cultural Effects on Observations. Assess your work and make any necessary adjustments.
Checking In
Save your completed learning activity and your checklist in the appropriate sub-folder of your course folder.