Tag: how to write learning observations

How do I teach early childhood students to do observations?

~ storykate ~ Leave a comment

My classroom is always interactive, so I am quite interactive in my approach to teaching and learning. Often I share samples of observations and analyses, projects I completed as an educator. Sometimes we watch videos and make running records or jottings.

Here are some ways you can support your co-educators who are less experienced and support their learning, especially if you are an educational leader.

  1. Observation Scavenger Hunt: Provide educators with a list of specific behaviours, interactions, or developmental milestones to observe in the classroom. I love to use the Developmental Milestones book for that. They can use this list during their regular classroom activities or on placement to identify and document these observations.
  2. Video Analysis: Share video clips of children engaged in different activities and interactions. Ask educators to watch the videos and write down their observations, including both verbal and non-verbal cues. My favourite videos are from ECA https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fYv-6X6nxwo
  3. Reflective Journaling: Encourage educators to keep a reflective journal where they write about their experiences, challenges, and successes in making observations. This will help them gain insights into their own observation practices. My favourite journal is Butler Creative journal or any notebook where I can write my thoughts.
  4. Case Study Analysis: Present educators with fictional or real case studies involving children of various ages and developmental stages. Ask them to write observations based on the provided information and discuss how these observations could inform teaching and planning. Case studies are easy to find on this website https://www.qcaa.qld.edu.au/kindergarten/planning-assessing-documenting/documenting/academic-perspectives
  5. Group Discussions: Organise group discussions or workshops where educators can share their observation experiences, exchange tips, and provide feedback to each other. Peer learning is the best type of learning!
  6. Role-Playing: Conduct role-playing exercises where educators take turns playing the role of an observer and a child. This can help them practice active listening and note-taking skills.
  7. Picture Books: Create picture books or photo albums showcasing different scenarios of children’s learning and play. Ask educators to write descriptive observations based on the images.
  8. Interviewing Children: Facilitate opportunities for educators to interact with children and ask open-ended questions to learn more about their interests, preferences, and motivations. Educators can then use this information to write comprehensive observations.
  9. Comparative Observations: Provide multiple observations of the same child over time, showing their progress and growth. Ask educators to compare and analyze the observations, noting any changes or patterns.
  10. Guided Writing Prompts: Offer writing prompts or sentence starters to help educators structure their observations effectively. Gradually reduce the level of guidance as they become more confident. I am working on creating guided writing prompts to support educators even more.
  11. Peer Feedback: Encourage educators to exchange observation notes with a colleague and provide constructive feedback. This fosters a supportive learning environment and helps them refine their observation skills.
  12. Parent Involvement: Collaborate with parents or caregivers to share their observations of their own children. Educators can compare these with their own observations, gaining different perspectives on the child’s development.

Essential guide to writing learning observations for early childhood educators

~ storykate ~ Leave a comment

Almost 50 + pages of goodies!

I have created an essential guide to learning observations with a lot of information, illustrations and examples. I hope it will make your life easier as an educator, especially if you are only starting your journey. The guide is only 5.99 AUD today!

https://payhip.com/b/W0SY9

Cheers,

Kate

Basic types of learning observations

~ storykate ~ Leave a comment
  1. Anecdotal records: These are brief notes taken by early childhood teachers and educators to document a child’s progress, learning, dispositions or behaviour in a certain situation or activity. Anecdotal records can help teachers track individual children’s progress over time. They are written in the past tense.
  2. Learning stories: These are detailed narratives that describe a child’s learning and development in a particular area, such as social-emotional or cognitive development. Learning stories are typically written by teachers or caregivers and are based on observations of a child in action.
  3. Narratives: Narratives are simply stories that describe events or experiences. In an educational context, narratives might describe a child’s progress in a particular subject, or a teacher’s experience working with a particular student or group of students.
  4. Sociograms: Sociograms are visual representations of a child’s social relationships within a group or classroom. They can help teachers understand the dynamics of social interactions and identify potential issues.
  5. Running records: Running records are a way of documenting a child’s reading progress over time. Teachers record a child’s reading behaviour while they read aloud, and use the information to identify areas where the child may need additional support. It is written in the present continuous tense and is very detailed.
  6. Jottings: Jottings are quick notes or observations that teachers or caregivers make about a child’s behaviour or development. Jottings can be used to track progress over time, or to capture a particular moment of learning or development. I call jottings snapshots of learning or notes on learning.
  7. Time samples: Time samples involve observing a child for a specific period of time (e.g. 10 minutes) and recording their behaviuor during that time. Time samples can help teachers identify patterns in a child’s behavior or development.
  8. Event samples: Event samples involve observing a particular event or activity (e.g. a group discussion) and recording the behavior and interactions of the participants. Event samples can help teachers identify areas where children may need additional support or guidance.
  9. Samples of children’s work: These are examples of work that children have completed in various subjects, such as writing, math, or art. Samples of children’s work can help teachers track progress over time and identify areas where children may need additional support.
  10. Cultural maps: Cultural maps are visual representations of a community or group’s cultural practices and traditions. In an educational context, cultural maps can be used to help children learn about and understand different cultures and perspectives.