1. Teacher Research Project
By: Joselyn Reyes
CD 258

2. Classroom Map

3. Play
In the classroom children were interacting in the different areas either by themselves or with other children. There were some children that were in the science area and they were using magnify glasses to look at seashells on the table, and then there were a couple children playing in the math area sorting the counting bears by color and engaging in conversation with one another about the different colors of the bears. I then observe children in the block area discussing the different size blocks they were going to use to construct their house, and the teacher sat with a child in the writing table and assisted them with writing the letters in their name. In the area of the house keeping children were dressing up and acting out roles such a mother, father, and son, and in the sensory table children were engaged in using measuring cups with the colored sand. In the area of the manipulative table children had many toys out as well as puzzles and were discussing the different ways to put the snapping cubes together and which puzzle pieces go where in the puzzles. Throughout the day children rotated by themselves amongst the areas and engaged in different play with one another as well as different conversations.

5. Language and Literacy
In the classroom I was able to see children participate in two different activities that gave them an opportunity to enhance both their language and literacy development. The language activity was done during circle time when the children were getting ready to transition, and the teacher used puppets to create scenarios that the children were then able to use their words and give solutions to the problems. The second activity was when the teacher read the book “I’m Special” to the children and engaged them throughout the story by asking open-ended questions about themselves and connecting it with the book. At the end of the story the teacher went around the circle and asked the children “What makes you special?” and as she wrote down their responses she was able to create a bulletin board of stars and their answers were in the middle of the stars. In each area there are books that pertain to the area such as science books in the science area, counting books in the math area, and different art books in the area, which then gives children the chance to look at the books and connect it with what they are doing in their area. Throughout the day the teachers walk around to each area engaging themselves with what the children are doing and starting conversation with each child pertaining to what the child is doing at the time. Although there are everyday activities for children to participate in to develop both their language and literacy development there are always different opportunities around the classroom and in the areas that support this development.

7. Motor Development
In the classroom I observed the children throughout the day I was able to encounter the way many ways that the children were able to strengthen both their gross motor development as well as their fine motor development. In the different areas the teachers keep clipboards so that the children can write anything in any area, the children are at the writing table scribbling and writing in their journals which is helping their fine more skills. In the water table today the teachers had beads in there as well as different color strings at the children were putting the beads on the string and this also involved their fine motor skills because they had to put the string through the hole in the beads. The children’s gross motor time today was out on the playground and the centers playground consists of two different ones, the blue and the green one but the green one is for the older children. The blue playground has slides, a place where children can climb up, a small boat for children to get on and each child would run from section through section with one another as well as ride on the bikes that are provided on the playground for them. When it is too hot or cold outside for the children there is both a gym which has basketball hoops and balls and obstacle courses for the children, and in the gross motor room there are bikes, hula hoops, and a small slide for the children to get their physical needs met indoors as well.

9. Positive Social Interactions Between Children
In the classroom I observed the children in the classroom throughout the day I was able to encounter different times when the children had pro-social interactions with other children. The classroom environment presents different opportunities for children to express their feelings, concerns, and help others in many situations. In the children’s cubbies they have “feeling cards” which have mad, sad, excited, happy, scared, and surprised and when the children come in they change their feeling card based on how they are feeling. During circle time children have a choice to bring their feeling cards to the carpet and show the other children how they are feeling today and the children always acknowledge how they are feeling throughout the day. There is also a “thinking area” for children who are having a problem and trying to think of a solution and there is a book with a couple problem solvers, such as sharing, talking to a teacher, talking to the child, and a couple more other solutions. The classroom has a “Helper’s Chart” for children to be able to pick what they want to do today, and when it comes to the children setting the table for breakfast or lunch they work together to make sure they have the place settings down. If children are the toothbrush helpers they have to help one another set the cups and put the toothpaste inside of them as well as take turns passing out the toothbrushes. There are also moments when children are having a problem and the teacher encourages both children or the group of children to come to a solution but by talking it out and balancing out the positives and negatives of their solutions.

11. Positive Social Interactions Between Children and Adults
After I observed the children in the classroom setting throughout the day I was able to observe various moments of positive interaction between the children. The classroom has different areas that children are able to interact in either by themselves or with a group of children and this gives the children the chance to interact with one another. When I observed the classroom I seen that the teacher interacted with the children in a positive way as well, she would float around the classroom and individually interact with each child and engage herself in what they were doing. During the interaction between the child and the teacher, she would initiate open ended question about what the child was doing which gave them the opportunity to enhance their language development. During their gross motor time they went to the playground and I observed the teacher engage herself with the children, she would climb up the ladder, go on the slides with them, and she even conducted a race involving her and the children. The children smiled throughout the gross motor time, and when it was time to transition and go back to the classroom for lunch they continues to converse about how much fun they had outside on the playground. During their lunch time the teacher began conversation with the children about what their favorite part of the day was, what they learned in school today, or what they did throughout the day in the classroom. As children began leaving slowly each child would wave to goodbye to each child in the classroom and the teacher would hug each one before they left and say to them “I look forward to seeing you tomorrow.”

13. Communication with Parents
In the classroom, at the beginning of the day I observed the parents coming in to drop off their children, the teacher greets them and automatically asks how they are doing and how is the child doing that day. After exchanging a few words the parents leave and the teachers begin their day with the children, in the classroom there are is a section where the parents can get papers from such as the calendar for the month, the parent meeting schedule, as well as take home activities for the children. At the end of the day when the children are leaving the teachers make sure to talk to each parent about the activities that were done that day and something positive their child had did. I found this to be important because many parents smiled when they heard about the positives in their child and looked interested about the activities that were done that day by asking questions about how their child interacted in the activities. Teachers mentioned to the parents about the reminder of the parent meeting and how important it is to try to attend so that they can learn more about the program. The teachers seemed comfortable with talking to the parents and this was noticeable by the way they greeted the parents in the morning and how they communicated with them when they were picking up their child. I think that communication was held to a high importance in the classroom because the teachers did set the setting up so that they parents do not have to hesitate to ask questions or receive any resources in an inconvenience way.

14. Inclusion of All Children
In the classroom I noticed a child who had a speech delay and this was noticeable from when she was communicating with the teacher and the children throughout the day. During the activities with the children I observed one of the teachers working one on one with the child in the library area, the child had a book in her hand and she was describing the pictures to the teacher. When she described the pictures to the teacher she would just point to the pictures and say one word each time and not in a sentence. After she said the word the teacher would repeat the word and then put it in a sentence for the child and the child repeated the sentence back to the teacher, this continued through the book. I noticed that the teachers write the children’s dictations from their activities after they finish, and for this child she described her finished product by saying one word at a time but the teacher continued asking her questions about it so that she was able to describe it more. I do feel that the children were able to incorporate her into the activities and are working with her one on one so that she could build more vocabulary. At the end of the day the teacher has an “Individualization Sheet” that has every children’s initials and it has different levels they are at with different objectives and it gives an example of how the teacher will work with that child to get to to the next level or to the level that they need to be at.

15. Interview
How do you view play? I view play as an opportunity to express yourself and be able to engage with others as you share the same interests and let your imagination of creating things come to life. Why do you feel it’s important to play? I feel it’s important to play because many children get the chance to not only foster their social development but their language and physical development as well since they are engaging in conversation with their peers and using their fine motor skills when manipulating objects. Does your classroom support play? How? I do feel that my classroom supports play not only by the way it is set up for the children, each area inviting and open to them but I constantly have activities that children can engage themselves in and still feel as if they’re playing and catching their interest. How do you explain “play” and the benefits from it to your parents? Luckily all my parent are understanding about play but if I were to explain play and it’s benefits to the parents I would explain it as preparing for the real world. Children who play in the block area can some day being architects, children who play in the dramatic play area can some day be great parents, children who play at the table table are learning how to manipulate objects, there are many benefits from play that can be explained to parents. How do you incorporate “play” into your lesson plan? In the lesson plan the different areas in the classroom are mentioned and I have to mention what things I will be adding to the areas for children to engage in. For example the dramatic play area, if we want to create a pet shop I would add things in the dramatic play area so the children can set it up and engage themselves in it. The other areas in the classroom are also altered depending on what we are studying during the week or month as a whole. What are your values as a teacher in the class? My values as a teacher in the classroom is to help children grow not only in the developmental domains but as a an individual, to provide as much assistance as I can and to provide many opportunities in both inside and outside the classroom that they can benefit from. My values as a teacher is to accommodate all children so that everyone has an equal and fair chance to be able to learn and to be able to incorporate everyday experiences for the children.

16. Wordle