Observation #2

Class/section: FHS 1500-400

Name:
Crystal Hall
Assignment:
Observation 2
Background Information
Childs age:
Fictitious
name:
Location:
Brief
Description:

5 years
James
Eccles Lab School, SLCC Redwood Campus
There were approximately 18 children and 5 adults in the observation
classroom. Children were playing in groups and as individuals on
different activities

Physical Development
As I was choosing which child to observe I noticed a group of boys
about 5 or so of them playing Legos together. James stood out to me due to the
fact he was taller than the rest of the kids in the class. Growth patterns indicate
that by age 6, a child should weigh about 40 to 50 pounds, measuring at least 3
and half feet tall (Berger, 2014, p. 168). At age 5, James has already reached
these markers as he was about the weight and height of a 6 year old. Although
he was bigger than his classmates, he did not look to be overweight (Berger,
2014, p. 168), but instead he looked like a healthy child.
James fine motor skills were on par with his age of development. While
playing with the Legos he made constructed a spaceship that he would flying
over the heads of the other kids. Also as the text brings out by age 5 children are
able to clap, bang, and sing in rhythm. (Berger, 2014, p. 171) This was
demonstrated during circle time when the class gathered to sing a song. During
the song James was able to recite the words and keep on pace with the teacher.
They children were also instructed to point to different body parts while singing
the song, which James was able to do without hesitation.
James language development was great as he was not only able to carry
on full conversations with his classmates, he was also able to carry on a
conversation with one of the adults that came over to check out what they were
doing.
Cognitive Development
Children at this age engage in much more social interaction (Berger, 2014,
Pg. 105) than younger children, as when they were playing in groups they didnt
just play next to each other, they play with each other. They also show much
more preservation (Berger, 2014, Pg. 179) than younger children, able to stick to

one task in this case playing with Legos and carrying on a conversation about it
for an extended period of time.
James also showed use of his prefrontal cortex (planning; Berger, 2014,
Pg. 105) when during playtime with the Legos he invited some of the boys to his
house to play Xbox with him.
Another circle time activity was naming shapes and colors. A few of
children were selected to hold shapes that were specific colors, squares were
red, circles were purple, rectangles were green, and triangles were yellow.
James was holding a red circle. When the teacher asked him what shape he was
holding he easily and without hesitation named his shape. Then she asked what
color, he was again able to name the color without hesitation. This shows that the
myelination, which speeds the signals between neurons, thus increasing the
speed of transmission making him able to name shapes immediately (Berger,
2014, Pg. 178).
Another aspect of cognitive development was when playtime was over
and one of the adults told them it was time to clean up, each child was to clean
up at least 10 of the toys they had been playing with, James was able to execute
this request with understanding as he immediately started the clean up process.
Social/Emotional Development
During the entire observation, James seemed to hit the marks of both
physical development and cognitive development. At one point during his
playtime with the other boys James did have an outburst of anger when he was
trying to build something with red Legos and unintentionally the boys kept taking
some of the red Legos. He got very frustrated and yelled at the top of his lungs
and started grabbing the Legos from the kids, showing he was externalizing his
problems (Berger, 2014, Pg. 209). His outburst last for probably 5 seconds
before one of the adults came over to see what was happening and very calmly
explained to James that yelling isnt OK also that grabbing from the other kids
isnt OK. The whole event last for maybe 30 seconds and the kids were back to
normal playing.
James seemed very interested in socializing and playing with the boys, as
he invited them over to his house on a few occasions to play Xbox with him and
his dad. As the book brings out, social play teaches children emotional
regulation, empathy and cultural understandings (Berger, 2014, Pg. 212). James
seemed to intertwine reality with imagination when he was telling the boys about
his house and how big it was with a huge empty parking lot for lots of cars to park
in. Perhaps James was engaging in sociodramatic play (Berger, 2014, Pg. 209)
in which children act out roles and plots they have created.

Reference List

Berger, K. S. (2014). Invitation to the life span (2nd ed.). New York, NY: Worth
Publishers.