Organization and content of observations in preschool educational institutions
Definition 1
Pedagogical observation in kindergarten is one of the methods used by preschool teachers and specialists to collect the necessary information about students.
The purpose of pedagogical observation in a preschool educational institution is to collect information on sensory, communicative, intellectual, creative, etc. development of preschool children.
In the process of pedagogical observation, preschool teachers and specialists not only collect the necessary information, but also note the general dynamics of children’s development. This is necessary in order to timely adjust the educational process and select the most optimal methods and means of raising and teaching preschool children.
Are you an expert in this subject area? We invite you to become the author of the Directory Working Conditions
The importance of pedagogical observation in preschool educational institutions is invaluable, since this method allows the study to cover a sufficiently large number of pupils, conduct research at any convenient time, and helps the researcher “see” the child in his natural environment. During the observation process, the teacher notes the peculiarities of interaction between students, determines the presence of microgroups based on interests, identifies the inclinations and creative needs of children, and much more.
The success of pedagogical observation in a preschool educational institution largely depends on the quality of its organization of the teacher, as well as on his professionalism and ability to organize this type of research. The conclusions obtained and their accuracy depend on the adequacy of the assessment of the child’s behavior and level of development. If the teacher “overlays” his personal attitude towards the child onto the data obtained, then the information obtained during the study will not be reliable and accurate.
Note 1
Thus, pedagogical observation in preschool educational institutions is of great importance for collecting information about the level of development of preschool children, the characteristics of their interaction with each other and identifying their leading creative needs and inclinations.
Finished works on a similar topic
Course work Pedagogical observation in kindergarten 480 ₽ Abstract Pedagogical observation in kindergarten 230 ₽ Test work Pedagogical observation in kindergarten 220 ₽
Receive completed work or specialist advice on your educational project Find out the cost
Observing the games of older children
Goals: to develop an interest in communicating with older children; highlight the positive moments of children's interaction during games as a role model; activate children's coherent speech and vocabulary.
The teacher shows Piggy and the children the kindergarten area and introduces them to the children of the older group.
21
Joint games of younger children with older ones Goals: to cultivate a friendly attitude between children, the desire to actively interact in games, help each other, treat each other politely, and not conflict.
Children stand in a circle, the teacher has the ball. The teacher throws the ball to the child, and he must repeat the teacher’s phrase like an echo in the forest. If repeated incorrectly, the child imitates a forest animal. The teacher tells the children that she was in the forest, fell behind her friends and started screaming, and the echo repeated everything after her, as if it was imitating her. The teacher invites the children and Piggy to be an echo in the game.
Outdoor game “Shaggy Dog” [12, p. 47] Goals: to teach children to manage their behavior, overcome fear and not give in to difficulties; unite children in play; practice running in one direction.
The teacher brings in a dog mask and invites the children to play.
EVENING
Examination of illustrations and selective reading of V. Mayakovsky’s book “What is good and what is bad” Objectives: to evoke a friendly attitude towards good deeds and a negative attitude towards bad ones; generate interest in the work, a desire to look at the illustrations; develop speech. Piggy brought a book as a gift to the children, but he just can’t figure out what is written in it and what is shown in the pictures.
Labor in nature
(joint work assignment with an adult) Objectives: to consolidate the ability to wipe the wide, large leaves of indoor plants; develop a desire to care for plants; develop an interest in joint activities with adults and peers; develop a verbal vocabulary.
Piggy approaches the houseplants, examines them, and then sneezes from the dust. Invites children to do a good deed: wipe the leaves of plants so that they can breathe.
Sketch “Call me kindly”
Goals: to teach children to call each other by affectionate names; develop a friendly attitude towards each other; expand your vocabulary.
Khryusha says that when he plays with Stepashka and Karkusha, they sometimes call him names and he is very offended. Asks the children if they know each other's pet names.
22
Theatrical game “Two Greedy Bears” Objectives: to develop speech and pantomimic expressiveness; form a negative attitude towards greed; bring pleasure from being embodied in the image.
The teacher introduces elements of the costumes of fairy tale characters and a book with illustrations. He asks the children what fairy tale this is. He asks to explain why the cubs were left without cheese. Offers to act out a fairy tale.
Day 3 Fairy tale day
Main goals:
- to develop an interest in oral folk art, a desire to listen to fairy tales, look at illustrations, and play with them;
- through the content of fairy tales, to form the moral ideas of children on an emotional and sensory basis.
Game character: toy bun (or Carlson).
MORNING
Surprise moment
Goals: to attract children's attention; arouse interest in upcoming activities.
The teacher draws the children’s attention to the fact that while they were at the site, everything in the group changed: unusual toys, books with fairy tales, paintings depicting fairy tale heroes, puppet theater characters, and an unusual cape appeared.
The teacher tells the children that they have found themselves in the land of fairy tales, and she is a fairy who can show the children this country (puts on a cape and picks up a magic wand). Invites children to consider what is in the land of fairy tales. He finds Kolobok on the window, who just can’t get off it for the children to notice. Offers to recharge with strength.
Morning exercises
(thematic with elements of psycho-gymnastics)
Goal: increase psychophysical activity and mood.
Children depict moving through the land of fairy tales and its heroes: the mouse and hen from “Ryaba the Hen,” the bunny from “Zayushka-sing hut,” the cat and grandfather from “Turnip.” The teacher pays attention to facial expressions, pantomime, tension and relaxation of body muscles.
23
Preparing for breakfast
Goal: to arouse interest in the process of washing, developing cultural and hygienic skills.
While washing, the teacher reads excerpts from “Moidodyr” by K.I. Chukovsky.
Breakfast
Goal: to encourage children to eat and increase appetite.
Breakfast is brought by an assistant teacher in the form of a grandmother with a magic pot from the fairy tale “The Magic Pot” by C. Perrault. Invites children to remember the words that need to be said so that the pot begins to cook delicious porridge. The porridge is decorated in each plate with berries from jam.
DAY Lesson based on the fairy tale “Kolobok”
Goals: to develop phrasal speech in accordance with the text of the fairy tale, verbal and pantomimic expressiveness, a sense of partnership in dramatization; consolidate knowledge of the content of the fairy tale; bring pleasure from the game.
Kolobok offers to go to his fairy tale and show it like in a real theater. Recalls with children the content of the fairy tale, the sequence of episodes. Assigns or selects fairy tale characters at will, distributes costume elements.
The tale is played out 3 times with a change of performers.
Children-listeners help Kolobok sing a song.
Preparing for a walk Goal: strengthen dressing skills, develop sensory skills. The teacher brings in a bull toy from the fairy tale “The Tar Bull.” Draws children's attention to the fact that the bull is coated with resin and can stick to itself not only a wolf and a bear, but also children's clothes. Simulates gluing. Draws children's attention to a careful, careful attitude towards clothing, the correct sequence of dressing.
The bull asks children questions about the quality, color, and shape of clothing.
Previous3Next
Recommended pages:
Use the site search:
Structure of observation with preschool children in preschool educational institutions
Popova Elvira Ivanovna,
senior teacher
Novoarbansk kindergarten "Rainbow"
Mari El Republic
Structure of supervision in preschool educational institutions
Observation is a purposeful perception of the phenomena of the surrounding reality, during which knowledge is gained about the external aspects, properties and relationships of the objects being studied. In the educational process, observation allows you to solve other problems: the development of observation skills and cognitive needs in preschoolers, the initial development of this method of scientific knowledge, the acquisition of primary experience in studying various objects with its help.
1. Purpose.
Like all activities and forms of their organization, observation must have a purpose.
It is optimal for the goal to arise from the cognitive needs of children, rather than the imposition of observation tasks by the teacher. The role of an adult is to actualize these needs and help clearly formulate a goal based on them. This option is also possible: cognitive interest, a desire to find out something, a desire to understand the essence of a phenomenon, to find an explanation arises in preschoolers already during observation. 2. Motive.
Preschool children are inquisitive, but the cognitive motive is not always dominant for them.
The motive for inclusion in observation can be an intriguing question, a game situation, an emotional response to the words or actions of a teacher (or character), imitation of older children, adults, etc. Observations can be an organic part of work activities, experimentation, walks, excursions. Motives for inclusion in educational research activities can also be the visibility of the direct connection of the material being studied with life (its applied nature), interesting events and unusual properties of familiar objects; the opportunity to achieve an objectively and subjectively significant result, to express oneself, to assert oneself, to communicate with peers and adults, and to enjoy solving an intellectual problem. 3. Plan.
In older preschool age, the teacher needs to teach children to draw up an observation plan to solve a cognitive problem.
In the preparatory group for school, it is drawn up taking into account the need to comply with the rules of behavior that is safe for humans and nature. 4. Observation.
The features of this stage are related to what type of observation is being organized.
5. Summing up.
The main result of observation as a method of cognition is achieving a goal, finding an answer to the question posed. The value is represented both by the discovery made by children and by the possibilities of its further application in knowledge, work, and everyday life. Depending on the goals and content of the observation, the teacher needs to select techniques, methods and forms of work that will help preschoolers comprehend what they saw, form an idea about it, characterize it in accepted concepts and, possibly, ask new questions.
Text of the book “First Steps. Early Childhood Education and Development Program"
Teacher observation of children's development
The importance of observation for pedagogical work
The ability to observe is one of the important conditions for a teacher’s successful work with children. It is necessary for the teacher, because it allows for an individual approach to each child, flexible scheduling, and purposeful management of a group of children.
Observation should be purposeful, meaningful and systematic, and not a spontaneous and episodic moment in the work of the educator. At the same time, observation should not become an end in itself. In relation to children with normal development, information obtained as a result of observation is necessary to record qualitative changes in their development - new skills, interests, preferences; creating conditions for their further development.
In order to learn to observe, it is necessary, in addition to everyday or intuitive ideas about a child of a given age, to have scientific knowledge about the patterns of his mental development. Otherwise, the teacher will not be able to fully implement the assigned tasks, notice possible deviations in the child’s development or, conversely, his special abilities in some area, or, if necessary, help the child cope with difficulties. This requires the teacher to be able to clearly plan his teaching activities, keep appropriate records that help to better know and understand each child, assess the situation in the group as a whole, and coordinate his work with the work of colleagues and parents.
The teacher’s task is to monitor each child and the group as a whole.
Having formed a clear picture of his students, he can plan individual work with each of them and monitor its effectiveness in the process of subsequent observations. Observation time
Observation time depends on the goals that the teacher sets for himself. If he wants to clarify how the child plays or how children interact with each other, it is best to do this during the children’s free play in a group or on the playground. If the teacher intends to analyze how the child communicates with an adult, then the interaction situation should be specially organized, for example, inviting the child and the teacher to assemble a nesting doll, play with insert forms, or read a book.
An attentive teacher can extract useful information for understanding the characteristics of a child from even a short episode of observation and draw conclusions from it. If necessary, he must carry out pedagogical correction or seek help from a psychologist.
Let us give an example of a teacher observing a child’s behavior.
An adult unfamiliar to the child (new teacher) enters the group. Two-year-old Denis immediately comes up to him and hands him his ball. The adult joins the game and they pass the ball to each other several times. Then the adult throws the ball up, inviting the child to do the same. The boy hides his hands behind his back, lowers his eyes, and quietly whispers: “I don’t know how.” The adult offers his help and, holding the child’s hands in his own, throws the ball. Denis looks guiltily at the adult and repeats: “I can’t.” The adult calms the child down, tosses the ball with him again and invites the boy to do it himself. Denis tries to repeat the pattern, but his attention is focused not so much on the ball as on the adult’s face. An embarrassed smile accompanies all of Denis’s actions.
This episode lasts a few minutes, but allows an experienced observer to draw the following meaningful conclusions. Firstly, Denis treats adults kindly and is proactive in communication. This is evidenced by the fact that he quickly approached the adult and invited him to start the game. Consequently, his communicative need is well developed. Secondly, the boy is most likely shy. This is evidenced by his embarrassed looks and movements. It is shyness that explains the child’s attempt to avoid performing a new action and the anxious expectation of an adult’s assessment, which obscures interest in the game.
These initial conclusions will be confirmed if this behavior of the baby is repeated in other situations. In this case, the teacher must conclude for himself that it is necessary to carry out individual work with the boy, aimed at strengthening confidence in the positive attitude of adults towards him, at increasing his self-esteem, and at emancipating his emotional sphere.
In order for observation to be effective, it is necessary to record its results for subsequent analysis.
There are different forms of recording observations, which depend on the nature of the observations and pedagogical goals. Forms for recording observations
Observation cards
For daily observations, you can use cards in which characteristic episodes from the life of a child or group of children are recorded. At the same time, not only the negative manifestations of children should be noted, but also their achievements.
Cards may not have a thematic focus and contain situational unstructured observations. Such recordings are used to convey the necessary information to the teacher of the next scene, a psychologist, and for a conversation with parents.
Here are examples of such observations.
“Today Seryozha drew with pleasure for the first time and proudly showed his drawing. Don’t forget to show the drawing to mom and praise the boy in her presence.”
“Today Natasha managed not to quarrel with Olya, but to agree to play together.”
“Today Masha is in a bad mood, she refused to play and sat away from the children. Find out from your mother what this might be connected with.”
“Children have difficulty establishing contacts with the new music director. Many were crying again and did not want to go to class. You need to talk to the music director."
These cards can be used to fill out thematic observation cards. For this purpose, a date is placed on the card.
Instead of cards, you can use notebooks where the teacher enters his observations every day.
Thematic observation maps
Thematic maps are used to monitor the child's development. These cards should contain information reflecting significant changes in various areas of the baby's development. Since structured observation should begin from the first day of a child’s admission to a child care institution, it is advisable to use an observation card for the child during the adaptation period. Let us give an example of such an observation map.
Observation chart for the child during the adaptation period.
Table continuation.
Observation should be carried out throughout the entire period of adaptation in order to monitor how quickly the child gets used to the nursery and in what areas favorable changes are noted. For fixation, you can use different methods:
• digital scale (three- or five-point);
• symbols (plus, minus, tick);
• verbal designations (for example, “always”, “often”, “rarely”, “never”).
If necessary, short notes are made in the “Notes” column to supplement the proposed diagram.
By analyzing observational data, the teacher can identify an area of special attention, decide which problem of the child he needs to work with first, and draw up a plan for such work; conduct conversations with parents, develop a general strategy for adult behavior.
After the adaptation period is completed, the task of observation becomes the features of the child’s progress in the main areas of development. From this moment on, the observation card can be filled out not daily, as in the adaptation period, but at a larger time interval, for example, once a month. The frequency of filling out the charts depends on the child’s condition and behavior. If any problems arise, you should return to more frequent recordings.
Here is a sample observation map.
Early childhood development monitoring chart.
Table continuation.
Table continuation.
Based on the above diagram, the teacher, in accordance with his goals, can develop various options for observation maps. For example, additional items may be added to the card, such as “Physical development” or some qualities of the child that cause concern to adults (shyness, aggressiveness, etc.). In order to monitor the dynamics of the development of a particular child’s activity, the teacher must highlight its essential indicators and stages of development for observation.
The teacher should set aside time to work with the development map, building it into the daily routine and weekly schedule. (Teachers distribute among themselves the children they are monitoring and fill out the appropriate cards.)
In order to monitor all areas of development for each child, you need to use different situations throughout the day. In the development chart, the teacher must enter the data that accumulates during daily observations over a week or month. Observations accumulated over one or two days should not be entered into the chart, since a reliable conclusion about the child’s development can be made only on the basis of repeated characteristics of the baby’s behavior in different situations. Let's look at an example.
The teacher observes the children's story play. Vika refuses story-based games, preferring to do mosaics, drawing, and inserts. The next day she again does not want to play with the story toys, but does something else. But in the following days, Vika enthusiastically plays with the doll, feeds it, and rolls it in a stroller. Consequently, it would be incorrect to conclude, based on the observations of the first two days, that the girl’s play activity is not developed.
You can fill out the card in different ways. The best words to use are:
• “usually” (when the quality manifests itself constantly or quite often);
• “occasionally” (when the quality appears from time to time);
• “no” (when the quality never appears).
By filling out the observation card, the teacher receives a holistic picture of the child’s development at this age stage, his achievements and shortcomings.
Based on this map, he can build a pedagogical process taking into account the individual characteristics of the child. Planning pedagogical work based on observations
The development map is not a test. Working with it does not require scoring or strict evaluation. With its help, you can get an idea of the child’s development, his individual characteristics and determine the direction of correctional work. The result of observations should be the identification of specific goals of pedagogical work with the child, their implementation and subsequent recording of changes in the relevant area of the child’s development.
In order to obtain a general characteristics of the group and the individual characteristics of each child, an individual-group development map
. This card is similar in content to the child development monitoring card, but differs in form. In order for the map not to be too cumbersome, it can be presented in the form of separate maps for each direction of development. Let us give an example of an individual-group map of the development of communication with peers of children of the third year of life.
Individual-group map of the development of communication with peers.
Based on the records of this card, we can conclude that, in general, friendly relations between children prevail in the group, but at the same time, interest in peers is not sufficiently developed. Katya and Masha develop the most successful communication with peers. You should pay attention to instilling in Denis an emotionally positive attitude towards his peers, and to involve him in emotional games with children. It is necessary to organize joint games and activities with children more often.
In a similar way, you can draw up maps for other areas of children’s development. Keeping such maps is especially useful for a novice teacher, since it focuses on the ability to systematize his observations, see the group as a whole and the individual characteristics of each child. Comparison of cards filled out in different periods of time allows us to identify the dynamics of development of the group as a whole and individual children, as well as evaluate the quality of the teachers’ work.
Some children may cause particular concern to the teacher. In the group there may be, for example, a hyperactive child, a child with a disease of the nervous system, a very aggressive or shy child, etc. Monitoring such children is especially important. It is necessary to identify the frequency of manifestations of “difficulties” during the day, week, determine the situations in which they are most pronounced, and try to understand their causes. The content of observation cards for such children is best developed together with a psychologist for each case separately. After the psychologist makes his conclusion about the child and gives the necessary recommendations, the teacher, in the course of correctional work, must enter his observations into the child’s individual record. In this case, the frequency of filling the card can be increased.
Thus, observations help the teacher to get to know each child better, implement an individual approach to education, gain their own experience in understanding children, provide an opportunity to constructively interact with parents, and plan the life of the group as a whole.
Organization of joint work between teachers and parents
Tasks of joint work of teachers and parents
Raising a child is not limited to the educational institution. The family plays the most important role in how a child develops, his health and emotional well-being. Therefore, the work of teachers with children must be built in close contact with parents. This activity is effective if teachers and parents proceed from agreed views on the goals, means and methods of education, share concern for the emotional well-being of the child and his successful development, and adhere to a common approach in organizing the daily routine, nutrition, hygiene and health procedures. Therefore, parents and educators must become like-minded partners.
In order to achieve this goal, employees of a child care institution must create the necessary conditions. First of all, a children's educational institution must be completely open to the family. Parents should be informed about the educational services provided by the child care institution, the conditions under which the child stays there, and the educational programs being implemented. In turn, nursery staff should have an idea of the parents’ needs, the child’s living conditions in the family, and his individual characteristics.
The main goal of the joint work of teachers and parents is to ensure continuity between the upbringing of a child in a child care institution and in the family.
To attract families to cooperation and establish partnerships with parents, it is necessary to establish trusting relationships between teachers and family members and organize feedback between them. Difficulties in working with families
When working with families, a teacher may encounter a variety of difficulties caused by different approaches of parents to raising children.
There are parents who believe that by sending their child to a nursery, they abdicate all responsibility for his upbringing and development. They show no interest in collaborating with the teacher and avoid contact with him. Some parents have no idea at all about what and how to do with young children, and do not know about the importance of communicating and playing with them. Others understand that children need special care, but they also don’t know how to do it. The educational efforts of both come down to organizing meals, walks and sleep. At the same time, the idea that a child should be taught reading, writing and other “school” subjects almost from infancy is becoming increasingly widespread. Not understanding the specifics of early childhood, many parents expect accelerated education for young children from preschool institutions and make complaints due to the lack of such activities.
Some parents are supporters of authoritarian upbringing and tend to see mainly shortcomings in the child (they complain about the child’s capriciousness, disobedience, and slowness). They expect teachers to correct these shortcomings through strict disciplinary action.
A particular problem is posed by parents who leave their children without supervision and care, and who abuse them. In this regard, the special task of teachers is to protect the rights and dignity of the small child.
Thus, the reasons for possible disagreements in approaches to raising children among teachers and parents are varied, but they are most often based on different values of upbringing and parents’ ignorance of the patterns of children’s development. Therefore, it is important to identify differences in views on raising children, acquaint parents with the developmental characteristics of children and achieve mutual understanding.
To establish mutual understanding between teachers and parents, to ensure continuity in education in the family and in the child care institution, it is first of all necessary to identify the requirements that parents place on the preschool institution.
Identifying parental requests
To identify parental requests, you can prepare a questionnaire that allows you to find out:
• what educational services parents are interested in (for example, choreography, physical education or music classes, swimming lessons, etc.; correction of general, motor, speech development, etc.);
• what form of stay of the child in the institution suits the parents (full - half day; full - half week; five days, etc.);
• what parents want to learn about the health and development of children, in what form (lectures, popular publications, films, trainings, etc.);
• what forms of interaction with the children's institution suit parents (attending parent meetings, lectures, parent clubs; assistance in purchasing or manufacturing equipment and materials; assistance to teachers in their work - in a group, on a walk, on an excursion, when visiting the theater, etc. ).
The information obtained using such a questionnaire makes it possible to identify promising directions in the work of a preschool institution and find opportunities for their implementation in the future. They also help to adequately organize work with parents. Such questionnaires can be distributed to parents not only when the child enters the nursery, but also throughout the year, as opportunities arise for the development of the institution.
At the same time, this information will help identify the circle of parents whose requests have not been formed. In this case, the educational task comes to the fore: informing parents about the necessary conditions for the full development of the child, the presence of certain conditions in a given institution, the possibility of organizing the work of nurseries in one direction or another.
For this purpose, forms of work to inform parents should be developed in the child care institution.
Informing parents about the work of a child care institution
The necessary information can be conveyed to parents in different ways.
Firstly, you can place an advertising sign at the entrance containing a list of services provided by the child care institution and programs implemented.
Secondly, it is advisable to prepare a newsletter, presenting in it the general concept of the preschool institution, its program (or programs), information about the availability of specialists (speech therapist, choreographer, swimming coach, etc.) and material and technical base (availability of music, sports halls, medical rooms, swimming pools, etc.).
Thirdly, when enrolling children, it is necessary to hold parent meetings, telling them in detail about the program implemented in the preschool institution.
It would be good if the work of the nursery would be presented at stands, an exhibition of children's work, in photo albums, and videos. Getting to know the family
Cooperation between the child care facility and the family begins with getting to know each other. At this stage, it is very important to win parents over to partnership, mutual trust, and demonstrate their desire to help the family as much as possible in raising the child.
Parents should be introduced to the nursery: shown the group room, toys, bedroom, area; tell how games and activities will be organized, and the daily routine. In turn, the teacher must obtain information about the child and his family: find out the name, surname, age, address, family composition; information about the baby’s individual characteristics, food preferences, duration of daytime sleep, etc. You should also find out what kind of participation parents can take in the life of the child care institution, and how to help teachers.
To obtain information about the child and family, you can use questionnaires, conversations, and family visits. Questionnaires are most suitable for obtaining formal information about the child. We offer a possible version of such a questionnaire.
Questionnaire “Information about the child and family”:
First and last name of the child……………………………………
Age ……………………………………
Name, surname of parents……………………………………
Address, telephone……………………………………
Family composition (mother, father, grandfather, grandmother, sisters, brothers) ……………………………………
Easily (difficulty) comes into contact with unfamiliar adults …………………………………
Easily (difficulty) comes into contact with other children……………………………………
Favorite games, activities, toys……………………………………
What is the baby afraid of and what is he happy about……………………………………
What the child likes (doesn’t like) to eat……………………………………
What time does he sleep……………………………………
Does he know how to use a potty or is he used to diapers……………………………………
Do you have any allergies (specify what)……………………………………
Additional information about the child……………………………………………
Parents’ participation in the life of the kindergarten: attending monthly meetings ……………………………………
attending or planning parenting events……………………………………
production of toys, manuals……………………………………
purchase of toys, educational materials……………………………………
design of group premises, landscaping of the site……………………………………
assistance during excursions, visits to the children's theater ……………………………………
It is more convenient to obtain information about the individual characteristics of the baby during a conversation with parents and observations when visiting the family. Visiting a family allows the teacher to get to know the family better, its interests, communication styles, and allows parents to see how the teacher interacts with the child.
When meeting, the teacher must convince the parents of the need to jointly adapt the child to the child care institution, warn that one of them should set aside time to visit the nursery with the child during the time that the child will need to get used to; find out how they can help the teacher in the group.
