Serve as a developmental psychologist and observe children in their natural environment. Each student will conduct an observation of a child aged 4-8 years. The observation should be 10 minutes in length. During this time, the student will record their observational findings. The student will then apply these observations to their understanding of the child’s physical, psycho-social, and language/cognitive development. The purpose is to connect the observations with developmental theory and make an assessment as to whether or not the child’s behavior is developmentally appropriate. (Assignment time expectation: 3-5 hours)
When completing the report, students are encouraged to use the Observation Chart and Observation Template to help; they do not need to be submitted. They will help the student to organize observations, give ideas as to what kinds of behaviors they should be looking for (Observation Chart), and offer suggestions for developmental theories they may want to connect their observations to (Observation Template). Remember that the observation is for just one child and 5 observations for each of the three domains need to be recorded. The Child Observation Report Rubric can then be used to assist a student in putting all the information from the Observations into a written report, not a chart. Namely, the observations and related theories will be compiled and put in paragraph form. Each paragraph will cover both observations and related developmental theory for a given developmental area (Physical, Psych-Social, and Language/Cognitive). Please write your report in Microsoft Word or submit as a PDF. Each report should also be double-spaced.
The following are examples of one observation/theory that may be in a report ( please note you need to report 5 observations/ theory for each domain):
Physical: Michael is a 15-year-old boy. He has some facial hair and is developing lean muscles around his torso and arms. He also has some acne. These physical signs are consistent with the onset of puberty in males.
Social/Emotional: Little Bobby is trying to get dressed. His mother is trying to help him, but he keeps saying, “I do it myself.” He is also pushing her hands away when she tries to help him. This observation is consistent with Erickson’s Theory of Psycho-Social development. In particular, Bobby is exhibiting the conflict of autonomy vs. shame and doubt because he is trying to gain independence from his parents.
Language/Cognitive: Michelle was playing house with her friends. She kept telling her friends that she is the mommy and she was pretending to cook in the kitchen. According to Piaget, Michelle is in the preoperational stage of development because she is exhibiting dramatic play. She is also modeling her mother’s mannerisms, which is consistent with Bandura’s Social Learning Theory.
