FINAL PROPOSAL

Project Name: Studying Childhood Development in Theory and Practice

Essential Question: How does the environment or structure of a classroom affect a child’s learning and development? (Why does proximity to other children play a large role in the development of 4-6 year-olds? Why do elementary schools often focus on hands-on projects/why do they help in childhood development/how have teachers altered these activities due to the growing dependence on online school?)

Statement of Purpose:

For my Senior Project I will conduct an independent study of childhood development in students ages 4-6 in an effort to understand and explore the proccess of childhood development and how it has been documented versus how it appears in actuality. I will compare and contrast these two view points, and hope to get a greater understanding from it.

 

Overview: 

For the past several years, I have the opportunity of working with young children at Summers at LREI. During this time, I would help with fun activities, help support the Head Counselor, and most importantly connect with the kids. However there was one problem, camp sessions only lasted two weeks, meaning that often time there would be an entirely new group of children after each session. Even if I did connect with the kids during the two week time, they would still eventually leave, and I would have to get used to another new class of children. With this project, I hope to work within the same classroom for a longer period of time in hopes of forming more concrete bonds with the students. Due to the age group I am planning to work with, this will experience will also show me the importance of child development, as well as how it is encouraged and nurtured in elementary school classrooms, both online and in school.

An essential experience for my senior project would be to work in a Fours through First Grade classrooms. Although I have worked with young children before, it was in a more fun-based instead of an academic-based capacity. I plan to be in school with each classroom for two weeks, from 8:30-12:30 (coming in around arrival and leaving after lunch). I don’t fully understand the study of childhood development, so I also plan on reading or watching some studies by Vygotsky or Chip Wood (or other studies done on childhood development). By incorporating both environmental (in the classroom) and outside studies, I will be able to move from theory to practice, seeing how development appears in real life. I understand how this could not be possible, working in person at this current time isn’t something that we can rely on. However, due to the questions that I have posed, I feel like I can still achieve answers through online school. Working with the children via Zoom and learning how teachers are transferring and introducing vital parts of childhood development while online.

My experience will address my questions by comparing, understanding, and observing the development of children in both studies (one paper what they’re supposed to do/learn) and in real life (how this is actually appearing). My essential questions focus on both childhood development and how schools utilize this, so I hope to observe both while I work. I do not believe that there is one “answer” to my question, but I hope to learn about multiple “answers” instead.

 

The Action Plan:

• Action Item Area: Space (Classroom)
• Reason for Item: I can’t conduct my Senior Project without having a classroom or group of kids to work with.
• Notes: I am already working with Allison and Alisa (From the Lower School) in order to make sure that this is achievable. The most important part of this is just figuring out the age groups I want to work with over the six weeks.
• Resolution: Just keep communicating with Allison and Alisa, and eventually when I am set up with a teacher, communicating with them as well. (Since writing this I have gotten confirmation, and have sorted out who I will be working with and for how long.)
• Action Item Area: Research (Book/Documentaries on Childhood Development)
• Reason for Item: This will help me gain a better understanding of the field I am doing research in. Without it, my experience will only be one-sided and lacking the “theory” aspect of my project.
• Notes: I won’t be able to spend all of my time in the classroom so this will be an effective way to use my time to help push my project along. It will give me guidance in what to look for in children, and how development in children shows itself.
• Resolution: Talk to Karyn about a book that would give an effective scope of childhood development. I have already been recommended one book, so I think another would be good to have as a backup.

 

Major Goals:

• Learn how  the environment or structure of a classroom affect a child’s learning and development
• Learn how to effectively research and make meaningful connections with the students.
• (Personal Goal) Concisely express ideas/be able to communicate my findings through a visual medium.

 

Research Plan (Items):

• Yardsticks by Chip Wood
• The Beginning of Life: The Series (Episodes 1-6, one for each week of the Senior Project)
• More TBA

 

Schedule:

Week 1 and 2: April 12 – April 23 → In Beth & Tori’s Fours. Read child development book on the children the ages of 4/watch related documentaries/attend weekly meetings and write blog posts.

Week 3 and 4: April 26 – May 7 → In Elizabeth & Lea’s Kindergarten. Read child development book on the children the ages of 5/watch related documentaries/attend weekly meetings and write blog posts.

Week 5 and 6: May 10 – May 21 → In Sarah & Isaiah’s 1st Grade. Read child development book on the children the ages of 6/watch related documentaries/attend weekly meetings and write blog posts/Work on the Final Project.

 

Documentation Plan:

I plan to document my work and reflection through accumulative weekly posts/paragraphs/weekly journal, talking about the observations I have made throughout the week with the classroom that I’m working with. I feel like this is the best course of action due to the fact that the majority of my project is based on interactions and observations, and I won’t be able to analyze or write a process piece about this type of work.