TriDereka Hall

October 25, 2016

Child Development and Observation I
Large, Small & Fine Motor Skills
Setting:
My observation was at Battle Academy, specifically the UTC Childrens Center at the same
location. I observed the Older Toddlers classroom with the children being ages 2 and 3. When
entering the classroom, the children and the two teachers were already outside and the children
were playing in the play area/playground. In my time there, the children played outside, had free
time, and also begun to lay down for a nap.

I observed several children in the class and recorded many observations for each of them. The
three observations below are from three different children.
Observation 1: Child A Three year girl
Observation 2: Child B Two year old boy
Observation 3: Child C Two year old boy

Observation 1:
11:12 a.m. Child A climbed up the ladder on the wall in class. She started with her left
foot and pulled herself up with her right hand. Then, she pulled herself up with both
hands, while at the same time, placing her right foot up on the ladder. Then, she climbed
up three steps. When she climbed up the three steps, she used her right leg and left arm,
then right arm and left leg, then right leg and left arm, then right arm and left leg again.
After climbing up the ladder, she swung her head back, curving her body with her arms
out still holding on to the wall ladder.
Observation 2:
12:01 Child B walks over to the table when his name was called to eat lunch. He arrived
at the table and pulled out his seat out with his right hand about 3-4 inches. Then, he
attempted to put his right leg into the seat by raising it up waist level then placing it down
under the table. He pushed his body into the seat until his bottom is in it with both feet on
the floor. When he started to eat, he used his right hand to pick up his food. He used two
fingers, the pointer and thumb, to pick up small pieces one at a time. He then used both
hands to hold his milk carton and raised it and at the same time tilting his head back.
Before continuing to eat the vegetables and rice, he lowered the milk and his head to put
the milk carton back on his tray. Then, he banged the spoon on the table with the spoon in
an upright position. Then, he moved it in a circle with quick motions in a manner that
looks like he was trying to draw with it on the table. Then, the spoon fell on the floor and
bent over in his seat to the right to pick it up.
Observation 3:
 10:41 Child C began to push a toy tractor forward through the play area outside. He
pushed the tractor with his body angling down, his bottom in the air and his knees at 120
degree angle. His legs alternated back and forth as pushed the tractor forward and he took
8 swift steps then stopped and picked the toy tractor up with both hands. He then carried
it to the toy box and sat it down beside it.

Summary:
In the two hours I was there, the children that I observed had actions that were consistent
with normal development abilities according to Chapter 6 in the book. For Observation 1, Child
A, who was three years old (36 months), used a lot of her large motor skill development. She is a
year older than the majority of the children in the class. She displayed more large motor skill
movement in the class, specifically in the observation when she was climbing up the wall ladder
in the classroom using her arms and legs. Her actions are consistent with her age, according to
the book, on page 219. It states that young preschoolers step off of surfaces rather than jump
down from them. I include information from the preschool physical and motor development
because she is three years old and considered to be not only an older toddler, but a young
preschooler as well. Not included in the observation notes was when she climbed down the steps.
There were 5-6 steps on the wall ladder so she did not appear to be afraid to climb up and down
it. As a young preschooler, she was not taking a big of a risk on a smaller scale. Also, the ladder
is attached to the wall and you cannot see over or through it like a normal, higher ladder. I
believe that it gave her more confidence to climb further up than most children and swing her
head back.
In Observation 2, Child B, who was two years old (24 months), used some of his fine
motor skills that were inconsistent with his age when he was eating his lunch. He was able to
hold his carton of milk, drink it, and put it back on his tray without spilling it or hesitation but he
used both hands rather than one hand. In the Appendix, on page 4, it states that most children can
hold a cup in one hand. He was also able to use the spoon while he was eating, but he ate more
with his fingers and seemed to prefer his hands more than the spoon that was given to him. He
played with the spoon and was more of a toy than using it to eat with. The use of the spoon is a
smaller inconsistency because I observed him using the spoon to eat at some point, but it did not
appear to be the preferred option.
In Observation 3, Child C, who was two years old (24 months), pushed the toy tractor in
the playground. He displayed large motor skill development and his actions are consistent with
the information in the Appendix ,on page 1, It says toddlers 18-24 months walk quickly or run
stiffly for short distances. He did just that action with the toy tractor by taking the 8 running
steps then stopping to go put the toy tractor in another place. His actions are also consistent with
the information in the book, on page 119, that explains that toddlers at his age start to incorporate
toys and equipments into their play, which in this case would be the toy tractor. They also use the
toys in a complex way with would be the way that he pushed the toy tractor forward with the
force of his arm and legs.