Learning Experience Plan #4

Your Name Age Group Date

Tyrah Blue Preschool 3-23-18

Title of Activity “I am feeling __ because!”

The intention of this activity will be for the children to work on their emotional expression,
get an understanding that all these emotions are ok, but its about how we deal with them. The
idea is that children will work on and be able to express their feelings and then have the ability
to explain why they are feeling that certain way.

Standard: New Hampshire Early Learning Standards

Domain: Social and Emotional Development
Strand: Emotional Competence
Construct: Emotional Expression
Indicator of Progress: Express their feelings verbally with greater frequency

Intended Purpose (the objective of the activity)

My intention for this activity is to have the children really begin to think about their feelings
and express exactly why they are feeling that particular way. The children will engage in
conversation through talk and facial expressions, but will also be able to document their
feelings throughout the day with a feelings chart. The children will be working on their
emotional expression.

Background Research
Content-
- I need to be able to explain to the children why feelings happen and how they affect us.
For the children to be able to understand why feelings happen, know how they affect us
and then know how to handle and deal with those feelings is crucial.

Children’s Inquiry
Why is this activity appropriate and relevant to this group of children, now?
-This activity is appropriate and relevant to this group of children, now because them going
through their feelings is an everyday life experience. Not only in blue preschool but outside the
classroom that will stay with them for the rest of their lives as feelings are so important.

What questions does this activity allow children to explore?

-This activity allows the children to explore the questions of:
- Why am I feeling this way?
- What is making me feel this way?
- Can you have more than one feeling at once?
- Is it ok to be mad, angry, upset?
- What different things engage your feelings?
Provocation / Changes to the Environment
How will you engage children in this activity? How will you activate their prior knowledge?
This is a general sense of what you will be doing.
-To engage children in this activity, is to start conversing and engaging with the children about
feelings in circle time. My plan is to start off just asking the children what feelings are. I will
tell them I notice that in the blue preschool I seem to notice all different types of feelings going
on throughout the day. I will do a expression of feelings with faces with all the children and
have them work on being able to tell emotions through faces and ways we feel and why and
why they are feeling that way and ways we can help our friends.

What will you say or do (questions, dialogue)? This is more specific; details.
-Who knows what feelings are?
*wait time (give students a chance to think and respond).
-When do feelings happen and why?
*wait time (give students a chance to think and respond).
-Is it ok to have all types of feelings or only happy feelings.
*wait time (give students a chance to think and respond).
- has it every happened when you were feeling a certain way and a friend had came over and
helped you feel better?
*wait time (give students a chance to think and respond).
-what do you do when you feel a certain way, what helps you feel better?

Closure/transitions/clean up?
-To close the immediate experience I will end by explaining to the children that it is
completely ok and acceptable to go through these feelings throughout the day and that
everyone goes through them, but is about how we deal with them. I will again touch upon how
important it is to express our feelings and keeping them in typically if they are “negative”
feelings then keeping them in can make them worse.

-The cleanup process won’t be anything extensive as the children and the activity really are
really based around just conversation. The feelings chart will only consist of magnets, words,
and their picture and will be left up for the continuum of the week.

Positive Guidance and Individualization

Managing the Flow of Activity & Safety Considerations
-To manage the flow of the activity, the conversation I think it will be important to have only
one child talking at a time and have the others quiet. The children need to be able to feel
comfortable with sharing their feelings and not feel like they are being shot down, not listened
to, or judged.

Proactive Strategies
-I think a very important proactive strategy to use with the engagement of this activity is to
make it known that it is important to be able to express feelings and that no one should be
judged for a feeling they may be expressing. I will make it clear to the students that we need to
 accept other friends’ feelings and it is nice to help our friends get through these feelings.
Reactive Strategies
-For reactive strategies, I will remind the children that it is important to listen to other friend’s
feelings and if we can’t be respectful and kind they will be asked to make a new choice. I think
it will be important to talk to the children to express a feeling that they are actually having but
identifying that feeling may be tricky, but to try as best as we can.

Supporting Each Child- Adaptations and Individualization – include at least 3 specific children

BR: I will invite the child to talk during the circle time and as she seems to be emotionally
developed I will try and have her elaborate on maybe a time she was feeling a certain way and
how it was resolved and lastly how that friend was feeling after.
AL: I will try and have her elaborate on a time where she was feeling certain way and why she
may have been feeling that way.
EA: I will ask the child to see if they can tell me a time where they may have helped a friend
and how they were feeling at the time when he helped them.

Materials and Quantity (List what you need, how much, & location in classroom)
 Circle time
 Magnets
 Classroom pictures
 Words

Spiraling: Intentionally Revisiting and Extending the Learning

Spiraling
-To help the children connect to the concept I will again make it known and express the
importance of feelings and how they are an everyday occurrence. To intentionally come back
to this concept I will recognize their feelings when I notice them and ask them why they may
be feeling they way there are visually or verbally expressing these feelings.

Additional activities
-An additional activity that the children could engage with is drawing people and then trying to
express how they are feeling with facial expressions that they then draw onto their faces. I
think that this could help them work on facial expressions and being able to draw them is
another developmental piece and a good indicator where they are at with either being able to
distinguish and then implement.

-Another additional activity that I think would be interesting to see but also could be very
tricky due to developmental stages is having the children act out a scenario where something is
happening and they are feeling a certain way and then it is the other friends job to try and help
them with that feeling.
 Concept Map (use separate sheet)

References:
Wheatley, E.C., Cantor, P., & Carver, J. (2015). New Hampshire early learning
standards birth through five. Concord, NH: NH Department of Health and Human services.
 ASSESSMENT LEP 4
(GATHERED ON 3 DIFFERENT CHILDREN)
An anecdote is an objective retelling of an event that has happened; a narrative that is
typewritten after the event has taken place. Take notes on 3 separate children on a separate
sheet of paper as you observe & facilitate your LEP. Then you will type them up using the
forms below after you leave the center.

The analysis includes your questions and comments about the event or child- what does this
event/child’s actions/words mean to you? What does it help you to understand about the
child(ren) observed? What questions does it bring up for you?

The connection to the standard is your thinking made visible; your understanding of how the
event you described connects to and supports- as evidence of learning- the standard you
selected.

Anecdote1:
Child’s initials: CL Age: 5 Date: 3/27/18

Observer: TU Place: BP Time:

Objective Description of Event:

Child walked over to feelings board with a friend laughing and smiling and grabbed his face
magnet. Child looked at the feelings choices and put his face under the angry category. I asked
the child why he was feeing angry and that I noticed a smile on his face. The child laughed and
said “I am angry”. The child then walked off continuing to smile and laugh with his friend.

Analysis:

The child didn’t seem like they we re really into the actual feeling itself but movie the face as a
sort of game. Was the child really feeling angry?

Connection to Standard:

The child is able to express feelings however wasn’t able to give reasons to the feeling being
expressed and facial expression didn’t show expression verbally expressed.

Anecdote 2
Child’s initials: RL Age: 4 Date: 3/27/18

Observer: TU Place: BP Time:

 Objective Description of Event:

Child was absent from the room at the moment. Child’s friend walked over to the feelings
chart in the room and moved his face and the child’s being observed magnet face to angry.
Child being observed walked into the room and went to play with other friends with blocks.
After letting the child settle in, I went to the child and told him I noticed that his face magnet
was on angry and that I was just checking in. The child said “what I’m not angry, I am happy
because I have a big marsh-mellow in my bag for lunch”. I asked the child if he wanted to go
check in and change his face magnet to excited, the child said yes and got up and moved it.

Analysis:

The child was able to express their feelings with a reason despite what their friend had tried to
express for them. Was the child feeling angry before while with friend and that’s why child
moved it to angry with their own? Or did the child have no idea friend moved it to angry?

Connection to Standard:

Child was able to express feelings and back up that feeling with a reason to confirm the
feeling.

Anecdote 3
Child’s initials: AL Age: 3 Date: 3/27

Observer: TU Place: BP Time:

Objective Description of Event:

During circle time, with the introduction of the activity all the children were taking turns going
and putting their face magnet on how they were feeling. All three of the child’s being observed
friends had put their face on excited. When it came to the child being observed, they went up
to the feeling chart and looked for their 2 other friends faces not the specific feelings category.
The group of friends faces were separate from the majority of the children in the classroom
who were at happy and child looked at the large group of friends and back at her two other
friends and placed her face in the excited category with their two friends.

Analysis:
Does the child know what each of the categories are on the chart? The child is looking to see
what friends do, but are they an influence to the child specifically or at the young age is it just
“monkey see monkey do in that sense”.

Connection to Standard:

Child didn’t verbally express feelings but was indicating feeling based on what other friends in
the classroom were representing.
 LEP 4 Reflection
1. Describe the experience you intended and then compare it to what actually happened.
What surprised you?
 The experience I intended for the children was for them to be able to establish what
they were feeling and then be able to recognize that feeling and then verbally express
the feeling and further, for some to be able to expand and have reasoning behind that
feeling.

2. What other domains, constructs, and strands did you discover this connects to?
 The other domains, constructs, and strands I discovered this connects to was cognitive
development, approaches to learning. I think that the social emotional aspect closely
relates to the children’s ability to adaptability of thought processes and intentionality.
Not directly but the children are able to ask themselves the question of how they are
feeling and why. I also think language development, as the children are able to
communicate concepts of why they are feeling a certain type of way and participating
in the conversation and questions of exploration of those feelings.

3. What did you learn about the children as learners? Describe 2 experiences of children
who participated in the activity.
 What I learned about as the children as learners was that some are able to distinguish
their feelings on their own based on how they are actually feeling and others are at the
stage where depending on that day they are feeling however another friend or friends in
the room are feeling. For example, during circle time after a chunk of the children had
placed their face on the feelings chart, it was one of the children in the rooms turn to
go, meanwhile all of their close knit friend group had placed their faces in a particular
area. When it was the child’s turn to go, the child had looked at where they wanted to
go but noticed their friend’s faces weren’t in the area they were looking to, and then
just looked for their friend’s faces and set hers in the same feeling area. This may show
that this child as a learner is influenced socially by what others they are close to in the
room are doing more so on how are they are feeling in this particular situation. Another
thing that I learned about another child as a learner as they would rather not have to get
up in front of the whole classroom and participate but would rather when no one is
around go and engage and participate. This instance in particular the child was asked if
they wanted to go up during circle time and put their face on how they were feeling for
the morning. The child responded with a no answer and shy’d away from engaging in
the activity as a whole. However, it was interesting to see how after everyone had left
circle time and moved onto choice time, a few minutes later the child had looked
around to see if anyone was watching, slowly made their way over to the feelings chart
and placed his face on a feeling and walked away. As a learner, this may show that the
child is more comfortable with doing things on their own without an audience.

4. What did you learn about yourself as a facilitator of learning?

 What I learned about myself as a facilitator that it was hard for me to let the children
 go over to the chart on their own without saying something to them. I found myself
asking them if they had gone over and checked in with how they were feeling way more
often than I should have. It was hard to see them not go over to the chart but when they
did, unexpected it was that much more ‘rewarding’ to see as a teacher who had made
the lesson.

5. How did the adaptation/individualization strategies work? Describe 1 experience of how it

worked (or didn’t). What might work even better to support individual learning needs?
 The individualization strategy worked very well. When I had asked BR to share a time
she was feeling a certain way, why she was feeling that way, how the problem was
resolved and how the problem was resolved she had a full story. BR’s ability to detect
her emotions, verbally express them and come up with a way they problem was solved
and how they both were feeling was the goal. When the other children heard BR share,
it sparked other children to want to share a time they were feeling a certain way and
wanted to explain why, and the results. I think that hearing how another classmate was
feeling and way made the other children see that their friends can feel upset and mad
but after the goal is to make each other feel happy.

6. How did your positive guidance strategies work (proactive and reactive)? What did you
notice about the language you used?
 I think my positive guidance strategies worked fairly well for the activity. Telling the
children that it was ok to feel which every they wanted was ok, and that no on was
there to judge or tell them they couldn’t feel that certain way. After telling the children
this there was a mix of emotions going around the room and when it came to putting
their feelings on the chart, the children didn’t feel like they all needed to have the same
one. At first the children thought it wasn’t ok to feel mad but as the first day passed and
I explained to them that everyone feels mad or upset, I started to see more emotions
being used besides happy.

7. Reflect on the assessment (taking notes and writing up anecdotes). How did it go? What
would you do differently next time?
 I think that the assessment part of my LEP was a little tricky. The anecdotal part of the
assessing what the child was verbally expressing and noting why they were chosing
that emotion during the circle time would have been easier. Quick notes on this were
easy. However, making anecdotes for when the child would go up to the chart and
place their face on a certain emotion was hard. I found it hard to go up to every child
and ask them why they were feeling why they were and it some children just wanted to
express the emotion but not explain as to why they chose what they did. I think if I
chose a few kids at a time to come over during the transition periods and engage them
in conversation, the anecdotes would have came out more successful. After talking to
the CT she said there wasn’t much I could do but adapt and make changes for next
time!
8. How did this assessment strategy work for helping you gain an understanding of
children’s learning? What did you learn from writing anecdotal narratives about children
and learning?
 This strategy assessment strategy worked for helping me gain an understanding of
children’s learning in that at their young age, some of the time they are feeling a certain
way just because and that there may not always be an explanation. Trying to pry it out
of them is not as successful as letting their emotion and explanation come out on their
own. What I also learned is when writing the anecdote was that young children tend to
remember what just happened. So if you don’t ask them their emotion right after the
situation, and why they are feeling that was it tends to be lost. However, opposite of
that I found that after watching a situation with a child and can see a certain emotion on
them, it is easy for them to say that it was a event that happened that is making them
feel that way that may not relate to what actually just happened at all.

9. How did your “intentional revisiting” of this experience go? What did you do or say and
how did children respond?
 The intentional revisiting became an everyday tool I used when talking to the children
when I noticed they may be feeling a certain way. Asking the children if they have
checked in really became a habit. Asking the children why they were feeling a certain
way after they had expressed an emotion also became habit and the children were
becoming more capable of explaining their emotions.

10. What would you do differently if you could have a “do-over”?

 What I would do differently if I had a do over would be to have a check in time
scheduled for the children to distinguish their emotions and how they were feeling. I
would chose to do this during every transition period switching from activity to
activity. I think this would get the children thinking about how they are feeling more,
especially as they interact with other children through activity, at their young age their
emotions seem to change rapidly. The ability for them to continuously distinguish their
emotions would really help develop their emotional expression and become more
frequently.