I.

Observation #4
The Four Domains of the Child

II. Grade level and Subject Area

3rd and 4th grade, English Language Arts and Math

III. Setting
Self-contained classroom; Special Education; Elementary school; Urban setting; 1 educator and
2 para-educators; 12 students present

IV. Pre-Observation
Before observing the selected students' physical, cognitive, social, emotional
development stages, I conducted research revolving around the four domains of the child and
what is expected of a third grade student, specifically in an Elementary school and Special
Education setting, to gain a greater understanding of developmental concepts. According to the
National Association of the Education of Young Children (NAEYC), each of the domains work
in accordance with one another and help each other grow, “All domains of child
development—physical development, cognitive development, social and emotional development,
and linguistic development (including bilingual or multilingual development), as well as
approaches to learning—are important; each domain both supports and is supported by the
others,” (National Association of the Education of Young Children). Usually, when one domain
is at a low level, it is very difficult for the other ones to thrive, which makes it crucial for the
student’s growth to be promoted in all developmental stages throughout childhood. In
continuation, I wanted to research specific components that third graders should acquire during
this age of their life. Particularly, in the physical development stage, students are expected to
have, “Large differences in size and abilities of children; may affect the way they get along with
others, how they feel about themselves, and what physical activities they do,” (Chesterbrook
Academy). At this age, students begin to differentiate in physique as well as experiment with
which physical skills or activities work best for them. Finally, in the cognitive development
stage, students are able to understand that, “Place value is an important concept. It not only helps
with addition and subtraction but serves as the foundation for the rounding, multiplying, and
dividing that will occur in third grade,” (Morin). While the students in my observation classroom
are not at the academic level of learning multiplication and division, place value continues to
remain an important concept throughout their learning. At this age, students are able to take the
knowledge learned through place value and connect it to higher level math skills, such as
different operations like addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division.

V. Data
End
Physical
● The student actively participates in the brain break activities, which enforces full body
movement such as dancing, jumping, and exercising.
● The student practices his fine motor skills through tapping or typing on the computer
when using XtraMath, Kahoot, or the sign-out sheet.
● The student demonstrates bodily awareness and perceptual motor skills when finding a
spot to sit at on the carpet. He always ensures that he is not too close or too far away from
his peers and the teacher.

Cognitive
● Once the student received enough reward money from his good behavior, he cashed in
the money he had been saving for a long time in order to have lunch with the teacher.
● The student continues to actively participate in group discussions during read alouds and
lessons.
● The student is able to recognize and recall trick words when undergoing a trick word
assessment. He is able to identify and say the majority of the kindergarten trick words,
though has more errors with the first grade trick words.
● The student has difficulty when visualizing place value and what numbers are in the ones
and tens place. The student answers that 4+0=10. The teacher has to break down the
answer by raising her fingers to represent each number. Then, after guidance is given, the
student is able to come to the correct conclusion.
● During career day, the student asked many interesting and thought-provoking questions to
the student presenters who came to the school, such as, “When you first entered high
school, did you ever get confused what class you go to?” He additionally asked questions
on various topics surrounding future careers, high school, and college. Sometimes, the
student would be too eager to wait to ask a question and would blurt out, “I have a
question”, and would need to be reminded by the teacher to raise his hand.
● The student shares his questions and thoughts out loud to the class frequently when given
the opportunity to.

Social
● The student continues to be an avid rule follower, however, he sometimes forgets proper
classroom etiquette for certain actions, such as asking to go to the bathroom. Instead of
staying at his seat and raising his hand, he went up to the teacher’s desk and asked
without being called on. After the teacher advised him to return to his seat and try again,
he quickly corrected his behavior and then was called on.
● The student shows interest in playing Kahoot against his classmates and playing board
games during free-time given to celebrate my departure.
Emotional
● The student helped the teacher clean up when she dropped her class sign on the ground.
Without hesitation, he laid down the books he was holding and began to pick up the
pieces before the teacher could and tried to put it back together with the best of his
ability.

VI. Analysis
Through my observation of the selected student, I noticed that the student has continued
to demonstrate that he is on track for his physical development as his motor and fine motor skills
are actively being engaged in the classroom. Also proficiency of coordination and motor skills is
being presented through the exercises and activities that take place in the classroom daily. Then,
when analyzing the student’s cognitive development, I was aware that the student is not
intimidated by making mistakes, but takes the opportunity to learn when he does make mistakes
or forgets to do a certain action. Additionally, while he is not considered to be at a third grade
reading level, the student is consistently showing improvement at his own pacing, which is
reflected through his rising assessment scores and leveling up in book levels. Next, when
analyzing the student’s social development, I recognized that he continues to tattle and call
attention to students that are not following the rules and uses an assertive tone when doing so.
This demonstrates that he is definitely present in the seven to eight year old cognitive level for
rule following, which is expected for his age. To finish, when analyzing the student’s emotional
development, I noted that the student reflects high self-esteem as he is not afraid to be vocal,
participate, and ask engaging questions in a group setting or an individual setting with the
teacher. He demonstrates confidence and little to no anxiety surrounding verbally speaking his
mind.

VII. Recommendations
The student being observed has shown clear signs of growth and enhancement in each
stage of development, especially in comparison to the beginning of my observation timeline,
however, the student has developmental areas where improvement and growth can continue to
occur. I would recommend that there are more opportunities for play in the classroom rather than
just during recess. Play is not just a fun activity, but it also provides students with academic
learning opportunities as well as social emotional learning opportunities when playing in
conjunction with other students. According to the National Association of the Education of
Young Children (NAEYC) states that, “Play promotes joyful learning that fosters self-regulation,
language, cognitive and social competencies as well as content knowledge across disciplines.
Play is essential for all children, birth through age 8,” (National Association of the Education of
Young Children). Similar to group work, play helps students practice and maintain important
skills needed for future academic and career success, such as patience, self-regulation, and
sharing.
VIII. Post Observation
As I have been able to focus on the four domains of one child in my designated fieldwork
placement classroom, I have learned that a student's growth is not linear. Of course there are
estimates, expectations, and recommended timestamps for when children should achieve certain
skills and goals, however, each child develops differently due to their biological, cultural, and
environmental factors. By being able to observe a student who has an IEP in a Special Education
classroom, while the student is behind compared to his grade level specific academic and
cognitive standards, I have learned that through the support he receives, he is able to continue to
advance in his studies as well as in the other areas of development.

IX. Citations

Developmental Characteristics of Third Graders the Eight-Year-Old. (n.d.). Retrieved May 2,

2023, from

http://www.chesterbrookacademy.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2015/09/Development

al-Characteristics-of-Third-Graders.pdf

Principles of Child Development and learning and implications that inform practice. NAEYC.

(n.d.). Retrieved May 2, 2023, from

https://www.naeyc.org/resources/position-statements/dap/principles

Morin, A. (2021, July 21). Skills Kids Need going into third grade. Retrieved May 1, 2023, from

https://www.understood.org/en/articles/skills-kids-need-going-into-third-grade#

X. Appendix

Riverview School District Home. (2007). Retrieved May 1, 2023, from

https://www.rsd.k12.pa.us/Downloads/Development_Chart_for_Booklet.pdf