Early Childhood Education and Care | Report

Running Head: SOCIOLOGY 1
Early Childhood Education and Care
Name of University

SOCIOLOGY 2
Introduction
Different observation methods could be employed when observing children, their skills,
abilities, and needs and get a holistic view of each child in the classroom. In this paper, different
techniques of observing preschoolers are used to study children under the age of two years and
make a targeted and combined analysis based on the observations. Documenting observations
and learning from them is a useful method for assessing if the children’s’ individual development
and progress is as per the three principles of the Australian Government Education and Training-
Being, Belonging, and Becoming and asses their development and progress.
Event Recording sample (2-year-old) - Play routine in a Day Care Setting
Date: 27/3/2020
Child: Laura (2- year
old)
Setting: Sandpit area
Others involved: four to
five children and two
teachers
Observer:
Background information:
Laura is a 2-year-old who attends the play way school and she is
standing in the sand pit area. There are about 5-6 children and two
staff members and children are busy playing and making noise.
Time Antecedent
Event
Behaviours Nonverbal or
Verbal
communication
Consequent
Event
10.20 a.m.
Laura is busy
digging in the
sand with her
spade
She pauses and
looks around
and watches
what the
teacher and the
boy in the
green cap are
doing
She stops and
gazes at the
activity with
interest
She moves closer to the
boy with confident steps
and starts digging.

SOCIOLOGY 3
10.22 a.m. Laura digs
with her spade
She stops for
some time and
looks at the
deeper hole
dug by the
teacher and the
boy
She looks at the
hole
She uses her spade to dig
the home deeper
10.25 a. m. Laura places
her spade on
the ground
She watches
the boy put his
both feet in the
hole
She looks at the
boy and his feet in
the hole.
She waits for the boy to
pull up his feet
10.28 a. m. Laura puts her
spade inside
the hole and
shovels off
some sand
She almost
misses the face
of the little
boy when
taking out her
spade
She looks at the
boy as he moves
his face back with
alarm
She looks at the boy and
stops for a while
10.30 a. m. Laura stand
and waits
She follows
her teacher and
starts filling
the hole
She observes what
is happening
She stops and looks at
the hole which is now
closed.
10.32 a. m. Laura pauses
and waits,
ready to dig
the hole
She follows
the same
strategy used
by the teacher
and starts
digging
She looks at what
the teacher is doing
She shovels away the
sand and responds by
holding her space in the
right direction as her
teachers asks her to “be
careful.”
10.34 a. m Laura looks at
her teacher and
listens to the
instructions
given by he.
She follows
the
instructions by
keeping the
spade low and
watching her
feet.
She observes the
movement of the
space carefully
with her eyes
She throws away her
spade, sits down and
quickly puts her feet in
the hole.
10.35 a. m Laura looks at
her teacher and
sits with her
feet in the hole
Laura keeps
sitting and
waits
She observes as the
teacher fill the hole
with sand
She pulls out one of her
legs
10.37 a. m Laura sits
down with one
of her feet in
the hole
She lifts her
one foot and
tries to gauge
the situation of
her other feet
She looks at other
children as if in
need of help
She tries to dig out some
of the sand with her hand
10.38 a. m Laura sits
quietly,
She does some
digging with
She keeps looking
at the teacher and
She puts her hands
behind and lets the other

SOCIOLOGY 4
watching other
children help
her hands in-
between
other children children dig
Running records - Infants play and routine in an Early Childhood Education Setting
The observation takes place inside a daycare center for infants. It is a spacious long room
that is well lit and has different seating arrangements with a few pieces of furniture towards the
sides. Three caretakers are busy with the children under their care or supervision.
Date: 15/07/2004
Time: 10:45 am – 10:48 am
Child: Ileana (1.2 years)
Place: Baby section indoor area
Setting: Ileana moving
Observer:
Background information:
Ileana is about one year old and is a quiet babay
Others involved: Saya (Educator)
Time Observation
10:2:55 am Ileana is held by one of the staff members and makes
some sound when the staff member communicates
with her. She seems to be comfortable and at ease
with the staff member as she moves across the room.
10:3:10 am Ileana plays with the toys given to her by the staff
member as she places her down on a huge cushion on
the floor. She picks up the toys and later her gaze
follows the movement of her caretaker.
10:3:23 am Ileana is attracted towards a toy kept in front of her