Prompt 8: Health, Wellness, and Physical Development

In my classroom the children have about 15 minutes every day to run around outside or in the gym. I have noticed that this time can be cut short depending on how long it takes them to complete their work. The schedule is never consistent when it comes time for them to go to recess. During recess time the children are extremely active. They become very excited when it is time to go play because they have so much energy built up. When they get to recess the teacher encourages all of them to run around instead of participating in stationary play. I have observed a lot of indoor play due to the inconsistent weather. Indoor play limits the children to the materials that they normally have on the playground (swings, jungle gym, balance beam, slides, rock wall, etc). The Bullard text states, “children who play outdoors demonstrate better visual motor integration, imagination, and verbal and social skills than children who play inside.”

While observing my classroom, I have found no source of blocks and a very limited source of fine motor activities. The closest thing the classroom have to blocks are Legos. A lot of the children spend time building objects out of the Legos. The Bullard text talks about the different opportunities blocks provide. The text says, “While children build with blocks they develop mathematical skills, use symbolic representation, practice science skills, make use of literacy, exhibit social-emotional skills, demonstrate aesthetic awareness, and practice geography.” The teacher does not scaffold the children’s play when they arrive in the morning. The children have puzzles, crayons, markers, scissors, colored pencils, and tinker toys. These materials are the only ones I could even consider the classroom using for the children’s fine motor development.

My program would score really well on the Health practices item for ECERS. My teachers make sure the students blow their nose when it is running, wash and dry their hands in the bathroom, and use hand sanitizer before snack and after recess. During snack time the students are provided with healthy options. This normally includes; whole grain goldfish, applesauce, and fresh fruits. The teacher makes sure to always have an abundant supply for the students who have certain allergies. The only suggestion I would make to improve this item would be to display more pictures/posters about health reminders for the children. I believe my program would also receive a good score for the Safety practices item in ECERS. I have noticed that my teachers are very proactive when it comes to a student that could potentially get hurt. They make sure to always keep an eye on the students and prevent them from participating in hazardous activities. The only suggestion I would make for this item would be to display examples of possible hazards that the students could use as a resource.