Portfolio Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2750 words

Portfolio - Essay Example Block center O. Dramatic Play center P. Climbing area Q. Window Front 3-D view Back 3-D view 3-D view from sides Reflection I created the models for my classroom using an online classroom planning tool. It was really helpful to be able to use the program to plan how I wanted to set up my room. However, the choices of furniture were limited, so I couldn’t be as detailed as I would have liked. I still want to set my future classroom up like the classroom I designed, although I might switch the art center and the soft/book center so that the art center has better lighting. Culturally Respectful Menu Breakfast Lunch Snack Monday Corn pancakes Milk Spaghetti, salad and pears Milk Banana bread Orange Juice Tuesday Sausage Rolls Milk Cuban sandwich, Arroz con pollo, pineapple Milk Tortilla chips Apple Juice Wednesday Open Faced Omelet Orange Juice Chinese pot stickers, fried rice, steamed vegetables Milk Chinese filled buns Milk Thursday Quiche Lorraine Milk Burritos, refried beans, guacamole salad Milk Rice crackers Apple Juice Friday Huevos Rancheros Orange Juice Yakitori, egg noodles, fruit skewers Milk Cheese buns Milk Reflection I arranged the menu the way that I did to make sure that the children got milk twice a day and fruit or vegetables every day. I also made sure that there are at least three different food groups present each day. On the menu, I offered food from the United States, Latin America, South America, Europe and Asia. I really like how culturally varied the menu is, however if I had to plan a menu again, I would make sure that the students were getting a fruit and a vegetable every day. I would also try to balance the menu so that it was less carbohydrate heavy on certain days. Play Observation for a Child with Special Needs I observed in a 4 year old classroom. The classroom, as well as the child care center it was in, followed Adlerian psychology. The basic idea of Adlerian psychology is to encourage the development of healthy and cooper ative individuals and families. The student that I focused on was a student that was diagnosed with ADHD. One technique that I noticed a teacher use when working with the child was rewarding the child when he had a good behavior and ignoring negative behavior. I believe the goal of this method was to show the student that the teacher would only pay him attention when he was behaving well. This was an effective strategy because it caused the student to behave in more positive ways. Another technique that I saw was keeping a posted schedule and referring the child to the schedule whenever he asked a question about what was coming next. The goal of this method was to provide a stable, structured schedule for the child to refer to. I believe this was an effective strategy because the child often used it and had a reduced anxiety about what was coming up next. I also noticed that the teacher gave clear behavior expectations before all activities. The goal of this method was to remind the student of what behaviors were acceptable in class. I believe this was an effective strategy because it helped the student to remember how he should behave during activities. The teacher also spoke to the student privately when they were doing more complex activities. The goal of this activity was to reinforce the steps needed to complete the activity and to clarify any steps. She went over the steps that he would have to take to complete the activity with him, then asked him if he had any questions and