Observing Language and Social-Emotional Development in a 38-Month-Old Child

Abstract

Course name Instructor’s name Assignment due date Language and Social/Emotional Observation Paper Purpose of the Study A child’s successful achievement of developmental milestones has significant implications on their physical and psychological wellbeing. Observing language and social/emotional development demonstrates their capacity to interact with peers and adults from a young age. The purpose of the current study is to observe a single child, collect, and analyze data on their development while taking their age into consideration. The brain’s development at each stage and the child’s physical and social development affect how they fit into a particular environment (Gleason & Ratner, 2022). The study used observational techniques including anecdotal notes, developmental milestone checklists, and photo documentation to analyze the language and social/emotional development of the child. The data and conclusions from the study seek to inform the educators and the parents of the child on how best to provide a supportive environment that meets his needs. The study refers to the tools, concepts, and theories of childhood development from the course to make meaningful conclusions from the observation of the child. Child Introduction Liam (name changed) was a 38 month old male child at the beginning of the observation period and he lives with his two parents and brother. His brother is six years old and they have lived in the same home since Liam was born. Liam was born on 23rd November 2021 and is unilingual. His parents and teachers did not provide any information indicating any form of physical or mental health issue that could have significant implications on the child during or after birth. The observation study was conducted in the childcare center that Liam attends that has three classrooms based on the children’s ages. Liam’s mother brought him to the center for period of the observation and picked him up during the closing time. Observational Techniques Observation techniques determine the type of data and the depth of information researchers collect about a child. They determine the effectiveness of the study to provide meaningful insights on the child and how teachers and parents can use the conclusions to improve care. One of the observational tools for this study was collecting anecdotal data to document observations made of the child. Liam’s activities, interactions with peers and adults, and the use of words were documented during the data collection exercise. The second data collection tool was a developmental milestone checklist for 36 month old children that showed what a child should do at this age. Since Liam was 38 months at the beginning of the observation period, he should have achieved most of the developmental steps in the questionnaire. Another technique was the documentation of photographs of Liam in the classroom and playground that demonstrated his development. The analysis of the data on language and social/emotional development in this paper provides a summary of the aspects of successful development for the child and offers insights on approaches to care. Developmental Analysis Language development Receptive and expressive language skills affect how children can adequately and effectively interact with their peers and adults in their social environment. The capacity of a child to communicate effectively determines their access to support from their teachers and caregivers. The observational study demonstrated that Liam was able to show adequate language development for children at his stage of development. Language and communication development at the age of 38 months include achieving milestones such as having back-and-forth exchanges with an adult or a peer (Gleason & Ratner, 2022). During the observation period, Liam used his language skills during interactions with his parents, teachers, and peers. He engaged in a group activity where he and other students in the classroom built a castle using blocks. When a disagreement arose during the activity, Liam used interacted in a conversation that resolved the conflict with no adult intervention. The student’s language skills enable him to communicate clearly in a back-and-forth exchange as is expected for children above three years old. Learning and using vocabularies is an essential part of language development since it enables children to be more effective in communication. Children learn new words from their parents, teachers, peers, and reading materials in the classroom. By the age of three years, children should be have learnt about 1000 words to enable them to communicate with other people. It is an important step in language development that facilitates interaction, cognitive development, and the achievement of academic milestones. During the observation period, Liam used over 350 new words including vocabularies such as tree, jump, fork, and yellow. These are the words that the student was able to use correctly for the first time during our interaction and he demonstrated the capacity to build on his list of vocabularies. While I was not able to confirm that Liam can speak and understand over 1000 words, it was clear from my observation that the child’s language skills were sufficient for an individual at his age. He was exposed to a learning environment composed of new and exciting words that promoted his language and communication skills. Communication involves making observations and using language to interpret aspects of a child’s environment. During the observation period, Liam demonstrated the ability to use language to connect pictures and illustrations using words he learnt in the classroom. In particular, the child used communication skills to express the illustrations in pictures by determining the activities taking place in textbooks. Additionally, Liam responded correctly to questions on images such as, “What are the people in the pictures doing?” by saying, “Running.” The application of language and communication skills in every-day experiences is an important developmental milestone for children at the age of three years old. Liam demonstrated the ability to connect verbs with the activities and objects he sees in his physical environment at home and at school. In addition to knowing what a word means, the student can relate its implications in his every-day physical and social environment. Since children learn language by having fun with words and sentences, it was necessary to observe how Liam engaged with other people and reading materials during the observation period. He expressed eagerness and fun with stories especially when they involved familiar concepts, words, and objects. When introduced into familiar words in the classroom, Liam expressed knowledge of the connection between words and objects (Note 10). He demonstrated the urge to interact with words and have fun while learning vocabularies in the classroom. Children at the age of between three and four years recognize objects and associate them with familiar words (Gleason & Ratner, 2022). They gain language skills by learning this association and it relates to their day-to-day experiences. During my observation of the child’s language development, Liam expressed communication skills that are vital for connecting his own experiences with vocabularies. Additionally, he showed the ability to use words ending in “ing” correctly as observed in his communication with other people. He was able to say “talking” and “eating” correctly during conversations and demonstrated an excellent ability in language for children in his stage of development. Derived words may pose challenges for children and one of my observation was that Liam generalized some words when speaking. He understood that words ending in “ed” implied events that had occurred in the past such as “jumped” and “walked”. I observed that he used the same approach for the irregular verbs, “come” and “see” which resulted in errors during communication. However, it is normal for children at his age to make similar errors and they can learn through practice to make better meaning in their communication. Liam demonstrated the ability to use experiences at home and in school to improve his language and communication skills. I observed that being a unilingual speaker could have made it easier for the student to speak English since he used the same language when interacting with peers and adults. The limitations I noted in his language skills are typical for children at the age of 36 months and he demonstrated the potential to achieve language milestones in future stages. The behaviorist theory of learning language developed by B. F. Skinner proposes that children learn through conditional and positive reinforcement. Classical conditioning involves the association of stimuli to promote a desired behavior among children. According to Skinner’s theory, children learn language by imitating behaviors that receive the positive reinforcement of their parents (Budiman, 2017). This involves observing the reaction of parents and teachers to their sounds and determining the expected reactions to their own actions. The behaviorist theory demonstrates that the environmental stimuli is important in the acquisition of language since it affects how children communicate with adults and peers. The theory is applicable in the case of Liam’s development since it aligns with the influence that his parents, teachers, and peers have on his communication. By observing how other people react to how he understands and speaks, Liam seeks to achieve the best outcome that leads to language development. He wants to understand other people as they speak and wants to communicate well enough for his peers and adults to understand. Liam demonstrates that he uses his language skills as an essential tool to facilitate interpersonal interactions with his peers and other people. The observation study demonstrated that Liam had acquired language and communication skills that are essential for his interaction with children, educators, and adults. He expressed knowledge of words and vocabularies sufficient for children at his stage of development. He had successfully achieved 93.75% of the milestones in the age and development questionnaire for language development for children above 36 months old. At his stage of development, he is able to communicate with other children of his age and adults in a back-and-forth communication. His language and communication skills were essential in his interaction with other people as observed during the period of the study. Liam was able to use language as a tool that facilitated group activities and to express his feelings and experiences to his peers and adults. Learning new words was an important part of the child’s experiences and abilities regarding language development in school. From the study, it was clear that Liam had succeeded in attaining the language and communication skills for children at his stage of development and would benefit from support to learn new vocabularies. Social/Emotional Development Children exist in an environment with other people where interpersonal interactions are vital for their wellbeing. They play alongside other children and meet strangers of all ages where their behavior affects the quality of the interaction. For children at Liam’s age, social/emotional development facilitates independence from adult caregivers and their interaction with other children at school (Suprijanto et al., 2022). The social and physical environment of a child has significant implications on how they engage with peers and participate in play activities. A child’s development between three and four years old has significant implications on their academic achievements in childhood education. It affects their participation in classroom and play activities and the learning outcomes from such activities. The observation study for Liam’s development indicated achievements of social/emotional milestones for children between three and four months old. A major aspect of social/emotional development for children at the age of three years old is their independence from their parents and caregivers. At the age of above 36 months old, children should be able to be without their primary caregivers for the whole childcare period as an indication of their independence. Liam demonstrated an excellent transition from the time he spent at home to the time he was at the childcare center that allowed him to be independent from his parents (Suprijanto et al., 2022). His mother brought him at the childcare facility each day and he transitioned emotionlessly to the interaction with children in the classroom and playground. On one occasion, Liam cried when his mother dropped him at the facility since he had not bought him a favorite toy that they had seen along the way. However, he was calm after his mother explained that she would purchase the toy and would bring it in the afternoon after the childcare session (Note 11). The time it takes for a children in emotional distress to regain calmness is...