Discussing The Observation, Planning And Assessment Cycle

This assignment will discuss the observation, planning and assessment cycle. It will show three different activity plans, which will be in ‘Appendices one’, which focus on either literacy or mathematics. It will discuss key theorists and show how they link to the plans. Each activity plan will be briefly explained in the essay, and evaluated. The essay will have appropriate references and findings to support the writing.
The observation, planning and assessment cycle is something which allows a practitioner to plan appropriate activities for a child, according to their needs, abilities and interests. If a practitioner does not know the child, then they will not be able to plan challenging, enjoyable or meaningful activities for that child.
It is Available in ‘Appendices two’. The activity ‘Bee-bots’ was based on development and interests, and was a mathematical activity. Before the activity was planned, I discussed with the teacher who she thought I could plan this activity for, she helped me choose four children from the middle ability group. I looked at their trackers of development in mathematics, enabling myself to plan according to needs and differentiation. After this I observed the children to discover their interests. During the observation all four children were in the book corner taking turns to tell each other the story ‘The Gruffalo’. They were acting out the story, each being one character from the story. From this I decided to design a map that would be based around the Gruffalo. For this activity I tried to challenge the children and used differentiation. To use a bee-bot children need to understand how to program them. They can either be programmed step by step or the whole sequence in one go. I started the children off by asking them to program it step by step, and gradually programming the whole sequence. A theorist named Jerome Bruner stated that teachers need to offer appropriate challenges, suitable materials and encouragement such as relevant language and sustained shared thinking. (Clemson and Clemson, 1994). After I had finished the activity I left it out and supported other children
The assessed outcomes are in ‘Appendices three’ However, I do feel that there were many tasks I set for the children to achieve, some which were above their development, if I planned this activity again I would set less tasks, as I feel they struggled the amount there was. The tasks for next time could involve counting the shapes up to ten and recognising colours, and sorting the shapes by size could be a next step from this activity. Another point that could be included would be to involve their interests, as this activity did not focus on this. I would have to observe the children to discover their