In this assignment, I will reflect on my observation of two children aged 2.5 years. I will reflect on how I have used different methods of social work observation in practice and whether they were used effectively throughout my observation. I will explain how it helped prepare me for practice in second year and how I will use what I learned. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get the original essay This observation took place in a daycare that serves children ages 6 months to 5 years. I focused my attention on the infant and toddler area. There were three infants and 9 young children and 2 year olds present at the time, making a total of twelve children. I arrived while they were playing for free inside, so during their play time I observed that some toddlers were more interested in the toys the infants had than the toys they had. One of the toddlers named Evan frequently went to one of the rocking chairs to try to climb into it instead of playing with the toys that were there for her. Two toddlers named Emma and Kristy, both 2.5 years old, were playing with dolls. Kristy sat the doll on her lap, grabbed a book and pretended to read to the doll, while Emma rocked her and sang to her doll. In another corner, two 18-month-old girls, Kaia and Katherine, pretended to cook and feed their dolls. While the other two 2-year-olds, Lily and Sonni, dressed their dolls and brushed their hair. The three babies named James, Jeannie and Gabby, aged about 6 to 8 months, were sitting in the same room on the other side of the carpet and playing with colorful blocks with one of the teachers. Emma decided to go to where James was and teach him how to build with the blocks. She placed one block on top of the other while James handed her the blocks. Jeannie and Gabby also tried to give their blocks to Emma. With everyone's help, they were able to build a tall tower of blocks. Emma applauded and so did the infants. In another part of the room, I observed three young boys playing. Their names are Hunter Ramone and Evan. One of the boys, Evan, had just turned three years old and the other two boys, Hunter and Ramone, were only two years old. The Evan wanted to direct and control the game. They pretended to play superheroes. They behaved as if they could run very fast, fly or throw beams with their hands. Evan would make suggestions on what to play and the others would follow. Additionally, when Hunter tried to leave and go to another area, the older toddler guided him to the group with his own type of language. The last thing I observed before leaving the facility was Gabby and Lily playing and interacting with each other. They were both playing with some sort of stuffed toys, really enjoying and exploring them. They looked into each other's eyes, smiled back, gestured, reached out to communicate with each other. When Gabby dropped her toy that she was playing with, Lily picked it up and handed it to her and Gabby kindly received it from her with a smile and they continued to play and explore with their toys. The next time, I arrived at mealtime to observe them. The teacher rang the bell for lunch. Toddlers and infants were allowed to interact with each other during meals. The infants were in their high chairs and the toddlers were sitting next to them. The toddlers all sat on the seatswhich were assigned to them. A teacher handed out their plates, cups and spoons. The teacher gave Evan the towels and he passed them out. For lunch it was mac n chess. Some waited patiently while others shouted or made noise asking for their food while one of the teachers served them. The infants were not patient. Jeannie and Gabby were crying and James was banging on his high table and making random noises to attract his teachers. The professor arrived with their mash. At the toddlers' desk, the teacher read to them while they ate. The other two teachers helped feed the babies while singing to them. This calmed Jeannie and James. Gabby was always difficult. Evan and Emma finished their meals faster than the other children. They approached the teacher and asked if they could help feed James and Gabby. The teacher took Gaby from the rocking chair and sat on the carpet with Emma. She handed Emma a bottle. She then feeds Gabby with the bottle, of course under adult supervision. They were both smiling and enjoying each other's company. Emma was talking to Gabby. She said, “Eat Gabby.” The other teacher then decided to get James out of the high chair and sit with Gabby and Emma so Evan could help feed James. While the teacher held James in his arms, Evan gave him a bottle. Evan had this huge smile on his face. As the toddlers finished their meal and with the help of the teacher, they placed the dirty dishes, cups and spoons in a gray bin so that they could be washed. The teacher lined them up. They all sang songs on the way to the bathroom. They sang songs with their teacher about going to the bathroom and washing their hands. One by one, they went to the potty and washed their hands. Then they got ready for a nap. Unfortunately, my observation was over. As I observed them, I thought about some psychological theories and theorists that showed how play and interactions play such an important role in a child's development. Piaget's theory of cognitive development, Erickson's psychosocial theory, Freud's psychosexual theory and Vygotsky's sociocultural theory and Ivan Pavlov's learning theory have made significant contributions to the understanding of the relationship between social interactions through play and their development. Piaget, Erikson and Vygotsky all agree that the child uses play for self-learning. The child plays in situations just as an adult thinks about a situation. Like Piaget, Vygotsky believed that biological and social factors interact in development and that children actively participate in constructing their own understanding of the world. (Frank Manis, 2016) Vygotsky proposed that most aspects of cognitive development take place in a social context, with adults acting as intelligent guides who anticipate what the child needs to learn and provide culturally specific learning methods. (Frank Manis 2016) While Erikson argued that there is a relationship between gaming and society. Play allows children to learn about their social world. and try new social skills. Furthermore, for Erikson, as for Piaget, play promotes the child's social competence. Therefore, every child needs to play as it contributes greatly to their physical, social and emotional well-being. For example, from early childhood, play promotes physical development by encouraging the development of sensory exploration and motor skills. SpeakThrough play and repetition of basic physical skills, children hone their abilities and become proficient at increasingly difficult physical tasks. Play promotes mental development and new ways of thinking and problem solving. For example, through block play, Emma, ​​Jeannie, James and Gabby faced many mental challenges related to measurement, equality, balance, shape and spatial relationships. Additionally, through imaginative play, Kristy, Emma, ​​Sonni Lilly, Katherine and Kaia were able to develop their unique perspectives and individual styles of creative expression. In Freud's theory, he believed that their problems stemmed from unconscious psychological conflicts occurring in childhood. (Frank Manis, 2016) I once read that Freud described play as a mechanism for the child to repeatedly work on a previously experienced traumatic event with the goal of correcting or mastering the event to his or her satisfaction. Seeing them follow certain routines or behaviors during meals, play, and toileting, I thought of Erickson in how he felt the need for independence had to be balanced by the need for help from the parent or guardian .the child learns socially appropriate behaviors and routines. (Frank Manis, 2017) The key assumption behind learning theories is that much of a child's behavior is acquired through continuous matching of child responses. child to environmental stimuli. (Frank Manis ,2017)For example, when the children heard the bell and sat down and received their cups or plates, they knew it was lunch time. Even with no food, they knew lunch was coming. Some children even screamed, cried or made noise over their food. Food is the stimulus and crying cries are the response. During my time there, I also observed the children using their fine and gross motor skills, such as sitting, rolling, grasping, and reaching for objects. In addition, their major stages in their cognitive and language development according to their age such as their attention, their memory and their use of sounds or words or sentences due to their social interactions and their communication with each other. I also perceived in my observation how their interactions are important for their learning. Their peers have contributed substantially to each other's intellectual and social-emotional development. Their interactions also provided the context in which they acquired social communication and cooperation. It also created a connection essential to their social and emotional well-being. Additionally, I was so amazed to see the interactions between the two age groups. The two groups really seem to get along. They liked to help each other at meals and during games. By observing the environment alone, it made it conducive to positive interactions between infants and toddlers. The infant and toddler classroom space allowed younger and older children to interact with each other. They could see each other at any time. I think that through their interactions and play, infants will learn certain behaviors from older children, such as feeding, talking, playing, etc. Things that will make the transition from infant to toddler easier as well as ease the transition from toddler to preschool. Allowing toddlers to help with things such as feeding infants and playing with them, and in their mind helping them, allows toddlers to have some maturity and independence and not fear and dependence on others,