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Presentation by
Karly McCrea, Sunil Chhetri, and Namrata Vaghela,

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After lunchtime finishes, playtime begins. Ram, a student in the class, sees a ramp in the corner of the room and makes his way over to play. On the carpeted floor, there are three ramps that lay side-by-side, leaning on top of a wooden block to give the ramps height on one side. At the bottom of each ramp, there are cylindrical tubes of different sizes and lengths. To start, Ram crouches down behind the wooden block and releases a white ball on the middle ramp, going straight down and through the tube. The educator in the room responded enthusiastically, “Whoa!”. Ram now sits beside the ramps with three balls in his hands, one on each of the ramps, and lets them go all at once. All three balls go down the ramps and through the tubes, which then Ram happily chases after the balls to bring them back to the start of the ramps. He returns to the ramps, now being joined by an educator, and repeats the same action with the balls and the ramps. Behind the ramp set up against the wall is a container holding more pieces that can be added to the ramps. Ram grabs another wooden ramp and a larger tube. On his own, he sets up the new ramps beside the other one, all while carrying the balls. Noticing he can only control three balls at one time, the education asks if he needs help. Ram says, “Okay,” and hands her a wooden ball. Two more balls are grabbed, this time golf balls, and he asks another educator to help with those. He instructs the educators to set them on the ramps and, on his command, he says “Go!” and all six balls are released down the ramps. Ram excitedly collects the balls and returns to the ramps. He now grabs the rest of the nine shorter ramps and sets them up alongside the old ramps. More wooden blocks have been set up for the ramps to lean on. Ram now holds a blue car in his hand and holds it on one of the ramps with a tube at the end. The car doesn't seem to move, so Ram jumps up and grabs a golf ball. He returns behind the ramps with the blue car and golf ball in each hand, holding the blue car in front and the golf ball behind, letting go of both at the same time. Both the car and the golf ball successfully go down the ramp and through the tube. The educator cheers him on, stating, “You got it through!” and clapping. Ram stands tall and proud, witnessing his achievement.

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5.1 Increasing levels of activity, endurance, and variation in types of activity and skills.
Ram is freely exploring the ramps during indoor play time. Throughout the play, he sees many successful attempts and continues to play after each success. After each attempt, Ram adds to the play with more ramps, balls, and objectives. During the play, Ram takes on challenges by increasing the number of ramps and tubes, incorporating more and different balls (i.e., wooden and golf balls), releasing the balls from different perspectives (behind and beside the ramps), and asks for help from the educators. Each time, Ram would eagerly chase after the balls and return to the ramps to challenge himself with a new addition. Ram even decides to venture off from the balls and adds a toy car with wheels to test out if it will go down the ramp in the same manner. When discovering it needs more weight and/or push, he faces the challenge and problem-solves by adding a golf ball, to which both the car and the ball go smoothly down the ramp and through the tube.

5.2 Gross motor skills
Ram demonstrates speed and accuracy when arranging the ramps together and releasing the balls down the ramps. He is more than able to go from sitting and crouching to jumping up and running to chase the balls that he released down the ramps.

5.3 Fine motor skills
Ram seems to have no difficulty picking up the ramps and placing them along the wooden blocks. He demonstrates holding onto three balls at once while being able to run around and organize his ramps. He has a firm grip on the balls before deciding when to release them. He is very successful in emptying out the basket full of ramps and carrying them to add to his play.

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Material: We could make an array of changes to the ramps to create more possibilities and outcomes for the child(ren). We could use different sized ramps (wider, narrower, longer, shorter), varied sizes and weights of balls, as well as different colours and materials of the ramps, tubes, and balls. All may not be successful right away, but it will give the child a challenge and could make it more difficult to succeed immediately. For example, a large ball may not fit through the small tube; therefore, the child will have to problem solve what to do next.

Set up: We could move the ramps to an outdoor play area. This would change the environment and surface of where the ramps will sit. The child(ren) will also be able to utilize their surroundings, creating different heights of the ramps and observing, or discovering, the varying speeds they will create. They may notice the balls being launched further and having to run farther to retrieve them. Or if the surface is not smooth, the balls may bounce away in different directions instead of rolling straight.

Verbal Strategies: By providing opportunities for different outcomes with the ramps, we can verbalize to the child(ren) what ramps/tubes/balls may do what. This will give them the option to problem solve and create the play they want to act out. For example, we can let the child know that by making the ramp taller, the ball will go faster and farther away. Or, that a golf ball weighs more than a ping pong ball and will also go faster down the ramp. We are there to support the child while they create their ideas.

Justification: If the child is keeping their focus on the small ramps, we could introduce longer ramps and use the same strategies the child used for the small ramps, only to possibly see a different outcome and expand their knowledge. We can be there to help them stay focused on the activity and aid in attaining their goals.

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1. Does Ram play with ramps at home?

2. Outside of our care, does Ram engage with other peer groups?

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Camera
Cameras are a great tool to give a clear visual of what the child is doing in childcare. Cameras are used for photos and videos, making it easy to capture the experiences the child is having. With an exact image of the child, we are able to see and hear the expressions and voice of the child and the child’s surroundings. In some cases, the educator may also be captured on camera, giving an even more in depth visual of what was happening during the experience. The photos taken can be printed many times, while both the photos and videos can be kept on the camera or uploaded to another source/tool.

Binder
Binders are crucial tool in a childcare setting, allowing for the organization of all the information on the children in care. Each child will typically have their own page or pages, sorting all information and creating each child’s individual profile; a photo can be used for a visual of the child. The information is condensed to allow for quick knowledge and is organized in order of importance. Found on the pages should be information such as the child’s name, date of birth, guardians (and specified for pick up and drop off), dietary restrictions, allergies, medical history, and family history. All other important and necessary information will be listed as well. This provides easy access for the educators in the centre to find out details for each child in care.

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Camera:
To help capture the voice of the child we could….

Have the interaction with the child on video, where we are able to audibly hear the voice and tones. Through video, children may even talk directly into the camera and express themselves freely. This way, the child’s voice will have a lesser chance of being misinterpreted.

To help capture the voice of the family we could…

Post the photos and/or videos to a communication board where the family can view and respond to the documentation of their child. This will create an opening for conversation to discuss the child’s development with the family, and have their voices and input heard.

To help capture the voice of the colleagues we could…

Use the pictures and videos as clear examples of what we are referring to when discussing the child/s development with our colleagues. We are able to hear their opinion on the matter and plan together for the next steps. It gives the opportunity to see the scenario in a different perpective on the scenario/same situation, and allows for stronger understanding.

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Binder:
To help capture the voice of the child we could….

Use direct quotes of what the child has said rather than paraphrase. With direct quotes from the child, we can see exactly how the child spoke and then add on more information in our own words. That way, the child’s voice is not lost.

To help capture the voice of the family we could…

Have the family provide information for the binder/profile; therefore, the information is directly from the family. Important criteria such as medical information and the allowed guardians for pickup/drop-off will be correct and directly sourced from the family. We can also have the family add on a regular basis with new information to further understand the development of the individual child.

To help capture the voice of the colleagues we could…

Have the binder accessible to all the colleagues in the child care centre. This will create easy access to the child's information, leaving little to no room for error. The binder can be opened up for all colleagues to add to each child’s individual chart, so there is no bias in the documentation.

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Provocation with Loose Parts in Child Care Centre.

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In the child care centre, we set up our own ramps. We had ramps with a wall on one side,  a block for height, and various sized balls. By moving the ramps further up the plank, it makes the ramp narrower and possibly more difficult for the balls to go down, or could make the balls go faster and further.

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Recognize the loose object on the floor: Ram comes and

plays with the ramps and various-sized balls after seeing

the new items. The educator watches what he is doing without offering the child any advice. Then, as the Ram's caregiver, you may challenge him to use various levels and various sized balls so he gradually gains the encouragement by engaging in this activity. If Ram runs into any difficulties, just make sure the child cannot see you assisting him. As an educator, providing positive feedback on the play during this activity, such as "Good job!" or "You did well!".

We could make Ram more interested in the activity by

asking open-ended questions like, "What is your next

strategy for passing the ball when you face the building

blocks as obstacles?", "How can we make this more difficult?", or "Why do you think big balls passing through the ramps so easily?".

Remind Ram to pass the ball with as much space as

possible and to assume the best position possible so that,

should he follow instructions, he will succeed.

After passing the first ball, provide feedback by telling

the Ram where they could improve, and overcome the challenge.

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Asimow, J. (2018, April 21). Ramps [Video]. Vimeo.    https://vimeo.com/265914140

Drummond, T. (n.d.). Writing learning stories - Tom Drummond. Tom Drummond - Resources & Writings. https://tomdrummond.com/looking-closely-at-children/writing-learning-stories/

Ministry of Education. (2014). Excerpts from “ELECT”: Foundational knowledge from the 2007 publication of Early learning for every child today: A framework for Ontario early childhood settings. Government of Ontario. http://www.edu.gov.on.ca/childcare/ExcerptsFromELECT.pdf

Ministry of Education. (2014). How does learning happen? Ontario's pedagogy for the early years. Government of Ontario. http://www.edu.gov.on.ca/childcare/HowLearningHappens.pdf