Observation of the Classroom

Observation of the Classroom

The way a classroom is designed is very important in order for a classroom to run smoothly. It is important to have enough toys, furniture and space to keep children happy. After observing a preschool room, other than my own; I learned how I can improve my own classroom. The preschool environment seemed very well organized and the teachers were in control.

The classroom observed had all the necessary areas of a preschool room. The room had a house keeping/dramatic play area as well as a block area, writing, science, computer, music, reading, circle, manipulative and art areas. All of the areas were appropriately spaced out and comfortable for the children.

The house keeping/dramatic play area was the first visible area one would see when entering the class. This area includes a play stove and refrigerator with plastic food. On the wall were different pieces of clothing that represented various professions and cultures. This area also includes dolls, strollers and a mirror for the children to look in. Through this area students are able to develop their intrapersonal skills through roll play.

The next area was the block area. This area had a variety of blocks constructed by such materials as wooden, plastic, and cardboard. The blocks also varied in size, shape and color. This area also included many toy cars and trucks. Although this area was a bit cramped, the children were offered a wide variety of choice.

This classroom has a writing area, which is a rarity in most preschool rooms. This area was full of lined paper and pencils for the children to practice their writing skills. This wasn't a large area because it only held the supplies. The children knew to take the supplies needed to do their writing back to the table to write.

The next area was the science area. There was not much in this small area. There was a magnet table for the children to play with. The shelves in that area held some toy dinosaurs and buckets of rocks and shells. There were some empty water bottles full of materials like rice, sand, water and corn.

This preschool room also had a computer center for the children to work at. I did not observe the computer center in use while I was there. There were some educational children's games installed on the computer and two chairs for the children.

The next area was the circle area. In this area included the music and reading areas. Circle was the largest area of the room. The music part of the area had a radio and children's cd's set-up on a small table. Under the table were musical instruments for the children to use. The reading portion had a large bookshelf with many diverse books. These books represented different cultures and places around the world. The walls of the circle area included the classroom calendar, weather chart, daily jobs and a list of classroom rules.

Next to the circle area was the manipulative area which included a small table for the children to play at with puzzles and games. There were many puzzles that varied in size. There were also five or six games including Candyland and Chutes and Ladders.

The last area in this classroom was the art area. There were some shelves stocked with supplies on the top shelf were crayons, markers and paper. On the bottom shelf were paints and play dough. There was a large easel next to the shelf with more paints.

When I entered the classroom the children were sitting down for circle time. They were just finishing a story the teacher was reading to them. The class was learning about under sea creatures. The creature of the day was the shark. The story the teacher was reading was a book about sharks and the children sat quietly and listened. After