Evaluating Developmental Milestones

Evaluating Developmental Milestones

Academic and Behavioral Concerns

 Jordan is four years and six months old, and although he has surpassed his reading milestones, I am concerned about his refusal to participate in the block and art centers. Per cognitive developmental milestones for his age, Jordan should give personal art value and use various materials to show a vivid imagination (Follari, 2015, p. 80). I’d like to introduce some ideas in the classroom and collaborate with Jordan’s parents to encourage interest in creative arts and using manipulatives as a focus for cognitive growth. Also, Jordan sometimes yells at other students during group work and refuses to share. Although he does not work well with other students, this behavior is considered typical of children Jordan’s age. Typically, social and emotional development milestones in children Jordan’s age will include bossy, belligerent, and often argumentative behavior (Follari, 2015, p. 80). However, although Jordan’s behavior towards other students is not uncommon, children his age would rather play with other children than by themselves and often cooperates with other children (CDC, 2021). Because Jordan is exhibiting behavior opposite to what most children his age should experience, I’d like to focus on an action plan to help him reach his social and emotional milestones.

Instructional Strategies

 To encourage Jordan’s social and emotional milestone growth, I’d like to introduce more opportunities for him to build friend groups within the classroom. I’ll encourage group activities structured around sharing and playing together to achieve a common goal. My goal will also be to introduce more stories focused around sharing and togetherness because Jordan is linguistically meeting his milestones and thrives during his reading and writing activities; I believe that reiterating the concepts of sharing and teamwork through story time and music and movement will help to focus on these characteristics and encourage sharing and greater cooperation skills. Regarding Jordan’s cognitive growth, I’d like to introduce manipulatives such as blocks and ink pads with a letter focus on helping bridge his emergent reading skills with his artistic milestone goals. Since Jordan thrives on the emergent reader level, this may encourage him to branch out and build stronger cognitive art skills.

Professional Specialized Expert Collaboration

 In order to assist Jordan with meeting his Cognitive, Social, and Behavioral milestones, I would like to form a specialized expert collaboration from multiple early childhood fields. To implement this plan, I will be obtaining the assistance of our Family Support Counselor. This is the first professional working directly with the parents, child, and teacher in a collaborative effort to ensure that Jordan gets the necessary professionals on his team. I’d like to bring in a behavioral therapist who can work with Jordan to ensure he is meeting his milestones and can work with him to properly manage his emotions and provide him with the tools to express himself without resorting to anger or yelling. A Cognitive Behavioral Therapist will be able to assist with any mental or behavioral health issues while assisting with cognitive growth (Pietrangelo, 2019).

Family Activities

 To encourage cognitive and behavioral development at home, Jordan’s family can implement some activities that will benefit his growth and assist with reaching milestones. When at home, it is a good idea for Jordan to participate in one family group activity, such as a developmentally appropriate board game or even something as simple as putting a group puzzle together. This will assist him with building his collaboration and social skills and hopefully give him a better idea of sharing and group cooperation. To assist with his aversion to art and block play, Jordan should be encouraged to use manipulatives such as blocks, stacking toys, or Legos that may be shaped like various letters. These same toys can be dipped in paint or used with playdough to enhance his creativity.

Progress Communication

 To keep open communication regarding Jordan’s milestone progress with his family, I will provide several ways for status updates. The first option will be to communicate via in-person or Zoom meetings that we will hold monthly. Another option that can be utilized in between our monthly meetings will be email and phone communication. I’d like a brief weekly rundown of Jordan’s progress that allows parents to voice any concerns and the teacher to provide any pertinent information that can enhance Jordan’s growth, such as new resources provided through an ever-changing educational system. Consistent, well-developed communication and collaboration techniques between family, educators, and professional experts will help Jordan to grow, thrive, and meet his cognitive, social, and behavioral milestones.

References

CDC’s Developmental Milestones. (2021). www.cdc.gov. https://r.search.yahoo.com/_ylt=AwrC3TSnxu1g6TIAqj0PxQt.;_ylu=Y29sbwNiZjEEcG9zAzEEdnRpZAMEc2VjA3Ny/RV=2/RE=1626224424/RO=10/RU=https%3a%2f%2fwww.cdc.gov%2fncbddd%2factearly%2fmilestones%2findex.html/RK=2/RS=WkYeif1gF94pcTPykHdCMmP4GZU-

Follari, L. (2015). Foundations and Best Practices in Early Childhood Education. Pearson Education Australia.

Pietrangelo, A. (2019). How Is Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) Different for Kids? www.healthline.com. https://www.healthline.com/health/mental-health/cbt-for-kids#what-it-is

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For this assignment, imagine you are the teacher in a four-year-old preschool classroom, and you have a student whose behaviors concern you:

Jordan is four years and six months old, and he is capable of reading at an emergent reader level. You noticed that he does not like the block center and refuses to go to the paint center. He does not work well with the other students during group work, sometimes yelling at them and refusing to share.

You are preparing for a meeting with the family of Jordan. Develop an action plan for the family in which you will discuss your observations and strategies that would help the student’s development. The action plan will explain the following:

• Identification of the specific academic or behavioral concern for Jordan.
• Explanation if you think the academic or behavior concern is a delay in a milestone or a learning style preference, and justify your thought process. (Note: Teachers cannot diagnose a disability.)
• Description of two instructional strategies to support the child in the classroom.
• Explanation of how you could collaborate with other professionals, including specialized experts, to support the student’s learning outcomes.
• Description of two activities families can engage in with their child at home to support their child’s development.
• Description of how and when you will communicate the student’s progress with the family.

Support your action plan with 2-3 SCHOLARLY REFERENCES.