Observation & documentation
Seeing the whole child
Observing and documenting are the basis of reflective pedagogical work. Observing children also means paying attention to children, i.e. seeing things in this world from the perspective of the specific child and trying to understand the child in his or her entirety. At the same time, it serves as a critical reflection of our role as adults/educators. The aim of educational observation and documentation is to record and understand the actions and developmental status of the child as objectively as possible, without being influenced by our own subjective perceptions and value judgments.
As a provider ao kindergarten services, we claim to support our professionals in constantly reflecting and questioning their observations. For this reason, it is desirable that any educator does not carry out his or her observations alone, but exchanges ideas with a colleague at all stages.
Observation and documentation should be seen as a process that goes through several phases. It begins with a thorough planning of the observation.
This is followed by the implementation, documentation and interpretation of the findings and, if necessary, a consequence, e.g. a support measure or intervention, a decision or an educational offer.
Our pedagogical documentations are based on free observations and on the educational app of KitaPLUS. The educational areas on which the app is based correspond to the educational areas of the NRW educational principles. Based on our observations and records, we create a written development report for each child at the end of the daycare year.
In addition to the development discussions, we work with portfolios. The word portfolio is composed of the two Latin words “portare” (“to carry”) and “folium” (“leaf”) and refers to a collection of documents. Thus, a collection of personal documents is to be created for each child. The child is given the opportunity to help shape the portfolio itself, be it through painted pictures, handicrafts or written work.
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