`` The 13 Most Successful Harvard Dropouts `` By Lauren...

Some people prefer to not deal with the college system in its entirety, which could potentially be beneficial. There are dozens who have dropped out of college with great success. These dropouts were successful because of their motivation for completing challenges and the effort they put into their work. Lauren Browning author of â€Å"The 13 Most Successful Harvard Dropouts† acknowledges Mark Zuckerberg, who dropped out of Harvard only to become the founder of Facebook and gain the title of youngest billionaire. Zuckerberg attended Harvard for two years and dropped out after creating Facebook in his dorm room (par. 12-13). There was also Bill Gates, founder of Microsoft, who also dropped out of Harvard. Gates had some interesting factors that helped him with his success. Browning states â€Å"The applied math major was known at Harvard for his intense study habits. Gates would go on a 36-hour study-bender, sleep for 10 hours, socialize, then start from the beginning† ( par. 5). These dropouts were successful because of their motivation for completing challenges and the effort they put in to their work. With the tuition prices skyrocketing the choice of going or not going to college both share challenges. As most college dropouts are not as successful Mark Zuckerberg or Bill Gates they all encounter some kind of challenge. Surprisingly these challenges differ slightly. When bypassing college the challenges appear in means of finding a stable job with a suitable salary. Often this goes

Ethical Business Practices Free Essays

Today we will evaluate the PepsiCo past performance marketing their product using the six pillars of the marketing code of ethics—honesty, responsibility, caring, respect, fairness, and citizenship. I will also outline how PepsiCo could make further progress as a good corporate citizen when it comes to consumption of its products, such as green initiatives and philanthropic commitments. Code of Ethics According to â€Å"World’s Most Ethical Companies† (2011), PepsiCo made the list for most ethical company’s in the world. We will write a custom essay sample on Ethical Business Practices or any similar topic only for you Order Now So you may be asking yourself were can there be room for improvement. Let me be the first to fill you in on a little secret, no matter how good you are room for improvement will always be there. The PepsiCo include soft drink brands include Pepsi, Mountain Dew, and Mug. Cola is not the company’s only beverage: Pepsi sells Tropicana orange juice brands, Gatorade sports drink, SoBe tea, and Aquafina water. The company also owns Frito-Lay, the world’s #1 snack maker with offerings such as Lay’s, Ruffles, Doritos, and Fritos. Its Quaker Foods unit offers breakfast cereals (Life, Quaker Oats), rice (Rice-A-Roni), and side dishes (Near East). Pepsi’s products are available in more than 200 countries. In 2010 the company acquired its two largest bottlers: Pepsi Bottling Group and PepsiAmericas. Responsibly and Caring PepsiCo takes pride in their quest of providing more food and beverage choices made with wholesome ingredients that contribute to healthier eating and drinking. This means increasing the amount of whole grains, fruit, vegetables, nuts, seeds and low-fat dairy in our global product portfolio. It also means reducing the average amount of sodium per serving in key global food brands, in key countries, by 25 percent by 2015 reducing the average amount of saturated fat per serving in key global food brands, in key countries, by 15 percent by 2020) reducing the average amount of added sugar per serving in key global beverage brands, in key countries, by 25 percent by 2020 (â€Å"Human Sustainability†, 2012). Honesty According to â€Å"Nutritional Labeling† (2012), PepsiCo is committed to providing safe products and to protecting equity in our brands, trademarks and goodwill. In addition, we’re working to ensure that by 2012, basic nutritional information is available to consumers on packages (where feasible to print on the packaging and where permissible by local regulations) for all of our food and beverage products in key markets. In countries where we’ve already met this standard, we’re also working toward an additional goal displaying calorie or energy counts on the fronts of packages. We have already implemented front-of-pack labeling on many products in the U. K. and many other European countries, as well as in Australia. And we are rapidly expanding implementation in a number of countries around the globe, including the U. S. , Canada, Mexico and Brazil (â€Å"Nutritional Labeling†, 2012). Improvements PepsiCo could make a few changes to improve their ethical ranking with the people and media. The first improvement would be triple checking are product for quality and safeness. Nothing worst then having case of sodas sitting in the warehouse with rats around dropping waste everywhere. Or giving you kid oatmeal and it has a dead bug on the inside that kind of stuff will change a person life. I know you can’t catch everything, but they need to minimize to the fullest. The second improvement would be lower some of the sugar levels in a lot of their products. With America youth being obese parents would take notice that this company is stepping the proper steps to help with their kid’s future. I’m sure America’s youth consumer over a billions sodas year and with the lack of working out kids are getting obese it is not just because they drink soda, however soda doesn’t help. While we all know it hard having a good reputation it’s even harder trying to maintain it. PepsiCo has been during ok for many years and I’m sure that will not change for some time to come. The code of ethics is just a stepping stone for companies to follow it is total up to them to go above and beyond the call of their ethical duties to improve the quality of their employees and consumers alike. So in closing I feel PepsiCo has room for improvement and I’m sure they will close that window soon enough. How to cite Ethical Business Practices, Papers

Montessori culture free essay sample

When we gather information about children we should always be ready to be surprised by what we learn about them. Sometimes, however, we have specific things we want to find out or questions about the child that need answering. In situations like this, we will gather information most effectively when we know: what we want to learn next about the child/ren we are observing which information-gathering methods will help us do this most successfully. Let’s look first at the range of possibilities in information gathering. Hint: if you are having difficulties, get out your QIAS Quality Practices Guide and look at Quality Area Principle 3. 2. : Each child’s learning is documented and used in planning the program. This will start you off with many practical information-gathering ideas. Activity 1 Activity 2 Gather detailed information about children and document using a variety of appropriate methods Refine your recording skills You already know about the importance of ensuring that you document information about children that is. Clear and accurate free of assumptions and judgements  ositive and optimistic specific and descriptive avoiding bias and stereotypes. In this learning topic we will further refine your recording skills. We will look at the need for detailed and significant information in observations and the importance of making observations valid and professional. Activity 3 Valid observations The term ‘valid observations’ means something very specific to children’s services professionals. It means ensuring that the methods we use to gain information about children are those best suited to their purpose. We need to decide what we want to find out before we begin observing and we need to know how we will analyse this information to plan appropriately. In other words, it is useless to collect files full of isolated, meaningless notes about children if no-one looks critically at the ongoing story they tell. They should be used to build our knowledge of individuals and groups of children and to guide the planning of experiences to enrich their lives. Activity 4 Activity 5 Professional, representative, relevant and valid observations To ensure that our observations are professional, representative, relevant and valid it is important to: decide what we want to find out before we begin observing children choose the correct observation method and information-gathering strategies to give us valid information about the child or children choose typical routines, play situations, experiences and activities to observe for the child/ren always observe children in a natural setting, never putting them in a ‘testing’ situation allow different observers to gather information on each child to avoid observer bias and to give multiple perspectives on each child observe children over a period of time and in a variety of situations before coming to any conclusions. Significant behaviour It is really important that you become skilled in deciding what sort of behaviours are significant. Observing and recording significant events, experiences and behaviours will give you the most ‘meat’ to interpret from your recording. This can be difficult, especially for the inexperienced observer. Significant behaviour can be summarised as any or a combination of the following. It is events and behaviours that: throw light on a child’s individuality, thinking or perspectives identify the level of skill/s reached identify milestone/s reached show a marked departure from expected behaviour identify a particular expertise or strength identify a particular interest highlight a need for practice, experience or assistance. It is easy to end up with a great many observation records that provide little insight into the child. However, deciding on what to observe, what is significant and the most appropriate method for accurate recording will lead to you having the best chance of gathering authentic material and making useful interpretations of this material. Appropriate methods of gathering information In this learning topic we will build on your knowledge of the range of methods for gathering and documenting information about children. We’ll look at distinctive features of the methods and an example of each. You may have tried them already but if you have not then you will need to practise each one until you feel confident. There are a variety of formal techniques for recording observations in children’s services. Some of these include: narrative forms such as anecdotes and running records  chart forms such as checklists and rating scales jottings sampling methods such as time and event samples language samples surveys time and motion studies sociograms. You are already familiar with anecdotes, running records, checklist and rating scales. If you have difficulty recalling these methods, or if you feel you need more practice in using them, look up these methods in Martin (2004), Nilsen (2001) or Beaty (2002) from the Reference list at the end of this topic. Let’s go on now to look at some more observation methods commonly used in children’s services. Jottings Jottings are very short anecdotes of significant events, behaviours or conversations. A jotting can be as short as a couple of sentences and is usually not longer than a paragraph. Many carers use jottings because they are a quick and easy way to record the essence of significant events and behaviours. Jottings are similar to anecdotal records except that they are much briefer and often describe a specific behaviour rather than a sequence of events. Jottings can be recorded directly after the behaviour has been observed or later from memory. They can form the basis for a more detailed anecdotal record if required. Jottings may be recorded in a log book, diary, note pad, individual book or simply on sheets of paper. At the end of the day or week, the information is usually transferred to individual files or folders. Some carers record jottings on small post-it notes then transfer a number of them onto a page in the child’s file or portfolio. A set of jottings builds up a picture of a child’s development and interests. The observer usually writes a short comment or interpretation to accompany a set of jottings. Below is one example of a set of jottings with interpretation: 12. 7. 09: Rebecca (11 months) lies in her cot after waking up. P bends over her but she does not smile. H, her regular caregiver, comes over and Rebecca immediately starts to smile. 13. 7. 09: Rebecca is sitting on the mat playing with nesting cups. Toni (12 m) crawls to the rug and tries to take a cup from Rebecca’s hand. She squeals, holds on tight to the cup, looking around the room at the adults. 16. 7. 09: Rebecca enters the nursery with her mother. She hides her head in her mother’s shoulder and holds tightly to her shoulder. H comes over to her mother smiling. The two women talk in a friendly manner for two or three minutes. H then says time for Mummy to go, holds out her arms for Rebecca, who leans over and reaches out for H, smiling in return. Comment/Interpretation: Rebecca is experiencing separation anxiety and stranger anxiety which is typical for infants at this age. It shows her growing awareness of others and her ability to discriminate between familiar and unfamiliar people. She is also showing her attachment to her mother and her primary caregiver—H in these jottings. There are other formats that are used to record jottings and carers usually develop a format that suits them and their service. Jottings are probably the most commonly used observation method by children’s services staff because they are relatively quick and easy and provide a lot of information about the individual child’s skills and interests. When you practise making jottings think about: what strategies you use to ensure that your jottings are professional, representative, relevant and valid what new perspectives you now have on the child/ren you observed. We will go on now to look at some sampling methods, which are often considered to be the ‘problem buster’ methods. We usually turn to sampling methods when we want to know how often or under which circumstances particular behaviours occur. Time sampling Time sampling records the frequency of a behaviour. The behaviour recorded must be overt (observable)and frequent (at least once every 15 minutes) to be suitable for sampling. For example, talking, hitting or crying are behaviours that a carer might want to sample for selected children because they can be clearly seen and counted. Problem-solving skills are not suitable for time sampling because it is not always clear to the observer and cannot be counted. Time sampling involves identifying specified behaviours of an individual or group and recording the presence or absence of this behaviour during short term intervals of uniform length. You need to prepare ahead of time, determining what specific behaviour you want to look for, what the time interval will be and how to record the presence or absence of the behaviour. A case study—Cameron Cameron (four years two months) has recently begun to use physically aggressive behaviours in his interactions with the other children. You are aware that it would be easy to fall into the trap of simply starting to see Cameron as an aggressive boy. You might decide to use time sampling to discover exactly how often and when Cameron’s inappropriate behaviour occurs. In this way you will discover information not only about the frequency of the behaviour but possibly what triggers might be motivating his behaviour. Your first task would be to specifically define the inappropriate behaviour. In this case the list is: hitting pushing kicking holding children against their will taking another child’s toy. Other methods, such as narrative methods, would be used to come up with an accurate list of targeted behaviours. You would then need to decide what time intervals to use. In this case the carer wanted to sample the child’s behaviour for five-minute intervals during the first half-hour of the morning for a week. She knew from prior observations that this seemed to be a difficult time for him. There are several different ways to record the targeted behaviour. You could record ‘1’ after the interval if the behaviour occurs and ‘0’ if it does not. This is called duration recording and indicates the presence or absence of the behaviour. An alternative is to use check marks or tally marks if you want to know how many times the behaviour occurred, rather than just its presence or absence. This is called event recording and shows the frequency of the behaviour. You might also want to know exactly which behaviours are occurring and when. You could give the identified behaviours a code to make it easier for you to record them quickly. For example: h=hitting k=kicking t=taking hd=holding p=pushing Here are samples of what your recording could look like: Time intervals (5 minutes each/ 9. 00–9. 30 am) Duration recording (presence or absence) 1 2 3 4 5 6 1 1 1 0 0 0 Event recording (frequency) 1 2 3 4 5 6 1111 111 1 0 0 0 Event recording (presence or absence) 1 2 3 4 5 6 h, p h, p, t h 0 0 0 So you would now have information about the frequency of Cameron’s inappropriate behaviours, at what time in the morning they are most likely to occur and exactly which behaviours he is using. Think about why this information would be helpful to you. Time sampling is a useful method to observe children because it: is quicker than narrative methods to record  is more objective and controlled because the behaviour is specified and limited allows an observer to collect data on a number of children or a number of behaviours at once provides useful information on intervals and frequencies of behaviour provides quantitative (measurable) results useful for statistical analysis. Some of the disadvantages of time sampling are that it: is not an open method and so you may miss much more important behaviour that is not part of the targeted behaviour doesn’t describe the behaviour, its causes or results takes the behaviour out of the context in which it happens is limited to observable behaviours which occur frequently focuses on one type of behaviour (in many cases an inappropriate behaviour) and this may give a biased view of the child. Again, you need to remember the importance of selecting the most suitable observation method to provide you with the relevant information you are seeking and, of course, to use a variety of methods to get a balanced, holistic picture of the child. When you have practiced doing a time sample, think about whether your method for deciding on the targeted behaviour is valid. Why was it valid? After completing time samples, what do you know about the child or subject that you could not find out from using narrative methods? Event sampling Event sampling is also an observation method designed to study a preselected behaviour, especially behaviours of concern. It offers information about the conditions under which the preselected behaviour occurs. It is usually necessary to find out what triggers a particular behaviour in order to develop strategies to deal with it. While time sampling is often used if time intervals or the time of day are an important factor, if the behaviour occurs at odd times, infrequently or for unknown reasons then event sampling is the more appropriate method. The observer must first define the event or ‘unit of behaviour’. Then, the setting in which it is most likely to occur must be determined. The observer then waits for it to occur and records it at the time or from memory. Recording can be done in several ways, depending on the purpose for the observation. If the observer is studying causes or results for certain behaviours then the so-called ‘ABC analysis’ is especially useful, and this is the format we will look at. It is a narrative description of the entire event, breaking it down into three parts: 1 A = antecedent event 2 B = behaviour 3 C = consequent event. Each time the event occurs it is recorded. To gain even more from the event sample it is valuable to identify the purpose of the observation, the targeted behaviour and an observational question on the top of the form. Here is an example: Name: Damian Setting: indoor play Age: 3 ? years Present: Drew and Peter Date: 23 March 2005 Purpose of observation: To find out more about Damian’s aggressive acts Targeted behaviour: Kicking, striking out at peers or teacher with feet with enough force to make children cry. Observational question: What happens immediately before and after Damian kicks others? Time Antecedent event (A) Behaviour (B) Consequent event (C) 8. 15 am Damian playing alone with train set, Drew comes in, picks up a train on the track Damian has built Damian looks at Drew and frowns, stands, pushes at Drew, Drew pushes back, Damian kicks Drew on the leg Drew cries and runs to tell the carer 10. 02 am In the playground Damian is waiting in line for a turn on the swing Damian kicks Peter hard on the leg Peter cries, the carer comes and takes Damian away by the arm to talk to him If subsequent observations of Damian show the same sort of sequence as in the event sampling, the observer could interpret this to mean that Damian does not initiate the kicking but rather responds to interference in his activities in this inappropriate and harmful manner. Intervention strategies then would be based on this information. The advantages for using event sampling include: keeping the event or behaviour of concern intact, making analysis easier being especially useful in examining infrequent or rarely occurring behaviours. There are several disadvantages as well, depending on the purpose of the observation. Event sampling: takes the event out of context and thus may leave out other aspects of the situation that are important to the interpretation is a closed method that looks only for the specified behaviour and potentially ignores other important behaviour misses the richness of detail that anecdotes or running records provide. When you have practised doing an event sample, think about whether you learnt more about it from the antecedent event (possible triggers) or from the consequent event (possible rewards of consequences). Why do you think this is so in this instance? Surveys Surveys are mostly used to gather information on attitudes, interests and opinions. You can conduct an impromptu group survey by asking children to indicate their choice by telling you or by raising their hands. You can conduct a written survey—children with the skills to read independently are usually able to complete a written survey. Written surveys are most useful when you are working with children from five to twelve years. Oral surveys Information can also be gathered from the children themselves by asking open questions, especially about their interests and preferences. With younger children we gather most of this information by observing them at play and in routines, and once they can talk we do it during our conversations with them. The results of these surveys are a legitimate part of your information gathering about the child. As a part of the accreditation system in OOSH, children can be surveyed to find out their opinions and views of their carers and their OOSH service. You can look at surveys designed for children on the accreditation website at www. ncac. gov. au. Follow the links to Information for Children. Here is a survey form designed for school-aged children attending an OOSH care program. Sometimes the children fill it out for themselves, sometimes the carer likes to interview them and sometimes the older children interview the younger school-aged children who cannot read or write yet. Survey form designed for school-aged children attending an OOSH Many services now survey the parents about their children’s routines, interests and preferences so that they can provide care for them that takes account of the child’s home experiences. Parent survey of their child’s routines, interests and preferences Some centres use surveys like this as the opening page in a child’s Portfolio. Time and motion studies Time and motion studies focus on children’s movements in particular areas. They throw light on how many activities the child is involved in over a given period of time and how long they stay at those activities. They give an indication of the child’s interests and perhaps of their concentration span. The simplest way to design a time and motion study suitable for young children is to make a sketch of the playroom and the outdoor area, then to chart the child’s movements over a short period of time and on several different occasions. Sketch of the playroom: 1 Blocks, 2 Tables, 3 Easels, 4 Wet area, 5 Home corner, 6 Books, 7 Puzzles It is often found that children under three years move from one area to another many more times than older children. Have a look at the difference between Rohan’s chart of movements at 18 months and Kymberley’s at four years: Chart of Rohan’s (18 months) movements recorded over seven minutes Chart of Kymberley’s (four years) movements recorded over seven minutes Sociograms A sociogram is a diagram of social relationships in a group of children. It often focuses on children’s perceptions of acceptance and/or popularity within their peer group. Children in an organised group may be asked to name the child who is their ‘best friend’ or ‘person they do not play with’. Results depend on the phrasing of the question and may be influenced by what the child thinks the adult wishes to hear. Information gathered from the group is pieced together and represented diagrammatically. Popular children and those who are solitary or isolated can be seen quickly in the diagram, and some unexpected connections may come to light, leading the carer to observe social relationships and interactions more closely. Over a period of time the sociogram will change as relationships shift and change. It may be interesting to use a sociogram at designated times during the year to assess the dynamics of the group. Children must be old enough to understand the question posed, be able to give a clear answer and be of sufficient maturity to have formed social relationships within the group. The interactions or friendships of younger children tend to be transitory because the children are not yet able to communicate, appreciate the perspectives of others or form social attachments with peers. For these children, a sociogram would reveal little. Here is an example of a sociogram: Sample of a sociogram This example shows information collected from a group of five year olds (seven boys, eight girls). The children were asked: ‘Who are your two best friends? ’ The sociogram may indicate whether some of the children are isolated. Activity 6 Activity 7 Language samples Language samples are transcripts of children’s use of language alone or in conversation for analysis. They record and closely examine the receptive and expressive language of children. This can be done in several different ways. If your purpose is to gain specific information about a child’s use of spoken language it is useful to collect samples of their talk and conversational skills for analysis. You can do this by making a written record of all the language used by a child in an interaction. You would record their speech and the speech of others involved in the interaction as accurately as possible, making sure you represent their speech patterns and articulation as closely as possible. A great aid to this is to use audio taping or video taping so that you can more easily include relevant information such as voice quality, tone and non-verbal features of the child’s language. This is discussed in the next section. Many observers use a language checklist to analyse a language transcript. This allows the observer to note the presence of identified language use and behaviours. Following is a language sample of Olivia (two years and five months) chatting to her father while drawing at home. She is covering the page with letter-like formations as she pretends to ‘write’ a story about people she knows. I have recorded words as she pronounces them. The words in brackets indicate the correct pronunciation of the word. Language sample Child’s name: Olivia Setting: at home Child’s age: 2 years 5 months Time: 10. 05 am – 10. 07 am Date: 27 February Olivia: Yeah, dis (this) one is hard for me Daddy. Mark (her father): What are you writing about? Olivia: I’m writing bout (about) you! Mark: Are you? Olivia: And me and Livvie and Mummy and Simon and Adrian and †¦ and †¦ and †¦ and †¦ Wiyem (William)and Annie and Leigh. Mark: Gee that’s a big story you’re making. Olivia: Yeah. Mark: And what are you going to say in the story? Olivia: I’m just say someding (something). Dis you and dat me and dats Mummy and dats you and Wiyam and Annie and Leigh. Mark: What’s William doing? Olivia: Wiyam he’s playing wif (with) he’s toys and I playing wif my toys. Mark: And what about Simon, what’s he doing? Olivia: He playing wif he’s toys. Mark: And what’s Annie doing? Olivia: Doing her work, job, at school. Wif Simon. Wif †¦ wif †¦ wif †¦ Wiyam. He’s big boy. And more paper Daddy. Mark: Where is it? Olivia: (Pointing to the shelf nearby) Dere (there). There is a lot of useful information in this language sample about Olivia’s receptive and expressive language. Let’s look at a possible interpretation of the sample. Oliva is using extensive sentences of between one and sixteen words in length in this language sample. She is using conjunctions effectively (especially ‘and’) to extend her sentences. She has some difficulty pronouncing some sounds, particularly ‘th’ and the ’ll’ sound in the middle of ‘William’. Olivia’s vocabulary includes descriptive words such as ‘hard’ and ‘big’ and compound words such as ‘something’. She sometimes repeats words several times ‘(and †¦ and †¦ and †¦ ’), appearing to gain time to form her thoughts for the rest of the sentence. Olivia is able to engage in conversational turn-taking and shows ‘topic maintenance’, which are quite mature elements for her age. While much of her language is grammatically correct, she substitutes ‘he’s’ for ‘his’ at times, which could be due to mishearing others using the correct form. Olivia’s receptive language is appropriate for her age, as she is able to answer her father’s questions appropriately. Her expressive language is progressing well and the errors she makes in grammar and pronunciation are typical for her age and should diminish with opportunities to listen to and converse with others providing good modelling. Language samples are useful to: find out more about children’s receptive language abilities assess the development of their vocabulary see how well they are able to articulate (pronounce sounds) assess their ability to use semantic and syntactic conventions see how they use language with a variety of people and in a variety of situations gain information about their interests find out to whom they talk. When you have gained more confidence in writing down direct speech, try recording the language of a child while they are conversing with someone else. You may need permission from parents to make recordings of children and you will need to inform them how they will be stored and disposed of. Here is an example of a group of children talking about the Boxing Day Tsunami 2004 and their reactions and decisions about the media coverage of this tragic event. The tsunami In a small group established at their own accords, Peter, Phillip, Alex, William, Angus, Ethan and Angeline began to pour out their hearts concern. Peter: You know on the news I saw the waves came, they were too big this time, big like up to my roof, and it killed all the people. They died. Angeline: I saw it on the news and the police are looking for the people. Ethan: I saw on the news that toys are sinking. I need to get some toys for the kids. Peter: So they can have toys and clothes and money cause the waves sinked all the money. William: And the people they floated away on the wave. Peter: We need to give them money so they can buy things again. It was then decided amongst the group to establish a box to put money in so it could be sent over to the tsunami victims. The children decided that their families should give. These children later made a collection box for the centre foyer. Interpretations of this language sample will give us insight to the children’s perception of the event which resulted in practical action. Use of photographs, video recordings and audio recordings Digital and film cameras, video recorders and audiotapes are great aids in recording information about children. Since digital cameras and computers have become more affordable, many more centres are gathering information about children based around still photographs. Photographs Instead of writing longer narrative descriptions, the observer can first capture the moment in photos and may later write brief notes about what happened. Still photos of children can be taken in a sequence to illustrate a series of events or the development of an experience as it occurs. It is useful to record a process or behaviour from beginning to end if it is to tell the complete story to the viewer. You can also use photographs to capture children’s constructions, moulding and dramatic play. Maelin painting Maelin painting Maelin painting Maelin’s finished painting Carer’s brief notes: 1 Maelin selects a brush from the black paint pot with her right hand 2 She carefully paints a black stripe, then selects a brush from the white paint pot and paints a white strip 3 She continues to carefully paint a red, green and pink stripe 4 Maelin stands back and looks at the finished painting. You will need permission from parents to take photos of children and you will need to inform them where they will be displayed and how they will be stored and disposed of. Videos Video recordings can work well for this purpose too. For projects that grow and change over time or situations that involve a lot of activity, videotape could be the best form of documentation. This method allows you to record children’s language as well as their non-verbal communication. You can also add a voice-over if you want to comment on the action as you film, or edit the film so that only the most revealing parts remain. A video recording of the progress of a project undertaken by children over some time can provide a wonderful resource for sharing with families, parent meetings and with the children themselves. Audio recordings Audio recordings are particularly good for language analysis. It is often a challenge to make an audiotape of children’s conversation that is clear and understandable. There can be too much background noise and the children may move out of range. There are cassette recorders that are specifically designed to capture human voices as clearly as possible. These make a good resource for this type of observation. Another use of audiotapes is for the observer to speak softly into the microphone instead of writing down their observations. This has the advantage of providing an opportunity to record a great deal of rich detail very quickly. The recording could later be edited and transcribed to a running record with more detail than is usually possible. Photographs, videotapes and audiotapes can be very useful to share when you discuss aspects of the child’s behaviour with staff, parents or with the child. You can add written support material to record the comments of those who are viewing the photos or videos. Just a final note: it is possible that some families may not want to have photos or videos of their child either taken or displayed. Most centres will have a policy concerning this aspect. Usually families will be asked to sign a written consent granting permission for their child to be photographed or videotaped. As a student you would certainly be expected to consult with staff and families about this matter before undertaking any observations of this kind. Activity 8 Work samples Work samples are examples of children’s drawings, paintings, computer drawings and writing. They are also photographs of results of their construction in the block area, moulding with clay or dough and building in the sandpit and so on. Work samples are often collected for children’s developmental records and included as a part of their Portfolio as they are a practical way to demonstrate the child’s skills, creativity and learning. Here are some samples. Child’s drawing of mother, father brother and sister Commentary: Melanie (4 years old) drew a picture of her family. She pointed to the largest figure and said â€Å"That’s my mummy† She pointed to the other figures naming them â€Å"Daddy, my brother and me†. Child’s drawing of a running dinosaur with feet that looks like wheels Commentary: Adam (4 years 4 months) has become very involved in a project about dinosaurs. He frequently consults books about dinosaurs. He said â€Å"This is a racing deinonychus, a speeding dinosaur†. Child’s drawing of a spider with one large figure and two smaller figures Commentary: Amy (3 years 2 months) drew carefully for five minutes. She told the caregiver it was a drawing of a â€Å"big hairy lion spider†. She then carefully drew the 2 small figures on the right. Child’s scribble drawing Commentary: Lewis (1 year 10 months) carefully drew with the orange and green textras. He used a palman grip and scribbled vigorously and babbled as he drew. Child’s drawing of a man on a surfboard Commentary: Sam (3 years 5 months) is very interested in surfing and has been looking through surfing magazines. He said â€Å"This is a man on his surfboard†. A small amount of commentary can be used effectively with work samples. For example, you can record what was happening at the table just before a child did a particular drawing (if this influenced the drawing), what they said about their own painting or the song they sang while building with Lego. You could usefully record the group discussions and problem solving that lead up to a group project. The commentary should lead to a fuller understanding of the children’s thinking, feelings or creativity as they went about producing the work sample. You must always ask children’s permission to collect their work sam