Task 1 Commentary

Early Childhood
Task 1: Planning Commentary
TASK 1: PLANNING COMMENTARY

Respond to the prompts below (no more than 9 single-spaced pages, including prompts) by typing your responses within the
brackets. Do not delete or alter the prompts. Pages exceeding the maximum will not be scored.
1. Central Focus
a. Describe the central focus and purpose of the content you will teach in the learning
segment.
[The central focus and content I will be teaching is on the concept of cause and effect. Cause
and effect helps children understand two important elements of a story, what happens and why
it happens. Children are affected by cause and effect situations everyday. It is important that
they understand this concept and are able to apply it in literature and in their own life.
Throughout my learning segment, children will learn the definitions of cause and effect and will
have practice applying it in different activities. I planned three learning experiences to help
promote childrens learning of cause and effect and incorporated language and literacy skills
that would improve their development.]
b. Describe how the standards and learning objectives for your learning segment support
childrens
active and multimodal learning

language and literacy development in an interdisciplinary context
[The standards and objectives for all three learning experiences help promote childrens
learning through active and multimodal learning as well as improving their literacy and language
development. In the learning segment, children learn vocabulary and use sign language that
helps incorporate movement. In learning experience one, the children are introduced to the
vocabulary and learn the definitions, along with the sign language that accompanies the
definitions. After the vocabulary is introduced, the children stay actively engaged in listening to
a story and then follow along with a group worksheet. This helps them apply and understand
the concept of cause and effect by relating it to the literature that was read. In learning
experience two, a video is used to introduce the lesson that day. After the students watch the
video, the class will have a group discussion about the cause and effects they observed. This
helps them understand and apply the concept of cause and effect through another media than
the learning experience previously. The activity that follows the video in learning experience
two lets children work in small groups to collaborate with each other in learning the central
focus. Being able to collaborate and have a conversation with peers is an important standard
and objective in second grade. In learning experience three, children are able to connect cause
and effect through a real life experience. In this activity, science is incorporate through an
experiment that demonstrates cause and effect. After the children see the cause and effect we
go over other examples in preparation for the children to write their own cause and effect
statements. In this particular learning experience, children recall information about cause and
effect and apply in the experiment and when writing their own cause and effect sentence.
During all three learning experiences children are able to work as a class, in a small group and
then on their own to understand the vocabulary and concept of cause and effect. In addition,
children will use one or more of these literacy skills in each learning experience when learning
about cause and effect, reading, writing, speaking and listening. The goal of this learning
segment is that children will be able to understand the vocabulary of cause and effect and be
able to apply it in their own life and in literature. By using my standards and learning objectives
throughout my learning segment, I will be able to achieve this goal and support the childrens
learning.]
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Early Childhood
c. Explain how your plans build on each other to support childrens language and literacy
development through active and multimodal learning.
[My plans build on each other to support childrens language and literacy development each
day. In the first learning experience, children are introduced to the definitions of cause and
effect and also the sign language that accompanies it. The sign language helps involve
movement when learning the definitions so they have an easier time remembering what cause
and effect are when applying it throughout the learning segment. Also in the first learning
experience, a book is read aloud that has many examples of cause and effect. Following the
read aloud, the children will work as a class to complete a cause and effect worksheet related to
the book. In the second experience, children watch a video that involves cause and effect and
then have a discussion about it after. Then they work in small groups to build cause and effect
sentences using strips of paper that either have a cause or effect statement on it. In the third
experience, students work individually to make their own cause and effect sentence or
sentences and also draw a picture that goes along with it. All of the learning segments build on
each other by slowly increasing the childrens ability to be able to apply cause and effect in
different situations, using various media. At the beginning of each learning experience, the
definitions of cause and effect are reviewed, followed by an activity that involves hands-on
materials. Another way the learning experiences build on each other are that on the first day the
children work together as a whole class to understand cause and effect, then they separate into
small groups on the second day and then individually on the last day. This allows for students to
work together to understand and apply cause and effect until the very end when they able
assessed individually for comprehension.]
d. Describe how the physical environment in which you are teaching supports the active
and multimodal nature of childrens learning. (If, in your view, the physical environment
in which you are teaching does not adequately support the active and multimodal nature
of childrens learning, please describe the changes you would make.)
[The physical environment in which I am teaching does support the active and multimodal
nature of childrens learning. The room has plenty of resources that the children have access
too, such as, computers, tablets, and books. The room also has an Elmo that is used to help
demonstrate an activity to the children for modeling and showing examples. Students are
grouped together by desks, which allow them to collaborate easily. Each desk has storage for
students to keep materials and along with a seat sack that has their white boards, crayons, and
other writing tools and supplies. The seat sack and desk helps keep the students from getting
out of their seat during a lesson and also keeps them organized. The classroom has sufficient
space to let students move around and be comfortable when working in small groups or
individually. The classroom is well organized and children can easily and efficiently access
resources without creating a disturbance. Childrens work is displayed and other
documents/posters that remind students of important information that they may use as a
resource throughout the day. This classroom is welcoming, safe and a great learning
environment for second grade students.]
2. Knowledge of Children to Inform Teaching
For each of the prompts below (2ac), describe what you know about the children in your
class/group with respect to the central focus of the learning segment.
Consider the variety of learners in your class/group who may require different
strategies/support (e.g., children with IEPs or 504 plans, English language learners, children
at different points in the developmental continuum, struggling readers, children who are
underperforming or those with gaps in academic knowledge, and/or gifted children).

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a. Childrens developmentWhat do you know about their
social and emotional development

cognitive and physical development
language development for communication
[This second grade class is well developed in all development domains. Socially and
emotionally, the 19 children are able to follow the rules, respect each other and the teacher.
They are able to collaborate and share their ideas and make use of their materials during
activities. When working on a task, they are able to complete the task in an appropriate amount
of time. However, a few children need extra time and have accommodations. Children also
realize and are able to accept the responsibilities of their behavior and actions. Behavior
problems are not a huge issue in this class. Out of the 19 children, there is only one child with
an IEP. This student has a harder time understanding certain concepts and gets
accommodations. This child receives 100 minutes per week of math support, and has testing
accommodations. When testing he is pulled out of the class to take the test with a small group
where he is able to ask questions and get extra help. The other 18 students cognitive
development is improving significantly. Children are problem-solving and beginning to ask
questions to learn more information. They have a longer attention span therefore, they can pay
attention for a longer period of time, especially when something interests them. The childrens
physical development is also at an appropriate level for their age. Two children see an
occupational therapist once a week for twenty minutes to improve their movement. When
working with smaller muscle movements, they receive extra help if needed. The rest of the
children have great strength in both big and small muscles and are active during physical
education and recess. Students have adequate hand strength that let them use scissors, tie
their shoe, use manipulatives and help with their handwriting skills. There are some children
that struggle with language development. In the class, there are two struggling readers, and five
children with articulation struggles. The struggling readers receive reading interventions
provided by the teacher everyday and they also get pulled out everyday for extra help in fluency.
The children with articulation struggles receive twenty minutes of support per week with the
speech therapist. The rest of the children in the class are well developed in language
development. They are able to comprehend what they are reading and are reading to learn
rather than learning to read. Children are also developing appropriately in their use of writing to
tell stories or write a letter. Overall, the majority of the class I am teaching in is on track
developmentally, which helps when planning the learning segment.]
b. Personal, cultural, and community assetsWhat do you know about your childrens
everyday experiences, cultural and language backgrounds and practices, and
interests?
[Everyday, children have the same routine in the classroom. Since they know their routine, it is
easy for them to stay on task and know what to do and how to act throughout the day. Each
night they have homework and are responsible for getting it done. The parent has to sign that
they see the homework each night so that they are involved in making sure the task is done.
Also, the child is responsible for making sure they write down their math and reading minutes
that done at home. Each month the children are supposed to accumulate one hundred math
minutes and three hundred reading minutes. These minutes are to be done at home and
recorded in their assignment notebook. This ensures the teacher that they are keeping up with
their math and reading skills throughout the month besides work done at school and homework.
Many parents are involved throughout each week to do certain activities with the children. This
shows that the parents want to be involved in their childs learning and are willing to help others.
The classroom has a community feel to it because all the children are friends and are willing to
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help each other. All the children speak English and were born in the United States. None of the
children know or are being exposed to a second language at home. This helps when planning
lessons because I know that I do not have to plan for ESL adaptations. When I do plan for
lessons, I try to relate every-day experiences that the children go through so that they are able
to make connections in and outside of the classroom.]
c. Prior learning and prerequisite skills related to language and literacy development
What can they do and what are they learning to do related to language and literacy
development? Cite evidence from your knowledge of this class/group of children.
[The children are introduced to a new story every two weeks using the second grade Harcourt
Trophies reading series. During the two weeks, children are introduced to the story, the
vocabulary and the genre. They also work on certain skills that go along with the story, such as,
learning about pronouns or apostrophes. Children are able to read and comprehend the story by
the end of the two weeks and learn the skills that are introduced along with the story. Students
are able to point out different text features, the main idea and are able to identify the sequence
of the story. When students read, they read with understanding and purpose. They know
second grade-level phonics and word analysis skills when decoding words. Currently, children
are working on editing their writing. They understand the basic structure of a sentence, but
some are still working on their spelling within the sentence and have trouble remembering to put
capitals and ending marks. I have seen many children have great sentence structures but forget
to capitalize the first word or forget to put an ending mark when the sentence is finished. In
writing workshop, the teacher follows a Common Core Workshop Curriculum created by Lucy
Calkins. Everyday, children participate in writing workshop by learning about how to write, and
writing for different purposes. The latest work the children have completed is writing their own
expert books. They were able to choose something they were experts on and write a chapter
book. They had to include different text features and have at least three chapters. The children
worked for a period of time each day for two weeks to complete their books. Having the
children write something that they were interested in and an expert on kept them engaged for
the entire two weeks. Children were excited when it came time for writing workshop during the
day and I feel that it helped some children enjoy writing even more. Through reading and
writing everyday, children are growing and developing literacy skills that they will use the rest of
their lives.]
3. Supporting Childrens Development and Learning
Respond to prompts 3ac below. To support your justifications, refer to the plans and
materials you included as part of Planning Task 1. In addition, use principles from
research and/or developmental theory to support your justifications.
a. Justify how your planned learning experiences and materials align with your
understanding of the childrens development, prior learning, and personal, cultural, and
community assets (from prompts 2ac above). Be explicit about these connections and
support your justification with research/developmental theory.
[When planning the learning experiences, I made sure that they aligned with my understanding
of the childrens development. As discussed above, the children in my class are well developed
in all domains, with a few children that struggle. Knowing this information I knew I had to plan
for adaptations for those certain children. As I planned, I followed Vygotskys theories, in that
children learn best through social interaction. During all of my learning experiences, I have
children interact. In the first learning experience we work as a whole class because the topic of
cause and effect was a new concept. This way, children were able to work together and share
ideas. In the second learning experience, children work in small groups so they could help each
other understand the concept better. The last day we discussed as a class different examples
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of cause and effect and went over any questions they had before they worked individually.
Having students socially interact is important and that is why I incorporated in each lesson.
Through discussion, collaboration and feedback, children learn the concepts of cause and
effect. According to Vygotsky, collaboration is a strategy used to maximize childrens learning.
During all three learning experiences, I made sure that I planned to go over and repeat the
vocabulary of cause and effect everyday so that the children would have an easier time
remembering what the definitions were. According to the behaviorist theory, children learn
language by repeating words and sentences modeled by the teacher. Since cause and effect is
new vocabulary to children, I used this method of repeating the words and definitions to them to
help them learn the language. I also incorporated sign language that accompanied the
definitions so that the children would have a movement to go along with cause and effect.
Having movements to go along with definitions can help with muscle memory. If they remember
the movement that goes along with the definitions than they are more likely to remember the
definition. The materials I used in each lesson build and promote the childrens previous
learning by writing, reading and recalling information. Knowing that they can write sentences,
can read and recall information, helped when planning and organizing the materials I needed. I
choose materials that children know and are comfortable using during the learning segment
because I knew the concept of cause and effect was new to them. This way the children know
how to use the materials already and can focus on learning about the new concept of cause and
effect.]
b. Describe and justify how you plan to support the varied learning needs of all the
children in your class/group, including individuals with specific learning needs.
strategies/support (e.g., children with IEPs or 504 plans, English language learners,
children at different points in the developmental continuum, struggling readers, and/or
gifted children).
[In order to support the varied learning needs, I made sure that in every learning experience
there is a part that is dedicated to whole group before going onto small groups or individual
work. Beginning with whole-group class time helps students who struggle to understand or
follow directions keep up with what we are doing. I use the Elmo as a resource in my learning
experiences to demonstrate directions, when showing an example, or when we are doing
whole-class work together. The Elmo is a great tool to help students stay on task. Repeating
the key vocabulary each day also helps students who are at a lower level recall the information
that is being discussed for better comprehension. As seen in the context for learning, I have
one student who has an IEP. During the learning experiences, I make sure I walk by that childs
desk a couple of times to make sure he is on task. If he is not on task I restate the directions
and what he is suppose to be doing at that time for further help. For the struggling readers, I
make sure that as a class, we read the directions before anything is done so they understand
what the task is. Being aware of all the varied learners in the classroom is important when
planning. I am confident that through observation of the childrens work, their test scores and
getting to know the children on a personal level, I can plan appropriately plan to maximize their
learning.]

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c. Describe common developmental approximations1 or misunderstandings that pertain to

the learning experiences you are planning for the children and how you plan to address
them.
[One common developmental approximation that pertains to my learning experience three is
that the children might have difficulty writing there own cause and effect sentence. Children will
be asked to write their own cause and effect sentence and draw a picture. When children are
writing these sentences, they might have trouble determining which part of their sentence is the
cause and which is the effect. They also might have trouble with spelling, remembering to
capitalize at the beginning of the sentence and putting an ending mark. If their cause and effect
statements are switched I will give them appropriate feedback so that they understand what
they did wrong. I will review cause and effect with them again and see if they can fix their
mistake. If the children do not have a cause or effect sentence at all, then I will review the
definitions and give another example to see if that helps them and ask them to try and write
another. If the children have a great cause and effect sentence but words are spelled
incorrectly, and they dont have a ending mark or capital letter at the beginning of the sentence,
I will know that they understand the concept but just need more help on punctuation and
capitalization. The main goal is for students to understand the concept of cause and effect, not
for sentence structure in this learning segment, but knowing how to correctly write a sentence is
still important. Also, when working individually on their cause and effect sentences, they may try
to use previous examples that I have mentioned in class. If this happens, I will approach the
child and say that they need to rewrite their sentence and make it one that has not been said in
past learning experiences. Both of these common misunderstanding are easy to deal with and
will be handled appropriately if they were to happen.]
4. Supporting Childrens Vocabulary Development
Respond to prompts 4ac below by referring to childrens range of vocabulary development
related to the learning segmentWhat do they know, what are they struggling with,
and/or what is new to them?
a. Identify the key vocabulary2 (i.e., developmentally appropriate sounds, words,
phrases, sentences, and paragraphs) essential for children to use during the learning
segment.
[The key vocabulary words that the children will be using are cause and effect along with their
definitions. Children will also learn the words what and why in sign language to help with their
understanding of the cause and effect definitions. When learning the key vocabulary, children
will also need to know how to apply them. The children will also be using the word because
which they have had on a spelling test and used before in their writing. During the learning
segment, students will have to read and write different cause and effect sentences related to the
activities. Cause and effect, their definitions and the sign language that accompanies it is all
new information to the children. Sign language in general is not a new to them; they know some
letters and words in sign language and use them in other subjects throughout the day. Some
children struggle with capitalization, punctuation and spelling within a sentence. Children will
also be using different cause and effect statements to form a sentence. The words within the
For example, common beginning or transitional language errors or other attempts to use skills or processes just beyond a
childs current level/capability.

2
Developmentally appropriate sounds, words, phrases, sentences, and paragraphs that you want children to use or create to
engage in the learning experience.

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statements will not be new to them but being able to correctly put the statements together might
be challenging.]
b. Identify the learning experience that provides children with opportunities to develop,
practice, and/or use the key vocabulary identified in prompt 4a. (Identify the plan
day/number.)
[In all of my learning experiences, I use and provide students with key vocabulary and
opportunities to develop and practice them. At the beginning of each learning segment, the
definitions and sign language are used to help students understand the terms. In each lesson
there are opportunities for students to use the key vocabulary. In the beginning of learning
experience one, children are introduce to the new vocabulary and are given examples to
explain. Then children work together as a class to identify the causes and effects of a book that
was read. This provides them with the opportunity to speak and apply the vocabulary. In the
second learning segment, students watch a video and discuss as a class what were the causes
and effects. Then they spilt up into small groups to work on building their own cause and effect
sentences using provided material. When collaborating as a class and then in small groups,
they have to use the language when speaking to one another. The third learning segment
children are engaged in an experiment that shows cause and effect, when discussing as a
whole-class, children will be able to use the vocabulary to share their thoughts on what they
think happened. After the experiment, children will be writing their own cause and effect
statements and drawing a picture to describe it. In this activity, children have the opportunity to
apply cause and effect and will have to remember what the vocabulary means. In each of the
learning segments, students are able to work as a class, in small groups, and independently to
build and use the key vocabulary.]
c. Describe how you plan to support the children (during and/or prior to the learning
experience) to develop and use the key vocabulary identified in prompt 4a.
[I plan to support the childrens learning during and prior to the learning experiences by making
connections to real-life experiences. To help the children understand the key vocabulary during
the learning segment, I will repeat the vocabulary and definitions each day to help them recall
the information. I plan to also use different media to show examples of cause and effect
through, a story, a YouTube video and a science experiment. I will explain to the children that
cause and effect happens in everyones life. I have planned a science experiment that shows a
cause and effect that happens right in front of them so they can understand and witness a real
cause and effect situation. Then they will have an opportunity to write their own cause and effect
sentence that can either be made up or be related to an experience that has happened to them.
Discussing that cause and effect happens everyday and going over real-life examples of it will
help the children relate cause and effect to their lives in and out of school. After the learning
segment, children will be able to apply cause and effect to their own lives and use the
vocabulary to explain how things happened.]
5. Monitoring Childrens Learning
In response to the prompts below, refer to the assessments you will submit as part of the
materials for Planning Task 1.
a. Describe how your planned formal and informal assessments provide direct evidence to
monitor childrens multimodal learning throughout the learning segment.
[In all three of my learning experiences, I have used formal and informal assessments to provide
evidence and to monitor the childrens learning. In the first learning experience, children are
monitored through observation. I will be looking for their participation when learning the new
vocabulary and seeing if they are correctly using the sign language that goes along with the
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definitions. They will also be assessed on if they are able to answer what and why questions
from the book that was read using cause and effect examples. Since cause and effect is a new
concept, I decided to observe more during the first learning experience so that I could see who
was having a hard time with the concept. In the second learning experience, I split the children
into groups so that they could work on building their own cause and effect sentences with
materials provided. This assessment lets children work together and lets me see if they were
able to correctly complete the assignment and work well together. Having the children work in
pairs will help me narrow down which students are still struggling or if all students understand
cause and effect. In learning experience three, children are assessed individually. They will
have to write their own cause and effect sentence and draw a picture that goes along with the
sentence. This is the most challenging assessment for the children and that is why it is the last
assessment given. In the prior assessments, students were able to work with other students to
understand the concept and collaborate with each other to gain more knowledge from each
other. On the last day, they are being assessed individually which provides direct evidence if
the child understands cause and effect or not. By having children work as a whole-class, then
in small groups and then individually, I will be able to clearly monitor their learning. Students
are learning through experience, which is why I am choosing to use a lot of informal
assessments and then using a few formal assessments. When I am able to view the
assessments and observational notes I have taken, I will be able to recognize who will need
extra help with the concept when moving on.]
b. Explain how your design or adaptation of planned assessments allows children with
specific needs to demonstrate their learning.
strategies/support (e.g., all children along the continuum of development, including
children with IEPs or 504 plans, English language learners, struggling readers, and/or
gifted children).
[My design of adaptation that I have planned in my lesson allows children with specific needs to
demonstrate their learning appropriately. I have designed all the assessments to be achievable
by all children. Since I know their levels I can assess appropriately when reviewing their work.
The struggling readers and children who have articulation struggles will not be affected by the
assessments because all directions will be read aloud beforehand and the task or activity will be
clearly explained. One strategy that I use in all my learning experience is modeling. I also go
through directions with my children and show an example so they can understand the task. The
one child that has an IEP has special adaptations I will plan for, like repeating directions and
having extra time to finish tasks if needed.]
Citations for Materials:
Learning Experience 1
Numeroff, L. J., & Bond, F. (1985). If you give a mouse a cookie. New York: Harper & Row.
For the Birds. (n.d.). Retrieved February 19, 2016, from
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WjoDEQqyTig

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Cause and Effect Graphic Organizer: If You Give a Mouse a Cookie. (n.d.). Retrieved February
17, 2016, from https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Cause-and-Effect-GraphicOrganizer-If-You-Give-a-Mouse-a-Cookie-410876
Home Decor Ideas. (n.d.). Retrieved February 19, 2016, from
http://homedecoreideas1.blogspot.ca/2013/11/use-your-words.html
All materials were made by me.

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Early Childhood

Task 1: Planning Commentary

TASK 1: PLANNING COMMENTARY

active and multimodal learning

Copyright 2015 Board of Trustees of the Leland Stanford Junior University.

a. Childrens developmentWhat do you know about their

social and emotional development

Copyright 2015 Board of Trustees of the Leland Stanford Junior University.

c. Describe common developmental approximations1 or misunderstandings that pertain to

childs current level/capability.

engage in the learning experience.

Copyright 2015 Board of Trustees of the Leland Stanford Junior University.

Copyright 2015 Board of Trustees of the Leland Stanford Junior University.

Copyright 2015 Board of Trustees of the Leland Stanford Junior University.

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