You can ask the child or young person opened ended questions about what a child did should be asked. Open-ended …show more content…
Jimmy: All fall down.
Practitioner: You put a big block on top, but it was too heavy so the tower fell down.
Children’s recollections and explanations sometimes differ from one another or from those of adults. It is important to acknowledge and accept each child’s version, not to correct them or take sides. The point of reflection is not to arrive at some absolute truth but rather to encourage children to think about what happened and why. Even if the conversation goes off topic or heats up, it is important to find ways to support the thinking processes going on.
You can also comment on what you see the child doing as they continue with play. Making comments while children are engaged in an activity serves two purposes. It encourages them to attend to and evaluate the experience as it is happening, and makes it easier for them to recall the event later. The more specific the comment, the more likely the child will remember and add his or her own details. For example, when Jimmy’s mum said “I saw you in the writing area using the pens.” Jimmy replied “I invited Bob to my party. Now there are five children and I’m five years