ECERS Observation Paper

ECERS Observation Paper

Nicole A. Burrell
Seton Hill University

ECERS Observation Paper

Where is an appropriate early childhood program to enroll children in? That is a very
good question because some early childhood programs meet all of the appropriate requirements
set by the state. Whereas, other early childhood programs do not meet all of the requirements set
by the state. The Early Childhood Environment Rating Scale (ECERS) is a good tool to rate an
early childhood program. The ECERS rates early childhood programs on their space and
furnishings, personal care routines, language-reasoning projects, multiple free play activities,
interaction with children, program structure and the treatment of parents and staff. Early
childhood programs should be evaluated with this rating scale at least twice a year to see the
strengths and weaknesses of the program. I used the ECERS to rate the Head Start in Donegal,
Pennsylvania on Wednesday, September 18, 2013. I observed the actions of the three teachers,
Miss. Connie, Miss. Marcia, and Miss. Stephanie, and eighteen students, ages four and five, to
complete the ECERS. I was very excited to see what the Head Start had in store for the young
children and how the program would score on the ECERS.
To begin with, I observed that the Head Start had many strengths in the personal care
routines section of the ECERS. I arrived at the Head Start at 8:45 a.m. and the children started to
arrive around 9 a.m. At the main door, Miss. Connie greeted each student by saying good
morning and addressing him or her by name. Miss. Connie asked each student how he or she was
doing. She even talked to the students parents. Miss. Connie told the one girls mom about how
well the young girl used scissors in class the day before. At the front door, Miss. Connie made
sure the students and parents felt welcomed. When the students and parents got into the
classroom, Miss. Marcia, and Miss. Stephanie also greeted them by name and asked them how
they were doing. Even though the students were settling into their seats for class, their parents
were not rushed away. The young students were able to say a proper good-bye to their parents. I

ECERS Observation Paper

really liked that the parents were not rushed away because some of the students were upset that
they had to stay at school. Some students were still getting used to school because it was only
their third week of school. I feel that rushing the parents away would have only made the
students more upset. After all of the students were settled into their seats in the morning, the
teachers welcomed all of the students as a group and had all of the students wash their hands.
Then, the teachers got the items for breakfast from the lunch lady. The children had a nutritious
breakfast around 9:20 a.m. that included Cheerios, pear slices, and skim milk. During breakfast,
the teachers used the breakfast items to teach students about circles and triangles. Miss. Marcia
showed the children that Cheerios are circles and that a napkin can be folded into a triangle.
Also, the teachers talked to the six students at their tables about the night before. The one little
boy told us about his dream the night before that included unicorns. Another child talked about
how she went to the park with her mom and dad the night before. After the students were done
eating breakfast, the students and teachers brushed their teeth. The teachers showed the students
how to correctly hold their toothbrushes and encouraged students to brush their teeth all over. I
even got to brush my teeth too!! Throughout the morning and afternoon, the teachers always
talked kindly to the students and had the students best interests in mind. When it was time for
the students to leave at the end of the day, the teachers said good-bye to each student and did not
rush the students. The teachers talked to the parents about what their child accomplished in class.
In both the greeting and departing of the students, the teachers kindly talked to each student and
his or her parents. From observing the days activities, the Head Start scored a rating of seven for
the greeting/departing, meals/snacks and health practices sections on the ECERS (Harms,
Clifford & Cryer, 2005, p. 22-30). Overall, I was very impressed with how the teachers talked
and worked with the children throughout the day.

ECERS Observation Paper

Also, the Head Start had many strengths in the space and furnishings and program
structure sections of the ECERS. I looked around the Head Start and noticed that all of the
furniture was child sized. The tables were just the right height for the students to sit at and eat.
The chairs were just the right size for the students too. There was even a small yellow couch in
the reading center for students to sit on while looking at books. The classroom also had lots of
space for students to play at the different interest centers. I was amazed that there was an easel
for art and a science center for exploration. I liked how all of the interest centers, shelves, and
toys were labeled with pictures and words. I really liked that the students had enough free time to
visit the different interest centers. The students were not rushed to change centers and were given
a five-minute warning before they had to clean up what they were playing with. In addition, I
really liked how the Head Starts schedule was basic and predictable for the students to follow.
The teachers used many different transitions, such as singing and dancing, to move from one
activity to another. I cannot stress enough how the students were never rushed from one activity
to another. From observing the environment of the Head Start throughout the day, I gave the
program a score of seven on the indoor space and schedule sections on the ECERS (Harms,
Clifford & Cryer, 2005, p. 10 & 63). All of the other sections under space and furnishings and
program structure scored a six or seven on the ECERS. Overall, I was very impressed with the
space and furnishings and program structure of the Head Start.
Although the Head Start had many strong areas, I noticed a few weak areas in the
program. The weak areas included the music and movement center, the dramatic play area, and
the provisions for personal needs of staff. The music and movement center was not up to par.
There were a few sheets of music for the students to look at, but they were not able to read it. In
addition, the music center did not have any small instruments for the students to play. The music

ECERS Observation Paper

and movement center was actually in another room than the other interest centers. Therefore, it
was not accessible to students during free play. The dramatic play center was another weak area
because it did not have many different play clothes for boys to wear. Also, there were not any
clothes that represented diversity. There were not any pictures or stories to help children enrich
their dramatic play either. Finally, the last weak area was the provisions for personal needs of
staff. The teachers did not have convenient storage for their belongings or an appropriate lounge.
The office of the Head Start was also the teachers lounge. There was not any comfortable
furniture for the teachers to relax in during their breaks. From observing the environment in the
Head Start, the music center and the provisions for personal needs of staff received a score of
three and the dramatic play center received a score of five (Harms, Clifford & Cryer, 2005, p. 42,
48 & 68). Overall, these are the only weak areas that I noticed that could use some improvement
in the Head Start.
Consequently, the music and movement center, the dramatic play center, and provisions
for the personal needs of staff could use some improvement. To improve the dramatic play
center, I would suggest to the teachers to include more clothes for boys to wear, instead of just
having a lot of dresses for girls to wear. The teachers could include hard hats, bright vests, safety
glasses, lab coats, and various plastic tools for the young boys to play with. Also, I would
suggest adding more clothes from different cultures to the dramatic play center. The teachers
could include a headdress with feathers and beads or a qipao, a long dress. These different items
will encourage discussions about the Native American and Chinese cultures. To improve the
personal needs of staff, I would suggest to the teachers to keep their items in a locked container
that can be accessed while in the main room. Also, I would suggest for the teachers to get a
comfortable couch and place it in the office for them to relax in during their breaks. It is

ECERS Observation Paper

important for the teachers to put the students needs first, but it is also important for the teachers
to take time for themselves. These are just some suggestions that I would give to the teachers to
improve the dramatic play center and the provisions for the personal needs of the staff.
Even though the dramatic play center and the provisions for the personal needs of the
staff need improvement, the music and movement center needs the most improvement. The
music and movement center didnt have any small musical instruments for the students to play. I
would suggest to the teachers to have students make their own musical rattles during art time.
They could make it a group art project one day. The only supplies the teacher would need are rice
or beans, paper mache paste, newspapers, and toilet paper rolls for each student. If the teachers
cannot easily obtain these materials, they could ask the parents to save newspapers and empty
toilet paper rolls. If the teachers do not want to make a paper mache rattle, they could look up
directions on how to make different rattles on the Internet. Also, I would suggest to the teachers
to buy plastic instruments, such as flutes, trumpets or drums, by the dozen through novelty
companies, such as Rhode Island Novelty. The plastic instruments from the novelty companies
are very cheap and can be ordered at any time. Even though they are plastic, the students would
still be able to play the instruments and have fun. Finally, I would suggest to the teacher to move
the music and movement center to the main room with all of the other interest centers, instead of
having it in the big room. Therefore, the students would be able to play music at any time
during the free play period. These would be my suggestions for the teachers to improve their
music and movement center.
If the teachers would take my suggestions and improve the music and movement center,
the students would appreciate music more. I feel that the students would appreciate music more
if they were able to play an instrument. Some of the students liked to tap on the table or make

ECERS Observation Paper

noises with their mouths during class time and story time. If the students had an instrument to
play during free time, they might not feel the need to make noises during class time and story
time. Also, a lot of the students did not like to sit still during class time or story time. If the
students had more time to walk around playing an instrument during free time, they may not be
so restless during class time. Finally, the students did not seem to want to sing along with the
teachers during the morning and afternoon transitions. I feel that the music and movement center
would encourage the students to sing along with the teachers during the transitions.
Consequently, the students may enjoy music more and have a better appreciation for it if the
music and movement center is improved. I feel that having instruments in the music and
movement center will help students like music, release energy, and sit still in the classroom.
Overall, I believe that the ECERS was a good tool to evaluate the strengths and
weaknesses of the Head Start. I felt that the ECERS was organized very well because it had six
different subscales. I really liked using the overview page of the subscales and items because I
could easily find the page of the topic I wanted. I really liked how each item had notes for
clarification. If I was not sure what a statement meant, I could look at the notes for clarification
and then I would understand what the statement meant. Also, I liked that there was enough room
on each page for me to write my notes. I found it easier to right down my observations on each
page, instead of writing it down in the back of the book. I also found it easier to score the items
on each individual page. After completing my observations, I transferred the scores for each item
to the back of the book. In addition, I found it easier to graph the items after I transferred the
scores to the back of the book. I liked the graph because it allowed me to easily see the strengths
and weaknesses of the Head Start. In conclusion, I really liked using the ECERS to score the

ECERS Observation Paper

Head Start because it was easy to read and touched on every important component of an early
childhood program.

Harms, T., Clifford, R., & Cryer, D. (2005). Early childhood environment rating scale.
(Revised ed.). New York, NY: Teachers College Press.