In this assignment I will be looking at the benefits that different types of activities have on the health and well-being of service users. I will be gaining experience in planning, implementing and evaluating activities for service users.
A01
In this assignment I will be looking at the benefits that different types of activities have on the health and well-being of service user's. I will be gaining experience in planning, implementing and evaluating activities for service users. In order to complete this assignment I will produce a written report which will be relevant to an activity I will carry out at a care setting. To show evidence of this I will conduct some primary research by creating a questionnaire for the teacher to fill out. I will also ask for a teacher to observe what I am doing. The reason for this is so that the observer can note down how well I carried out my activity and what I could do to improve. This will be recorded in the witness statement which is attached to the back of this assignment. However if I use a video camera to gather this evidence the children may feel intimidated and might also found it difficult to concentrate on the task set. I will also use primary and secondary sources to gain knowledge about the needs of children and the benefits of certain activities within health care setting. The sources I have used to support my assignment are textbooks and the internet. Evidence of this is shown at the back of the assignment, in the bibliography.
In my assignment I have chosen to carry out my activities in an early year setting, there are a range of activities that I can choose from when linking with this certain age group with young children; the setting I have chosen to work at is Wallace Road Nursery. In this assignment I will need to investigate the different types of activities suitable for service users in health care settings. I will also need to consider what the benefits of these are including consideration of safety while carrying out the activity. I will particularly be looking at the four main areas of children's needs these are:
? Physical needs
? Intellectual needs
? Emotional needs
? Social needs
Early childhood is a time of tremendous growth and development for children in each of the following ways: physical, intellectual, emotional and social (3). When looking at well-being and linking it with the activities that I have chosen, I can see that this will develop the physical needs of the children as well as make them happy, well being is a term which describes happiness in addition to being able to do something that you enjoy and can stimulate you as a person. Activities will stimulate children at this age group and keep their bodies and minds active which I think is very important particularly for a child at this age who is just beginning his/her development. There are usually 6 ways taken to measure the well- being of children, these consist of health and safety, education, peer and family relationships, behaviours and risks (8). Below I have explained what physical, intellectual, emotional and social activities are and how they could benefit service users at this age.
Physical needs are things such as food, drink, warmth, shelter and security (8). Throughout our lives our physical needs change. As a young child, you relied on others to provide your physical needs. For example babies cannot feed themselves, infants need warmth and protection (2). As we become adults, we begin to take over the responsibility of supplying our own physical needs, for example buying food to feed ourselves and taking on a mortgage or paying rent to provide a home in which to shelter. Old age may once again results in the need for others to help provide and maintain our physical needs (1).
Intellectual needs are about keeping the brain stimulated and interested in new and challenging activities (1). Children meet their intellectual needs constantly by exploring and questioning the world around them. As people grow older, physical needs decline, and intellectual needs become even more important to ensure that healthy development continues.
Emotional needs everybody needs to be liked and even loved. A newborn baby needs love from his/her parents (3). Emotional needs change as we grow and develop. Children begin to test the boundaries that relationships provide, experiencing many different emotions for the first time. As adolescence takes over, we begin to find fulfilment from developing a close bond with one person with whom we share an emotional attachment.
When looking at emotional needs for children at my chosen age group I can see that children's emotional needs are met through bonding with their family and friends. One of the first and most important needs for a child at this age is to be loved (6). Other needs for children could be to show them interest in their activities, give them lots of attention, allow them to make choices, e.g. What close to wear, to show them that you trust them as well and of course to make them feel safe and secure. Emotional activities are important as they are there to make the children feel good about themselves. Examples of emotional activities for children could be art and crafts work, dancing, drama, water and sand playing, dough making and making music.
Social needs are met through relationships with other people. By forming relationships with others, we achieve a sense of belonging and acceptance (3). Within our daily lives, we form many social relationships, for example as a friend, colleague, voluntary worker or member of a sports team. Happiness often comes from achieving a sense of belonging and being needed by someone else, but relationships can go wrong. When relationships become difficult or collapse and social needs are not met, people can become lonely and depressed. For example a teenager, who is bullied by hr friends, might not have anybody to turn to for comfort and support, which will make her life, become very lonely and difficult.
When looking at social needs I can see that primary socialisation is a big part of their social needs because learning the norms and values of society from parents is an important need as all children grow up with these values and have to take into account how to respect people and understand society. When looking at social activities for my chosen age group I can see that these are important as again they help develop self esteem, it also helps with affective communication, it involves learning the norms and values in society. It comes in two forms; primary socialisation and secondary socialisation. Example of social activities could involve group singing, drama activities, trips and outings to various parks and maybe just play around the playground.
There are many benefits that children at my chosen age group can gain from these activities such as it can boost their self esteem and confidence, they release endorphins (positive feelings), stress and tension and promote relaxation (8).
For physical needs I am going to carry out some exercise for my activity. This will be with the whole group as all the children will be able to participate and as a group will enjoy it more. There are many benefits of exercise. The most obvious are that it helps children to develop social skills such as sharing and taking turns. It helps children to develop physical skills such as running, eye-hand coordination and ball skills (5). It also helps children to get a sense of belonging as they do things with other children, either in casual ...
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For physical needs I am going to carry out some exercise for my activity. This will be with the whole group as all the children will be able to participate and as a group will enjoy it more. There are many benefits of exercise. The most obvious are that it helps children to develop social skills such as sharing and taking turns. It helps children to develop physical skills such as running, eye-hand coordination and ball skills (5). It also helps children to get a sense of belonging as they do things with other children, either in casual or organised activities and sports. Exercise is also a good stress reliever. If a child is having difficulty sleeping, concentrating or with friendships, exercise can relieve some of the stress. Increasing overweight and obesity is happening world wide. People who are overweight or obese are more likely to have health problems. Helping young children to develop good eating patterns and enjoyment from sport and exercise may help them avoid later health problems.
For intellectual needs I am going to carry out some creative writing, with a small group of children about 6-7, I have chosen this amount of children as they will be able to concentrate and it will be easy for me to help them when and if help is required. When looking at creative writing or activities involving handwriting or spelling this can support language skills and self-expression its not just about being able to understand sentences but using creativity and imagination it's about giving words meanings. Some of benefits of language skills could be to develop confidence, enable problem solving, and enable affective communication.
For emotional needs I am going to carry out an activity which will involve playing with play dough. This will involve a group of 8 children. This activity will allow the children to express their feelings. It will also allow them to gain confidence and self-esteem if they are pleased with their end-product, are praised and rewarded for their efforts and have a feeling of satisfaction and achievement afterwards.
For social needs I am going to carry out some role play. This will involve the children getting into small groups of 5's. They will then choose a character from their chosen play and act upon it. This activity can help children to develop relationships with other children as they will enhance communication. It is important for children to express their emotions and to learn how to deal with them in safe environment (6). Along with this all these activities are calming and relaxing, I feel that this is important for children's development because in the future they will have the confidence to talk about their feelings to people they trust and be able to express their emotions when needed.
Whilst organising my activity there were several factors which I took into account which helped narrow down the choices available and made it easier for me to come to a decision. Some of the main factors I considered were firstly, the type of setting I was going to work at and the facilities and resources that were available. I also considered my own skills and interests and how I could use them with service users at that particular age. Another aspect I thought about whilst putting the activity together were the service user's needs and interests of the individuals. This was very important whilst working at the placement.
Ao2
Young children are in the process of maturing emotionally as much as they are developing in other areas. It is important to provide opportunities for children to express their emotions and learn how to deal with them in a safe, social environment. Emotional development means learning to cope with problems and challenges without becoming too upset or demoralised. Children also need to learn how to express their feelings and emotions without upsetting others. In this sense, emotional and social maturity are closely linked. Emotional activities can help children to develop these skills.
Many of the daily practices in early year settings are intended to support children's emotional development. Praising children and displaying their work can help increase their self-esteem and self-confidence. Resolving conflicts in a sympathetic and even-handed way can help children feel more secure and help them to deal with their feelings in a mature, non-destructive way. Activities that support emotional development may not always be seen as specifically emotional activities. There may be other developmental aims for the activity, such as physical or intellectual. Nevertheless, the opportunity to achieve success and increase self-esteem and self-confidence is available in almost all activities. (3)
Activities that emotional benefits help people to feel better in themselves. They can, for example, help to reduce stress levels, which could mean finding ways to release tension and 'get it out of our system'. Some expressive activities can also provided people with the opportunity to express difficult, repressed or upsetting emotions in a safe environment. This can be especially important where a person is unable to verbalise such feelings. When you express your feelings, you get the chance to assert who you are and say how you feel. Doing so strengthens a person's sense of identity, which in turn helps their confidence and self-esteem. (3)
As well as relieving stress emotional activities can help us to feel more relaxed and secure. Feelings of relaxation allow people better to adjust to their situation and accept it. Being relaxed can take the mind off problems and dissatisfactions. It can help people to settle and increases their feelings of contentment. These benefits can lead clients to feel more secure in their environment. Another, sometimes overlooked, benefit of emotional activity is that it can simply increase a persons pleasure and happiness. Happiness has effects in all other emotional areas. It leads to general increases in feelings of wellbeing and contentment. Being happy relieves stress and tension, and raises our level of self confidence. Happiness can have a lasting effect and, in developing and supporting activities in care settings, can be seen as an end itself. (3)
The activity I have decided to carry out at my chosen setting is to make play dough and design it using resources. I have chosen this particular activity as I feel that the children will be able to express their feelings about the mood they are in and what they are feeling. It may even be a new skill for them. I will be using colourful resources in order to make the activity appeal more to the children and make it look more attractive. I will bring in some equipment that children may find interesting such as sequences, feathers, cotton wool, ribbons and other resources that will make the activity more successful. This relates to my setting as well as the age group because I have a range of ideas the children can use to create their play dough.
The benefits of this activity are that the activity will help the children develop fine motor skills which will help them expand further ability to do certain things, as they will be using their hands and eye co-ordination. They will also again be able to express their emotions. It will help the children be creative and can be a social activity as they will interact with the children within the group. Making a range of equipment and material accessible for the children means that the creative expression becomes easier. It will also be a positive way for them to socialise with other children.
Ao3
I will be working with children aged 4-5. The aim of my activity is for each child to be able to make play dough and design it using paints, glitter, sequences etc, which will leave them with a final piece to take home. I will be working with a small group of about 7-8 children and a qualified teacher who will be assisting us. I have chosen this amount of children as they will be able to concentrate and it will be easy for me to help them when and if help is required. I decided not to have large group of children because this could be difficult to handle as things might get unmanageable and even dangerous. Also during discussion time some children may not choose to do what they are told to do so therefore I will stick to a smaller group. However if I chose to work with a smaller group of 3 or 4 children it would have made the activity less interesting and less fun for the participants.
I have decided to carry out my activity at Vernon Terrace Primary School. The reason for choosing this placement is that there are children of all sorts of ages which means I can easily relate it to my chosen target group. Also there are children from a range of different racial and cultural backgrounds. It is also a special school for deaf children which mean it will be helpful when evaluating the barriers that I came across during the activity.
I will use the 'Stepping Stones' throughout the activity. These show the knowledge, skills, understanding and attitudes that children need to learn during the foundation stage in order to achieve the early learning goals.
Vernon Terrace is a community Primary School with 152 full-time pupils on role, which is smaller then other schools compared with the average size nationality. In addition, it has a nursery with places for 26 children part-time. The school has a cultural diverse intake and around one half of the school's population comes from a wide variety of ethnic minority groups, the largest coming from Bangladesh. Around 20 different languages are spoken and nearly one quarter of the children are at an early stage of English acquisition, which is very high. There is a wide range of attainment amongst the children on entering the nursery with some who have well-developed but, overall, attainment is very low. The school has identified around 40% of pupils as having special educational needs, which is above average, 10 of whom have a Statement of Special Educational Needs. These needs are mainly related to hearing impairment.
The plan of the activity is to start of the activity by setting the equipment ready for the children to use and put out a few ready made play dough pieces for the children to look at so that they know what they are doing. After this I will get the children to wear aprons to keep their clothes clean and then they can sit down on a chair. After this I will explain to children what they need to do and I will give them an equal amount of dough each for them to get started. I will let them create their own piece using the resources and materials provided and help them were help is needed. After this I will get the children to wash their hands. We will then discuss the outcomes and talk about what they enjoyed the most. Finally I will clean up the mess and leave the play dough to dry which the children can then take home with them at the end of the day.
I will need quite a few resources to make this activity successful. Below is the list of some the resources that will be required to carry out the activity.
? Play dough - different colours to make it more appealing
? PVA glue - 1 pot (available at the school)
? Tissue paper - a variety of colours (available at the school)
? Cotton wool - 1 bag
? Scrap paper - (available at the school)
? Sequins and gems
? Glitter - range of colours (available at the school)
? Paint - again a variety of colours (available at the school)
? Safety scissors - 4-5 pairs (available at the school)
As you can see most of the resources will already be available at the setting however I will need to buy some of the material in my free time. These resources are necessary as they will make the children want to take part in the activity because children at my chosen age group find bright colours very attractive.
In order to gain feedback about how well I did the activity I will be considering making a questionnaire for the teacher. I feel that it will be inappropriate as well as difficult for the children to fill out a questionnaire, although I could use smiley faces which the children could circle to express their emotions. However I feel that if I read the questions out aloud and the children respond by putting their thumbs up or down, this will be much simpler and easier. I could record this by making a tally chart. The last 2 pages attached at the back of the assignment display the questions I will use to gain feedback from the service users as well as the teacher.
A barrier to access is a factor which hinders or prevents a service user from obtaining something. At my chosen setting there are many barriers or problems that can occur whilst doing the activity.
One of the barriers that could afflict on my activity is labelling and stereotyping. Labelling and stereotyping are potential barriers that are rooted in the way that people think and feel. If someone is stereotypical against someone before even getting to know them then this could make the service user feel undervalued socially excluded during a group activity and marginalised. This could lead to psychological problems. For example, a student who is being treated differently due to his colour might be labelled as a troublemaker who doesn't work. The child might be left out during class discussions by the teacher ignoring his opinions. At my work placement I didn't come across any
Language is another barrier which could affect my activity. Language can be an issue when trying to communicate with other children. If a service user can not take part in a particular activity because English is not their first language then the consequences of that might be that they feel discriminated against as they are being left out of the group. For example if an Italian child who didn't understand English at all spoke to a child who only spoke English there would be difficulties understanding what is being said. This may result in them being marginalised and social exclusion. The primary school which I worked at consisted of children who came from many different types of cultures and backgrounds. On the table I carried the activity out on there was a child from an Afro-Black Caribbean background who had trouble speaking and understanding English. Which meant it was difficult for the child to express ideas with some of the other children as well as myself. The overcome this, the school provided the child with an LSA who spoke the same language. Also as I was carrying out an emotional activity I didn't need to explain what to do as it was quite straight forward for the children.
Another barrier to my activity could be unfair discrimination. This is when someone is treated unfairly then others and not given the same amount of respect. This can affects service users as their self esteem could drop rapidly and they also may loose their trust in the care workers. Sexism is discrimination on the bases of gender. Anti-Semitism is discrimination on the basis of religion or faith. Treating one person less favourably then another is an example of direct discrimination. If a school refuses to accept someone they weren't of the Christian faith, this would be an example of discrimination however, if the school did accept a disabled person, not on the Christian faith, but had a policy that all students must attend Christian worship each week, this would be an example of indirect discrimination. Less favourable treatment may result in long term emotional and psychological damage. However to overcome this staff are trained well and also organisations follow certain policies and procedures by law.
The activity I carried out involved children making play dough and designing it using materials such as paints and sequins and I feel the activity was a success. All the children enjoyed making their own pieces and looked very happy with the outcome. Throughout the activity I made sure I handled the task well and I took into mind the health and safety of the children. I made sure that the children used suitable materials and didn't play with any thing sharp. I also ensured that the children wore aprons in order to protect their clothes and that they washed their hands after the activity was over. I took some feedback from the teacher again which is shown in the witness statement as said before.
During the activity I ensured I used good communication skills by making sure I had a positive facial expression, and good use of eye contact. I came down to the same level as the child, by kneeling on the floor besides the children so that they didn't fell intimidated by me. I established a positive relationship with the children by calling them by their first names and allowing them to call me by my first name. I respected the children as individuals and gave them independency by letting them choose what resources they wanted to use, by doing this I was considering their choice and preference. I tried to use short sharp sentences and a clear, bright, friendly tone. This was so that the children understood what I was saying. I lowered my volume slightly so that the other children in the classroom were not disturbed by our communication whilst interacting. . I also used gestures were they seemed appropriate as this was a group interaction. I also made sure there was proximity between myself and the children, in order to make sure they weren't nervous or scared. I made sure I gave the children personal space which is also known as proximity, this was so that they didn't feel anxious.
The activity was not too long or too short. It depended more on what the children wanted. As there was more than just the one activity available in the afternoon session the children did sometimes switch to a different activity. Yet the children completed their final piece in time and seemed very satisfied with them. I don't feel that the activity was too hard or too easy as the children had their own choice of how to make their play dough. Some of the children decided to make a straight forward design whereas some children made a more complicated one. However I don't think any of the children struggled to make their final piece which was a positive thing.
Before beginning the activity I explained to the children what the activity was about to make sure that they understood clearly. I also had a readily finished product for the children to look at so that they had an idea of what they were aiming for. During the activities I didn't intervene too much in what the children were doing unless they asked for help or suggestions, this is because they were enjoying it
Overall I feel that my activity was a success. Although the activity was quite challenging the children seemed to enjoy the activity as they showed interest and enthusiasm in what they were doing; they were focussed throughout the activity and expressed their emotions throughout the play. Also this was something new to them as they hadn't done anything like this before.
Ao4
Overall the activity was a success and the children responded very well. The children completed the activity in time and really enjoyed it, the resources especially that were used were found 'very attractive'. The children showed curiosity, some of the children spent a long time designing their collage. The children showed independency whilst carrying out the activities, as they felt more comfortable working on their own rather then asking for help and they seemed quite happy with this.
This activity met the needs of the children physically, intellectually, emotionally and socially because not only did it help to boost their confidence around others but it also enables their developments skills to build further. The physical skills the children developed were fine motor skills because in order to this activity the children had to use their hands and fingers to put the pieces together. Their intellectual skills also developed further they were concentrating and were fully focussed on their activity and it also benefited them socially as they interacted with others at the school. The children learnt to work together in a group which helped develop their communication skills as it allowed them to share ideas and thoughts as well as developing existing skills. It also benefited them emotionally as they were having fun and enjoying themselves. The activity benefited the children as I intended it to as the children learnt how to work together in a group and developed their communication skills. It helped them to share their own ideas as thoughts as well as developing existing skills. At the end of the activity we looked at the work that had been done. This made the children emotionally happy as this made them feel more confident.
I felt that the resources were one of the best features of the activity. The children found them very eye-catching and colourful. However even then I think that if I was to improve this activity I would have a visual stimulus for example, the use of books and toys linked with the activity in order to make it more appealing. But apart from that I felt the activity was a success and many improvements weren't needed at all.
I feel that the activity was very planned and all of it went according to plan. I showed independency in selecting and carrying out the activity with the children, I personally made the resources accessible to the children, felt confident to ask staff for help when I needed support, this for example was when I wasn't sure where some of the recourses and material were kept therefore I asked the staff for help. I also showed a high level of involvement while doing the activities. I made sure that when the children were stuck I helped them out, gave them ideas, helped them when required and continuously praised them.
My strengths I feel were communicating with the children, which I thought went really well. I really enjoyed doing this and I also thought that the children did because if a child was upset or if they needed support in anything they came to me and asked for help. My communication skills with the teachers however, I felt was not so good. I was slightly nervous when I first entered the school However the longer I stayed there, I gradually gained more confidence.
I did some primary research by carrying out a questionnaire for the teacher of the class, to fill out once the activity was over and complete. The questions that I asked were related to the activity that I carried out for example "what did you think of my activity?", "do you think my activity was a success?", and "what improvement do you think I could make to my activity?". I also took witness statement with me to the placement in order for the teacher fill out. The witness statement asked for feedback about the activity carried out, what it was and what skills were demonstrated whilst doing the activity.
The feedback from the children was very positive as all the children said that they enjoyed doing the activity. To gain this feedback I did thumbs up and thumps down were I asked children questions and the children put their thumbs up for 'yes' and thumbs down for 'no'. This way of gathering feedback was very straight forward as the children seemed very excited. It was also really easy to record the response as I made a tally chart and this saved time.
The teacher's response was very good and positive. I felt that she enjoyed me working there. She said that I was confident whilst doing the activity and I used my initiative when doing the activity. She said that the ability to undertake the activity was very good. She was also very pleased with my attitude and the way I respected the teachers and other adults around. She added that I was quite but very confident. She also said that I cared for the classroom equipment and I had a good level of maturity. Evidence of feedback from the teacher was shown in the witness statement.
The school I worked at also offered a wide range of extra-curricular activities for the children. Some of these activities that have taken place this year have been rock school, book club, drumming, football, cricket, carnival club, karaoke, dance, cheerleaders, choir, relaxation, board games, sewing. The school has also entered teams in football, tag rugby, cricket and basketball tournaments. Children in Key Stage 2 have had the opportunity to have music lessons in keyboard and strings with visiting teachers from the county music service. Children in all classes have taken part in school trips to support learning in the classroom. Children in year 5 and 6 have also been given a chance to pay a residential visit to the Peak District. The school also has a large number of visitors these have ranged from the Romans and Geeks to local hairdressers.
Overall I feel that the activity went really well and according to my plan. The children really seemed to enjoy the activity as they looked very happy and the feedback from the teacher was also very good. This placement also benefited me whilst doing my coursework as it helped me communicate more with others. Throughout the whole experience I felt that I gained more confidence so now it is much easier for me to talk with people I don't know, next time I feel I will be much better.
Questions for the one to one interview that I will carry out with a care practitioner at St David's Day Centre
. What is your name?
2. What did you think of my activity?
3. Do you think my activity was a success?
4. What improvement do you think I could make to my activity?
5. Do you think the service users enjoyed it?
6. Do you think the activity benefited the service users physically, intellectually, emotionally and socially? (please specify)
7. Have the service users ever done this activity before?
8. What kinds of activities are usually held out at the day centre?
Thank you for completing this questionnaire
Questionnaire for the service users at St David's Day Centre
. What is your name?
2. Did you enjoy the activity?
3. Did you find any part of the activity difficult?
4. Did you understand the instructions clearly?
5. Did you feel there was enough space to do the activity?
6. Do you think it was equipped good?
7. Would you like to do this activity again?
Bibliography
Throughout this assignment I have put in brackets. For example (1), next to key terms/skills or definitions. This then refers to the bibliography that is set at the back of my assignment, which shows where I got the information as shown below:
(1) Hilary, T. 1998. Hodder Intermediate GNVQ Health and Social Care. Oxon, British Library Cataloguing.
(2) Moonie, N. 1996. HEINEMANN AVCE Health and Social Care. Oxford, Harcourt Education Limited.
(3) Walsh, M. 2005. Collins Health and Social Care. London, HarperCollins Publishers
(4) Website: kidshealth.org/parent/nutrition_fit/fitness/exercise.html
(5) Website: www.healthvisitors.com/hv/23/509
(6) Website: www2.rgu.ac.uk/publicpolicy/introduction/needf.htm
(7) Primary Research: use of questionnaires/ witness statement
(8) Lecture notes
Health and Social Care...Unit 5 Imama Khatoon
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