Running head: Preschool Ethnography 1

Preschool Ethnography

Bailey Knudsen

Salt Lake Community College

ANTH 1010
PRESCHOOL ETHNOGRAPHY 2

Preschool Ethnography

Introduction

Being the youngest in my family, with no young family members living close by, I really

havent had too much experience with young children in my life. I have always admired children

for being so carefree, loving, and playful. From the limited knowledge and experience I have

about young kids, I admit that I really dont know too much about them. I have always had rose

colored glasses on, thinking that teaching, being a parent, or even just being with a child would

consist purely of cuddles, love, laughter, and playing. While I understand that kids are known to

be difficult to manage at times, I always have said to myself every person, no matter their age,

can be difficult to manage at times, so what makes kids different?. I decided that the best way

to learn about children was to immerse myself into their culture: a preschool class.

Preschool can be defined as an early childhood program in which children combine

learning with play in a program run by professionally trained adults. Children are most

commonly enrolled in preschool between the ages of three and five (Preschool, n.d.).

Preschools emphasize learning and development of children, unlike daycares whose emphasis

is giving parents freedom to work or do other activities without their children. I spent time

researching at Orchard Elementary Preschool, which is a public preschool. States started

funding public preschools in the 20000s mostly for the purpose of providing fair/equal

educational opportunities to children from low income families and children with disabilities

(Preschool, n.d.).
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I was able to observe two different classes at Orchard Elementary Preschool, both held

on Tuesdays and Thursdays, one a morning class, and one an afternoon class. The preschool has

four teachers total and the class sizes range from 10-15 students, ages 3-5. One teacher

oversees special education, one oversees general education, and two are aides in the

classroom.

While I was initially planning on using several different research methods throughout

my studies at the preschool, plans changed once I was in the classroom. The teachers were

strict about rules and structure of the class, and warned me that Davis School District has strict

privacy rules for the students protection. While I had some informal conversation with children

at times, most my research consisted of observation and note taking.

Body

While Orchard Elementary preschool students may be diverse in many ways in their

personal lives, when they are at preschool they share the commonality of the classroom culture

of structure and learning.

The preschool classroom is

very colorful and bright.

There is a door in the back

of the room with a big

window in it that adds

some natural light into the

room, making it feel

inviting and warm. The

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setup of the room consists of a student cubby space where the students can store their

personal belongings, which leads to the big rug at the front of the room, used for group

gathering activities. In one corner is a library nook, while in another there is a sink and

countertop with a miniature refrigerator. There is a playhouse by the cubbies and sink, as well

as tables in the middle of the room. The space radiates a sense of openness, belonging,

structure, and learning for the students.

A typical preschool day consists of many events with quick transitions in between. The

main activities include: washing hands/playing puzzles, opening circle (selection of student

jobs to be carried out throughout the day and group learning), free play, music/movement,

snack, library, group learning rotations, outdoor recess, and final circle. Each event is scheduled

down to the minute and rarely strays from normal structure. The preschoolers lose attention

quickly, so it is beneficial that the day is busy and full. According to GreatSchools, a structured

environment [in preschool] helps children play well with others and make friends

(GreatSchools, 2016). While the days were strictly scheduled, the kids didnt seem to realize it,

and at times there were feelings of chaos in the classroom.

In the preschool class, a defined political system doesnt exist, but while observing, I

thought that the classroom environment is comparable to the political organization of a state.

The teachers in the classroom act as government and law enforcement, making and

implementing the rules of the classroom. They constantly repeat and enforce rules such as

listening ears, walking feet, hands to self, quiet mouths, etc.; in hopes to reduce the chaos

of the students in the class. The teachers earned their positions by interviewing with the school

district and being hired. To keep their jobs as leaders in the classroom, they must follow certain
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curriculum and behave appropriately. If the preschool teachers are like state government and

law enforcement, the school district is comparable to the national government, and the

students are like citizens. If the students (citizens) dont follow the rules of the teachers (law

enforcement), there are negative consequences. I have also noticed leader figures among the

students. For example, when one girl started yelling up, up, and away while running around

the playground, all her classmates were imitating her within minutes and trying to follow her

example.

With teacher direction and influence, the kids are learning the basic expectations and

economic norms of adult society. While the students are learning academic skills to prepare

them for their educational futures, they are also learning what is socially and economically

appropriate and/or inappropriate in society. In the mornings, students get to pick a job for the

day then are responsible for completing throughout the day. For example, a student with the

job of snack helper is responsible for putting the bowls, cups, and napkins on all of the tables

before snack time.

While all students are supposed to have equal access to all resources in the classroom,

this doesnt always happen naturally. For example, one day I saw one student take all the

playdough that was out on the table during free play time. His classmate said that she would

like some playdough too, but he said no. A teacher came over and grabbed some playdough

from the boy and redistributed some to the girl while explaining that there was enough

playdough for other people too. There are also instances of generalized reciprocity when

students give each other things just to be friendly and kind. For example, one student was

crying because the play house was full and it wasnt her turn to go in yet. Another student saw
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that she was sad, so she walked over to her and said here, do you want some ice cream? and

handed her a pretend ice cream cone. After this gesture, the two girls played together and the

crying student forgot about her past distress.

While some children are very inclusive with all of their peers, I have witnessed

circumstances in which social stratification between students is evident. Some students have

already made judgements of their fellow peers and have seemingly formed their social groups.

These children seem to be able to judge who in the class they fit in with best. On one occasion,

one of the upper class girls in the classroom (dressed in preppy, new-looking clothes), was

playing with the Legos by

herself. Another student, that

may be labeled as lower-class

in this culture because of her

sloppy clothing and hairdo

tried to come and sit next to her. Right away, the upper class student told the lower-class girl

that she didnt want her to sit there, and that she would rather have her other (upper-class)

friend sit next to her. Swiftly, a teacher jumped in and said to the student that at preschool,

everyone is a friend and that everyone gets to share the toys.

I think that while adults try not to make judgements, or at least try to be discreet about

them, the children still pick up on their social stratification. The students are mindlessly learning

these habits through the world they live in and maybe even from their parents, grandparents,

siblings, etc. The teachers try to reduce social stratification by teaching that all the students
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should be friends and have equal access to preschool resources, yet the students still seem to

have their own idea of which students have more power and influence than others.

In preschool, communication is a major aspect of socialization. Some students talk

avidly, even when they are supposed to be quiet. There are however, other children that rely

mainly on paralanguage and gestures to communicate their emotions and needs. For example,

one day during recess, I saw a girl grasp the hand of another girl without a word. The two girls

displayed their newfound friendship by running around the playground, giggling, and holding

hands for the entire recess. Some children communicate negative feelings of hurt or anger with

violence, rather than words. On one occasion during free play, a boy was playing with pretend

pizza in the kitchen all by himself. Another boy came along and snatched the pizza out of his

hands without a word. Instead of saying something like hey, I was using that, the boy pushed

him down and took the pizza back.

Acknowledgement of gender differences was a common theme in my field notes,

especially competition between males and females. During outdoor recess in one of the classes,

a big group of children play a boy vs. girl chase game. In the game, the boys always chase after

the girls and the girls always run away. A girl from the group told me that she doesnt like being

chased, but then yelled to a boy I bet you cant catch us, while running away and giggling. In

the other class, towards the end of a game of musical chairs, the spectating boys cheered on

the remaining boy competitor, while the girls cheered on the girl competitor. While all the

students were playing together, each gender (male and female) seemed gravitated to staying

with children of their same gender.

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On one occasion, I noticed a trend in gender stereotypes and gender roles. In the play

house kitchen, a boy student was dressed up as a police officer. He sat at the table, and

pretended to take calls from troubled citizens. While he was doing this, there was also a girl in

the kitchen, wearing an apron, pretending to cook dinner for the boy and some other kids in

the play house. While the children all have access to all the toys and dress ups, they seem to

make their selections with gender stereotypes in mind. They assume that girls are supposed

to be housewives, and boys are supposed to have careers. It is apparent that the children

already have gender roles engraved in their minds, likely from their family lives at home, the

media they consume, and the world they live in.

While some diversity does exist in the students physical body art (clothing, jewelry,

etc.), collectively, they all identify closely with Western culture children fashion norms. Boy

fashion includes, but is not limited to: super

hero, dinosaur, sports, and car themed

clothing and accessories. Girl fashion

includes dresses, skirts, bows, and princess

themed clothing and accessories.

Personally, I think the differences in body

art from student to student reflect more of

their personal identity than their cultural

identity. One morning a student came to

school with two sloppy pigtails in her hair, wearing bright yellow rain boots, a bright purple

sweater dress, and a cat-ear headband. I told her that I liked her outfit, and asked her if she
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picked it out. She was excited to tell me that she picked out her outfit all by herself and even

did her hair by herself. This student showed her confident, carefree, independent, and colorful

personality very clearly through her body art.

Conclusion

Admittedly, preschool was a lot different than I initially expected it to be, but I came

away feeling more educated about children in the preschool culture. While I initially pictured a

laid-back day full of playing and doing fun crafts, I learned that the structure of the classroom is

important in the preschool culture and is vital for the students to keep attention and to interact

with one another effectively. I also learned that the students, while kind and loving at times,

can be violent and selfish in their actions. With the aid of the teachers, the students are

learning more effective ways to interact and coexist with other people.

It is important to note that while I was trying to avoid any problems, ethnocentrism may

have been a factor in my research. I was trying to immerse myself into the preschool culture by

seeing the students through their own eyes, but at times caught myself judging their actions

according to the standards of my own adult culture. My studies could have also been improved

by carrying out my research through more diverse methods, but the circumstances of the

teachers and districts privacy requests made it difficult to do anything more than observe the

at the preschool.

The preschool students at Orchard Elementary Preschool are different in many ways.

They have varying backgrounds, opinion, and cultures. Even though the children are different in

many ways, they have a sense of relationship, belonging, and shared identity with each other

through connections to their age and education. At 3-5 years old, many of the students share
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the passion of imagination, creativity, playing, and laughter. For example, when the students

are out playing on the playground, many play imaginary games together, chase each other, and

see each other as equals and friends. As they continue to become more comfortable with each

other and the classroom environment, they seem to know that they belong together as a

cohesive yet diverse group of preschoolers.

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References

GreatSchools Staff. (2016, March 18). 10 good reasons your child should attend preschool.

Retrieved October 2017, from https://www.greatschools.org/gk/articles/why-

preschool/

Pluie Pluie Boys Yellow Rain Boots [Advertisement]. (n.d.). Retrieved November, 2017, from

https://www.babychelle.com/products/pluie-pluie-yellow-rain-

boots?variant=1244578584

Preschool. (n.d.). Retrieved November, 2017, from

http://www.healthofchildren.com/P/Preschool.html