Wisconsin Infant Toddler Professional Credential

Capstone Checklist Self Evaluation

Student Name ___Haley___Jaeger______________________________

The NAEYC criteria for National Accreditation is the basis of the Capstone Checklist criteria to demonstrate alignment with the Standards and to familiarize the
student with this national accreditation process.
Complete the self-evaluation, including descriptions of behaviors and/or situations that illustrate how you meet the criteria. Give examples of
situations that illustrate you are applying each criterion, giving a thorough description of the situation and how your response meets the criterion. The
spaces will expand as you type in them. Attach documents as needed.

COMPETENCY 3. Adapt an infant or toddler environment to meet the needs of the infants, toddlers and caregivers who use it.
Materials and equipment
1. Give examples of how your environment provides for childrens safety while being appropriately challenging in good repair, age
appropriate, addresses the range of abilities of children in room.
Artwork is hung in the room at the childrens level behind a shadow box. This allows the artwork to be viewed by the children but unsafe
objects such as staples are not at the childrens level. Any item that is immediately removed from the classroom and repaired or replaced in a
timely manner. We have many different items and toys to meet each childs ability level. We have tummy time mats for the children who are
working on tummy time, we have toy bars for the children working on hand-eye coordination and reaching for items. The activities planned in
the classroom are appropriate for the childrens abilities. Each child has an individual goal in the lesson plan, and activities to support that goal.
2. Give examples of how your environment is rich in variety to encourage exploration, experimentation, and discovery mix of open-ended
and self-correcting, cause & effect, sensory appeal, etc.
Our lesson plan is set up with different areas of environment. Each area has planned activities. These activities match up to the childrens
goals for the time span of the lesson plan. The areas of the lesson plan that are planned out each week are cognitive, language, motor,
sensory, art, and other. Planning our lessons around these areas helps the classroom to have a variety of activities for learning.

3. Give examples of how your environment promotes sensory and fine motor learning invites a range of movement and manipulation,
(items to stack, nest, roll, push, pull, fit together, take apart, etc.); has varying textures, varying materials (not all plastic), and materials are
mouthable and touchable.
I have a couple of toys that the children are able to stack including blocks; both hard and soft. I also have a set of rings that they are able to
put over a giraffe head. Then I have a big circular pillow that has a few toys hanging off for children to push around while doing tummy time
or sitting up. I have a big variety of rattles and books that are touch and feel. When the seasons change we often will bring the outdoors
inside for sensory exploration. For example, we may bring leaves in for the children to explore, or snow in a sensory bucket.

4. Give examples of how your environment promotes action through self-initiated movement to promote gross motor skill practice materials
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children can push, pull, crawl, climb, pull up, stand, etc.
For the infants that are learning how to walk they have toys that they are able to push around the room. There is a sensory table at the
children's level and is always out so they are able to pull up and scale across or just stand. Same with our open shelves. Then in the toddler
room we have either a slide or a jungle gym that they are able to climb up and work on their large motor skills.

5. Give examples of how your environment promotes interaction between children - promotes communication (toy phone) and cooperation
to operate (see-saw), etc.
For the small babies, when they are practicing tummy time we will often face multiple children to each other so that they are able to
interact while on tummy time. Our toddler rooms have pretend phones so the children can pretend to talk on the phone. We also do many
flannel stories that the children are able to help and participate with. On the outside playground there is a see-saw and many balls to
encourage the children to play together.

6. Give examples of how your environment is organized to support independent use has low, open shelves, bins or baskets, picture/word
labels, etc.
My shelfs are made for their level once they are able to stand, I have open shelves and my toys are in baskets and are labeled. The toys
that lay on toy are big soft toys which are labeled but not in baskets. Those children that are not able to stand are able to reach into the
shelves as there is no lip and the first shelf is at the floor level.

7. Give examples of how you rotate materials to reflect changing curriculum and to accommodate new interests and skill levels storage
space in center has materials to rotate into and out of room, etc.
Every few weeks I will rotate the room around to make it seem like there is new toys in the room. Toys are also rotated to go along with the
themes for each lesson plan.
8. Give examples of how you have or might add or adapt materials to accommodate a childs special needs.
For a child that is not able to move on their own we will bring the toys to them. We may place that child under a toy bar so they can utilize
that, or maybe on their tummy with rattles and instruments so they are able to reach them.

9. Give examples of how your environment has sufficient soft elements to provide comfort and responsiveness pillows, mats, couch, covers
for washability, etc.
I have a big butterfly that is like a pillow for the infants to play on. This butterfly pillow has a removable cover so it is able to be washed easily. I

also have boppy pillows, also with removable covers, to provide comfort and closure for the little ones. We have a large soft mat that many of
the children work on tummy time on. This mat is made of a material that is easily wiped clean.
10. Give examples of some play/learning materials that you created made from variety of found natural, or real materials, and familiar
household objects for children to explore.
I made an in and out game for the children with milk jug lids and wipe container. I have also made sensory bottles by using a water bottle/soda
bottle with different materials inside.

11. Give examples of how the materials are in sufficient quantities to occupy every child in activities that meet his or her needs.
We have many books, rattles, musical instruments, sets of blocks, etc. There are many doubles of each type of toy, this way more than one
child can be doing instruments or exploring books at the same time.

Indoor space
12. Give examples of how your environment has protected places for children to play individually- activity blanket, infant nest, divided spaces,
etc.
I have a spot in my room that has a play mat which is by the shelves with the rattles and link toys, also I have a quite area that has soft toys,
books, a pillow and most of the time the nap music is played in that area while children are sleeping. We have two activity blankets that the
children are placed on individually to paly.

13. Give examples of how your environment has places for children to play with peers spaces divided by low shelves for partner play,
equipment designed for two children at a time, etc.
The butterfly pillow allows two children at a time to rest on. We have a large soft mat that we often have the children work on tummy time
together with their peers on.

14. Give examples of how your environment has places for children to be all together large open rug area, tables and chairs to sit together
for meals, etc.
I have 2 low shelves and behind on is a big blue play mat wear a group of infants are at most of the time throughout the day. My classroom is
very opened so once the infants start to move they are able to come and go to areas as the please.

15. Give examples of how your environment has equipment such as tables and chairs that are sized to the children using them childrens
feet touch floor and table top is about mid chest height, climbers not too big or too small for children.
I work in an infant room which age range is 6 weeks to 6 to 7 months. So I don't have table or chairs in my room. Once they start eating foods
they will sit in a high chair and then they move to an infant/toddler table and chairs that sit at their level when they move to the older infant room
and toddler rooms.

16. Give examples of how your environment has space that is divided into areas that are supplied with materials organized to support play and
learning.
Although my classroom is very open, there are separate areas. There is a quiet area with soft toys and books. This area is separate from the
toy shelf with noisy rattles and musical instruments. The shelves are strategically placed in the classroom to divide these areas.

17. Give examples of how your environment has areas with pathways for children to move between areas without disturbing other children and
barriers to protect non-mobile children (if applicable).
My classroom has a very open concept. As the infants are developing and showing signs that they are ready to crawl they transition to the
Infant 2 room with has mobile babies. Therefor my classroom does not have many pathways. The only pathway is for parents to enter and
leave the classroom. This is defined by the back of a shelf and the cribs which are placed to create the pathway.

18. Give examples of how your environment has ways to moderate or minimize visual and auditory stimulation- window shades, curtains,
dimmers, sound absorbing materials, etc.
My classroom has two different sets of lights. One set turns off two of the three lights in each panel, the other set turns off on of the three of
each panel. I use a CD player to play nap music when I have children sleeping in the classroom.

19. Give examples of how your environment has places for displaying childrens work artwork on walls or shelves, photos of activities, work
samples, etc.
I have art work that the children have created hung around the classroom so parents are able to see when they step in the room. I also have
posters of the children and their families hanging up around the walls at their level. Then on the side of my shelf I have diversity pictures which

sit at children's level. I am also able to hang some of the childrens art work at their level low on the wall behind a shadow box.

20. Give examples of how your environment has defined spaces for families to sign in and. out, gather information about childs day parent
info board with schedule posted, curriculum activities, parent pockets or bins for notes, daily care sheets, clipboards, child notebooks, place
to sit and write or dress/undress child, etc.
When you first walk into my classroom I have a lesson plan and individual goals for each child and everyones individual schedule. These
are hung on a decorated parent board. When parents drop off they fill out a daily sheet that tells me how their night and morning have
been. I am able to use this sheet to know when to feed the child and when they will need a nap. I fill out the bottom half of this sheet for
each child so the parents know when their child ate, slept, and was changed while in my care. I also write at the bottom of the sheet about
what their child enjoyed doing for the day. During the day I send an email with pictures of the children and tell about everything that we
worked on for the day

21. Does your room have comfortable adult sized places to sit, hold, cuddle and feed infants or toddlers? Describe them.
Yes, I have one rocking chair but gets very hard because there are two teachers in the room. We also have a larger chair that we sit on
when feeding a child in the high chair.

22. Are you able to see children in all areas of room? Describe how.
Yes, shelves are low to the ground and all cribs are against the wall.

Outdoor space
23. Give examples of how your outdoor play space has equipment that is designed for age and abilities of infants and toddlers using it.
There are two sides on our playground. There is one side for the infants and toddlers and it is all grassy with a small area that holds a small
kitchen set and picnic table for their size. The slides, jungle gym, houses, lawnmowers and many other toys are appropriate for their age group.
Our older children at the center play on the other side of the playground with a large climber and many bikes.

24. Give examples of situations that show you are attentive to children during outdoor and indoor time and promote their exploration and
discovery.
I will walk around and point things out for example an airplane is flying overhead, I will point it out and repeat to them what it is. I also love
to engage with the children by playing and running around with them and playing in the play houses and so on.

Additional criteria for self-assessment that are not on Observation Checklist:

Give examples of situations where you used your knowledge of individual children to modify strategies and materials to enhance childrens
learning.
At the end of my lesson plan each child will have a specific developmental goal that they are working on. I link the activities on my lesson plan to
these goals.