Large Group Time – Large Group Activity – Guest Speaker: Nurse Brooke
Brief Description- Children will meet a pediatric nurse and learn what she does.
Rationale- This activity comes from the children’s need to learn about different people’s jobs and what
they do. The best way for children to learn what someone does is to invite them in to talk to the
children.
Domain- Cognitive, language and social/emotional
Goals- The main purpose of this activity is for children to become familiar with what a nurse does for
work and the tools they use.
Objectives
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Children will learn about what a nurse does for work.
Children will learn what tools a nurse uses.
Materials
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Pediatric nurse
Nurse tools: syringe, tunicate, IV, band aids (brought by nurse)
Puppet
Set Up- This activity will take place during large group time. No set up required. Nurse will bring tools.
Role of adults- The teacher will control behavior while the nurse is talking and showing her tools.
Prerequisite skills- Children will need to listen when someone is talking and wait their turn to talk.
Adaptations
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Children who do not have the prerequisite skills for this activity will work on them during this
activity.
Children who know little about the objectives will get experience during this activity.
Children who have already met the primary objectives will get practice them during this activity
and model for their classmates.
Children will special needs will be accommodated to depending on their special need(s).
Introduce the Activity- This activity will be introduced during large group time, after recall time. The
teacher will tell the children that they have a special guest today; she will introduce the nurse and let
her set in the teacher chair.
Pre-assessment- I have observed some of the children playing with the doctor tools in the house area. I
haven’t heard them using much language to accompany their dramatic play.
Steps:
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Introduce the nurse to the class.
The nurse will take the teacher chair.
She will ask if anyone has ever been to the hospital before.
She will tell them that she helps sick or hurt kids feel better when they come to the hospital.
She will begin to show the children her tools, first a band aid which she will put on the star
student.
Next she will show the syringes. Letting each child squirt a bit of it.
Then she will show the tunicate and each child will get a chance to feel it tied on them (if they
would like).
Then she will show how she puts an IV in a puppet. Using the band aid, tunicate, and syringe.
The nurse will answer any other questions and discuss her job with the children.
Closing: Have the class thank her for coming in, accompanied by a round of applause.
Back-up Plans: If this activity fails I will explain to the job of a nurse to the students and show them tools
that a nurse can use.
Extension/Variation: Children can use the tools the nurse brought in while playing in the dramatic play
area with other doctor tools.
Evaluation: The next day during dramatic play children used the syringes and tunicates that Nurse
Brooke brought in on puppets, dolls, classmates and teachers. Children dressed as doctors also. I heard
children saying things such as, “This baby is sick, we need to make them better.” “Use the blue band on
her arm like this.” “I’m going to give you this medicine to make you not sick.”