Child Developmental Issues

Observation of a Child Aged 7
I. Introduction
The child observed is a boy aged 7 named Nolan. His native language is English. He has one half-brother (aged 6 months) and two step-brothers (also 7) who are twins. The boy is Caucasian and lives in an urban environment in a middle-class neighborhood.
The child was observed on November 15th, 2007, from 12 pm to 6 pm while at an entertainment facility wherein there are a number of activities for children, such as ziplining, wall climbing, trampolines, dodge ball, and ice skating. The child was with his father, who watches the child on the weekends since the father and the mother are separated and the mother is now married to another man. I decided to observe this particular child because I am friends with the father and he did not mind if I conduct this observation. The first half of the observation thus took place at the entertainment facility and the remainder took place at the home of the father.
IIa. Observation
Nolan’s physical presence is robust. He jumps on the trampoline for an hour.
His disposition is upbeat. He connects well with his father and enjoys playing with the other children. Nolan is somewhat awkward with adults, however. He does not look at them when he speaks to them and shuffles about as though he were uncomfortable whenever he is saying something to them.
Nolan plays dodgeball for an hour and then stops to consume a hotdog before running off to wall climb. He is restless and will not sit still for long. He does not listen well to his father who asks him to slow down with his food. His father does not take a stern approach with Nolan.
Nolan ice skates for two hours. Nolan tells his father that he is lacing his skates in a new way taught him by his step-father who used to figure skate. Nolan loves to skate.
In the car ride home Nolan falls asleep.
At home, Nolan wakes and plays video games for two hours while eating pizza. His father lets Nolan play for longer than they agreed.
At this point, Nolan’s disposition is no longer upbeat. He shows some petulance. His mode of thinking is automatic but he displays a remarkable degree of learning because the video game he is playing is very complex and requires skill, attention, and understanding. His father wants to avoid a meltdown so does not push Nolan too hard and leaves him to his video games.
IIb. Documentation
The first artifact is something that Nolan said that was unprompted. He asked if I was married and said that it’s okay if people don’t get married. “You don’t have to get married. You don’t have to be married to have a family.” Since this information was unsolicited, I assumed it was something his father or mother had told him and it was now a sentiment that he was repeating to me. It is a significant artifact because it helps to explain Nolan’s background, his biological parents having never married and now being separated, while his mother has married a divorced man who already had two children from a previous marriage.
The second artifact is something that Nolan said in his art class at school that he repeated. He called his teacher a “big butt” and said, “She has big butt because that’s what she has. I got in trouble—for saying she has a big butt. Even though it’s true.” This artifact is significant because it illustrates Nolan’s difficulties in school. He started school a year early (in a Montessori program) and was obliged to repeat a year because the school did not want him to advance ahead because of his age. His father feels he is bored in school now and so acts up out of boredom.
The third artifact is something that Nolan said at the entertainment complex. He said, “This is my new watch,” and proudly showed it off. “It can tell time and has a calculator. It’s really cool.” This artifact is significant because it shows that Nolan is still very much a child impressed by toys and gadgets. He says what is on his mind without being prompted and wants to share with others what makes him happy, which is a common characteristic among children. It shows his disposition is overall positive and social though his orientation is still towards the self.
III. Reflection/Analysis
Nolan’s strength are physical as well as intellectual and mechanical. He demonstrated strong physical characteristics at play as well as strong mental and mechanical skills while playing video games. He could focus, concentrate, compete and enjoy all of the games. He had no difficulty socializing, though his exchanges with adults indicate that he may lack some formative experience in conforming to norms that are expected of him in certain places (such as school).
What I learned about Nolan is that he enjoys having fun in social environments, loves to ice skate, and is a physical learner. As NAEYC (n.d.) shows, physical learners are ones who engage with an environment in a physical manner. The information I collected through observing and documenting Nolan’s activities informed me about his growth, development and presence in the world in mostly favorable ways. The story of his problems at school and his restlessness as well as his lack of discipline in his father’s care suggests that the child is experiencing crossed signals from his time with his mother and his step-family and his time with his father. Collins and Russell (1991) point out that both mother and father can have a different impact on a child’s emotional development and well-being, because gender differences impart psychological and emotional elements that a developing child at this age requires for the maturation process. Eccles (1999) also states that the main factors in influencing a child’s self-confidence and ability to be engaged in activities at this stage are: cognition, expansion of the child’s world which includes interaction with adults and social activity. These factors can leave impressions on the child and affect the child’s psychological, social and emotional development.
IV. Implications for Practice & Conclusion
The strategies that I would recommend to support Nolan’s development include more engagement from the father in terms of instilling behavioral expectations. The father is indulgent and does not insist on patterns of behavior but rather allows Nolan to set his own. This could be why Nolan is not conforming to the rules of his art class.
The feedback that I would provide to the parents to further enhance the child’s development are for more guided nurturing with clear behavioral goals. Nolan’s interaction with adults is stilted whereas it should be more interesting for him at this age (Eccles, 1999; Berk, 2014). As a teacher, I would use this information to develop a curriculum that focuses on helping students engage with adults by showing the adults how to do something that the child takes an interest in—such as playing a video game—and in turn teaching the child how the appropriate way to engage with an adult is to better assist the child in his development. This would also instill a greater sense of confidence in the child.
References
Berk, L. (2014). Development through the Lifespan. NY: Pearson.
Collins, W., Russell, G. (1991). Mother-child and father-child relationships in middle
childhood and adolescence: a developmental analysis. Developmental Review, 11: 99-136.
Eccles, J. (1999). The development of children ages 6 to 14. The Future of Children,
9(2).
NAEYC. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://oldweb.naeyc.org/about/positions/dap3.asp