Biosocial Development of 4-5 Year Olds - Essay Example

Biosocial Development of 4-5 Year Olds Summary I conducted my study of 4-5 year olds’ biosocial development by observing a five year old boy in a naturalistic classroom situation. I then interviewed his teacher and spoke briefly with the child. I conducted my observations during “arts and crafts” and “free time.” I chose these times because I had hypothesized that children usually draw houses comprised of simple shapes, trees, the sun, friends, family and pets, and that children no longer enjoy building and taking apart items, such as puzzles, because they have become jaded by video games and television. I avoided observational bias by not speaking with the child before or during my observations and restricting myself to simple questions when speaking with him. By avoiding contact until after the observation periods, I avoided any attempts on my part to influence the outcome of this study by trying to manipulate the child into behaving and creating to support my opinions. I didn’t choose the subject beforehand so I knew nothing about him until I spoke with his teacher after my final observation was completed. I chose the child that occupied the most central seat in the class, but I could have used any number of other criteria to choose a subject. I came up with these criteria before entering the class for the first time. I had no idea whether my subject would be male or female, what their age would be, or what their other physical and mental characteristics would be. Upon completion of the study, I found that my hypotheses were incorrect. Though psychosocial, cognitive and biosocial developments are interrelated, I focused on the biosocial domain while conducting and documenting this study. Average Biosocial Development in 4-5 Year Olds The average 4-5 year old, regardless of sex or race, is active and consumes and uses about 1,700 calories per day, and sleeps ten to eleven hours at night. They have gained greater control of their gross motor skills which enables them to run, skip, hop, climb, and jump with fewer accidents and more self-confidence. They are beginning to refine their fine motor skills and eye-hand coordination, enabling them to draw simple, recognizable shapes and print a few capital letters. They have almost fully established the preference for right- or left-handedness. They are also beginning to lose their baby teeth and may grow a few inches taller during these years. Liam I decide to attend a local kindergarten class to observe 5-year olds in action. I wanted to verify or debunk my previously mentioned hypotheses regarding the subjects drawn by children and if they still built and took apart items. I decided to focus my observations on the most centrally located student in the classroom: Liam (a pseudonym). I later interviewed him and his teacher to get a better picture of a typical 5-year old. Liam is taller than most of his classmates, with brown hair and hazel eyes, and a constantly disheveled appearance. I found observing him in a class of thirty other youngsters proved to be a challenge because he was always moving about. While the other students were going to their “cubbies” to get their paint shirts he was busy alternating between socializing and knocking his drawing paper onto the floor with his gestures while talking animatedly with other students. When he finally put his paint shirt on, after much struggling, it became apparent that it was the cleanest item of his attire. He’d tripped over his feet while running on the playground at recess. He immediately knocked his container of paint off the table and onto the floor, and himself, with his broad gesticulations with the paint brush. His attempts to clean his mess created further mess, and while the rest of the class was quietly painting, his teacher helped him clean up, though he was more of a mess than the floor had been. When he finally set to painting, his picture was not of a house or any of the other subjects I’d imagined. His art consisted of broad brushstrokes of deep, vibrant, rich colors: purples, cyan, and maroon. He had destroyed my first preconceived notion. I later asked him what he had painted and his reply was, “I painted how I felt.” After the student cleaned off their tables it was “free time”. For half an hour the student were allowed free range of the classroom and its toys, books, and games. Once again, Liam surprised me. While most of the children were playing with toys, such as cars and dolls, he was building something. He’d grabbed a bucket of Legos, carefully piled them on his table, and was busy creating something out of the multi-colored blocks. His broad movements were traded in for much finer, more precise movements. He spent most of the next twenty-five minutes building, removing blocks, and rebuilding until he felt his masterwork was completed. He proudly showed his teacher the finished product, a race car. Liam’s Relevant Information After class I asked his teacher about his clumsiness and gregariousness. She informed me that, after much discussion, she, the school psychiatrist, and his mother were in agreement that he exhibited all of the behaviors of ADHD. At the time of my observations it was as yet untreated or confirmed by a doctors’ diagnosis. She told me that I was observing him on a good day. Usually he spends most of his time sitting alongside the teacher’s desk, frustrated by the fact that he is unable to sit still or write his alphabet as well as some of the others in class. He is frequently disruptive in class, and has not made any close friends in the class over the course of the school term. Liam’s Future In the next few years he can be expected to gain further gross and fine motor control, which will be noticeable as he improves in sports and develops finer, more consistent penmanship and drawing abilities. His eye-hand coordination will also improve. This will be especially obvious in his increasing athletic abilities, such as throwing the ball to people instead of at them, with greater accuracy. His body’s nutritional and caloric needs will increase and the amount of sleep he gets each night will decrease by a couple of hours. He will also exhibit more physical control when interacting with others. His movements will be more directed and less haphazard. In Liam’s case, due to the possible ADHD symptoms, these changes may be slower to occur and partially inhibited by the disorder. Children with learning disabilities often have difficulties employing their fine motor skills adeptly, resulting in a less-than-desired outcome when writing or drawing, then becoming frustrated or embarrassed, which often leads to their refusal to acquire necessary skills, such as penmanship. His grades may be below the norm, further degrading his self-esteem, and he may not be picked first for teams, because of his slowed development. This will be especially harmful, because at this age children define themselves through comparison with their peers. Conclusions Though Liam’s choice of a subject for his painting did not support my first hypothesis, his choice of playtime activities did support my second hypothesis. Unfortunately, many of the drawings done by the other students did support my original hypothesis, and most of the other children’s choices of activities supported my second hypothesis. I did not factor in the possibility of a Picasso wanna-be, who uses freedom of expression and movement in his art, to be attending kindergarten around the corner. My choice of subjects for my observations proved to be atypical in behavior and development. But, my hypotheses were generalizations, which the bulk of his fellow classmates supported and validated through their actions, and I did not factor in free will or personal choice when making these hypotheses. The results of my observations were as atypical as the subject used to prove their validity. I would have achieved more accurate results if I had chosen a larger group of subjects to observe, and averaged the results, instead of restricting myself to a single subject meant to represent a larger group. Read More