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Growth and Development Visual July 1, 2016 Hannah Newmark California State University San Marcos
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Meet Arnold! He is an optimistic and athletic 9 year old boy in 4th grade at PS 118 in New York City. He lives with his paternal grandparents, Phil and Gertrude. His parents passed away when he was very young, but he is very close with his grandparents. They live in a 3 story boarding house called Sunset Arms that is occupied by 6 other tenants, all of whom have become an important part of Arnold’s life.
Grandpa Phil is Arnold’s happy, goofy, eccentric grandfather. He’s 81 years young and definitely does not act his age! He is a very healthy and active man – he loves to throw the baseball around and bike with Arnold. He is a WWII veteran and loves to pass on wisdom to anyone who will listen! Grandma Gertie is Arnold’s equally wacky and energetic grandmother. When she’s not dressing up like historical figures, she is at the karate studio practicing her black belt karate moves. She and Phil have been married since they were 21 years old and are as in love as ever.
Grandpa Phil
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Grandma Gertie
+ Arnold and Gerald get along with most of their 4th grade class and are often seen playing with Helga Pataki, Phoebe Heyerdahl, Harold Berman, Stinky Peterson, Sid Patterson and Lila Sawyer.
Arnold is an only child. He and his grandparents are Catholic, but are not strongly religious. He loves to listen to jazz music. He plays pick-up baseball and football and plays on his school’s basketball team! Arnold is a daydreamer who tries to see the best in everyone and is still hopelessly oblivious when it comes to girls.
Arnold is incredibly caring and very close to his friends, especially Gerald Johnson, who has been Arnold’s partner in crime since preschool.
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Arnold is known for his football shaped head. He has unruly blonde hair and usually prefers his normal uniform of teal sweater, sneakers, red flannel, blue jeans, and blue baseball cap.
+ The school age years are the last years that males and females are similar in size and body. At this time in a child’s life, muscle replaces fat and children gain 3-5 lb/year in addition to growing 1.5-2.5 inches/year. Visible sexual maturation is minimal in boys at this age although this is the age that prepubescence occurs. Permanent teeth erupt, the immune system improves, and the bones continue to ossify proportions (Ball, Bindler & Cowen).
Arnold is a 9 year old male who is not yet taller than his female classmates. Arnold has yet to show any visible signs of puberty, which is normal for boys his age. He only has a few baby teeth left, the rest of which have been replaced by permanent teeth.
+ At 9 years old, competitive and cooperative play becomes an important factor in school age children’s activities. Age appropriate activities include simple board/number games, hopscotch, jump rope, bike riding, model building, organized sports, and collecting items such as coins, stamps, or stuffed animals. Children at this age also engage in making crafts, solving jigsaw puzzles, and forming hobbies (Sommers et al., 2013)
Arnold is a natural athlete but excels in his favorites – baseball, football, and basketball. He enjoys being part of the team. These sports have helped Arnold develop fine and gross motor skills that surpass the expected norms for boys his age. He can easily ride a bike, write, throw and catch a ball, and jump rope. He also enjoys a little friendly competition with his friends and his Grandpa Phil!
+ Kohlberg’s Milestones During the later school years, Kohlberg states that children begin to judge the intentions of an action rather than just the consequences of the action. This opens up critical thinking and evaluation to more than just “right vs. wrong” and allows the child to develop the foundation of their moral code. Children begin to grasp the concept of treating others as they would like to be treated (Ball, Bindler, & Cowen, 2015). " Arnold is a very generous kid who always tries to do the right thing by everyone. He treats others how he wishes to be treated and is aware that sometimes there is more to a decision that just “right vs. wrong”.
Piaget’s Milestones School age children should be in the concrete operations stage. This stage is characterized by the transition from perceptual to conceptual thinking as the child masters the concept of conservation, learns how to tell time, classifies more complex information, is able to understand others’ perspectives, and begins to effectively solve problems (Ball, Bindler, & Cowen, 2015). " Arnold has an analog clock in his bedroom, which shows he has mastered how to tell time. He is a group leader and problem solver which places him right where he should be according to Piaget.
Erikson’s Stage of industry vs. inferiority Children achieve a sense of industry by developing skills and gaining knowledge that allows them to provide meaningful contributions to their communities. A sense of accomplishment is gained through the ability to cooperate and compete with one another. Children should be challenged with tasks that + need to be accomplished and then given the opportunity to critically think through them in order to accomplish the tasks in their own time (Ball, Bindler, & Cowen, 2015).
Arnold: Arnold has begun to take pride in his athletic abilities and excels as a team leader. He focuses on completing his homework before going out to play, even though he doesn’t always want to. He is always willing to lend a helping hand whenever his grandparents or neighbors need something.
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At this point in a child’s life, they should be eating adult portions of food.
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Nutritious, quality snacks are important.
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A healthy BMI is between the 5th percentile-85th percentile.
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Families should avoid using food as a reward for good behavior.
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Exercise is just as important as diet! Make sure to encourage physical activity.
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Frequent consumption of fast food and skipping meals should be discouraged.
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Arnold is 4’11 and 79 lbs, which places him in the 36th percentile for his age. This is a healthy BMI according to the CDC.
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Arnold leads a relatively active lifestyle due to his active involvement in sports. Not unlike many boys his age, his favorite food is pizza and he tends to forget his vegetables unless Grandma Gertie reminds him.
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Arnold eats a home cooked meal with his grandparents at least 5 nights a week, which generally consist of a protein (chicken or beef), potatoes or bread, and a green veggie. They also love to enjoy a slice of Grandma Gertie’s pie for dessert!
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Respect: Arnold has developed good manners and treats others the way he wants to be treated. Although he rarely return’s girls’ affections - mostly because he’s not aware of them - he treats them with kindness, even when Helga bullies him (her form of flirtation). Family Arnold’s parents did not return from a trip when he was very young, which led the rest of the family to assume they had not survived. Despite this loss, Arnold has been brought up in a close-knit family that includes his paternal grandparents and their neighbors. Friends It seems as though the majority of the 4th grade has been able to look past the football shaped head and see the kind and athletic boy within! Arnold and his best friend Gerald surround themselves with a large group of friends that all enjoy sports, ice cream, and exploring. School Regardless of Arnold’s love of sports and the outdoors, he tries to remain focused and dedicated to his school work. He competed in his school’s science fair and often performs his own experiments.
+ While Arnold’s diet isn’t
overwhelmed by processed foods and unhealthy snacks, he could benefit from a little variety. Fruits, vegetables, dairy, carbs, and proteins are necessary for a growing boy and repetitive dieting habits won’t get him the variety or quality he needs to get him through the rapid growth spurt that occurs with prepubescence. He should be referred to ChooseMyPlate.gov for some healthy tips that are easy to integrate into your routine for you and your family!
Arnold is about to enter puberty, which is full of changes, questions, and new curiosities. Even though Arnold is close with his Grandpa, he was raised without a father, which may make him feel uncomfortable with asking any qqestions. A kid-friendly website, such as kidshealth.org, would be a good resource for Arnold to look into with or without his Grandpa. This website could also help his Grandpa Phil stay up-to-date on facts and learn ways to approach this sometimes uncomfortable topic.
Arnold has a solid group of friends, but as children develop through their school age years, their body image solidifies and children care more about what others think of them. Arnold’s head is shaped a little differently than that of his friends, which could lead to name calling, bullying, and a disturbed body image for Arnold. StopBullying.gov may be a helpful website to explore if he experiences these problems.
It’s great that Arnold is such an active, natural athlete. However, some of his favorite sports involve a lot of potentially dangerous body contact and the teams tend to play these sports on very uneven ground. In order to provide a safer environment, Arnold and his friends should look into their local rec center or Boys and Girls Club to see if there is a court or field to play on that is better maintained and potentially chaperoned by an adult.
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References
[Arnold Standing]. (n.d). Retrieved June 20th, 2016, from http://www.polygon.com/2015/11/23/978 2844/hey-arnold-return-new-tv-movienickelodeon [Grandpa Phil and Grandma Gertie]. (n.d). Retrieved June 20th, 2016, http://giphy.com/search/ hey-arnold [Arnold New Edition Standing]. (n.d). Retrieved June 20th, 2016,https://thearoundtheway.com/ 2014/10/21/move-it-football-head-why-heyarnold-is-the-best-cartoon-for-chicagonatives/ [Arnold and Gerald]. (n.d). Retrieved June 20th, 2016, fromhttps://www.pinterest.com/pin/297730 225340834162/ [Arnold and Friends]. (n.d). Retrieved June 20th, 2016, from http://heyarnold.wikia.com/wiki/ Characters [Arnold Tire Swing]. (n.d). Retrieved June 20th, 2016, from http://www.mtv.com/news/2549400/ hey-arnold-cast-all-hotties/ [Arnold Baseball]. (n.d). Retrieved June 20th, 2016, from http://heyarnold.wikia.com/wiki/ Characters
+ References Cont. [Arnold and Helga Milkshake]. (n.d). Retrieved June 20th, 2016, from http://www.trustdusty .com/20 13/09/heyarnold-cartoon Arnold Looking at Baseball]. (n.d). Retrieved June 20th, 2016, http://heyarnold.wikia.com/wiki/Characters [Arnold and Gerald Thumb Wrestlel]. (n.d). Retrieved June 20th, 2016, from http://heyarnold.wikia.com/wiki/ Characters [Arnold Clock]. (n.d). Retrieved June 20th, 2016, from http://heyarnold.wikia.com/wiki/Characters [Arnold Eating]. (n.d). Retrieved June 20th, 2016, from http://heyarnold.wikia.com/wiki/Characters Ball, J.W., Bindler, R.C., & Cowen, K.J. (2015). Principles of pediatric nursing: Caring for children (6thed.). Hoboken, NJ: Pearson Education Inc. [BMI]. (n.d). Retrieved from June 19th, 2016, from http:// www.cdc.gov/healthyweight/assessing/bmi/ childrens_bmi/about_childrens_bmi.html Bright Futures. (2016). Retrieved June 25, 2016, from http://brightfutures.aap.org/Pages/default.aspx [Food Pyramid]. (n.d). Retrieved from June 19th, 2016, from http://www.newhealthadvisor.com/Food-Pyramidfor-Kids.html Sommer, S.. Johnson, J., Roberts, K., Redding, S., Churchill, L., Elkins, C., & Roland, P (2013). RN nursing care of children; review module (9.0th ed). Assessment Technologies Institute, LLC.