The growth and development of Mabel Pines
Stephanie Parker California State University, San Marcos
Meet mabel 1
Mabel Pines is a fun-loving and energetic goofball who is on vacation with her twin brother in Gravity Falls, Oregon. Although on vacation and only 12-years-old she works part time in her uncle's’ store, The Mystery Shack. In her free time away from the store she likes to knit, watch Duck-tective on television, bedazzle random objects such as her face (as you can see above), and go on adventures with her brother and friends. She is not particularly athletic and does not engage in sports. Mabel is of average weight and height for her age. She has long brown straight hair, brown eyes, and wears braces. She almost exclusively wears sweaters that she knits herself and of which she has many. She changes her sweaters depending on her mood or what adventure she is going to go on. Mabel also uses her baggy sweaters to hide items for her adventures such as a grappling hook her uncle gave her.
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Born: August 31, 1999 Age: 12 Height: 58 inches Weight: 93 lbs Lives: Gravity Falls, Oregon School: Eggbert Elementary Grade: 7th
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Family & friends Family Mabel lives with her Uncle Stan and brother in a two-story home that also doubles as her uncle’s business the Mystery Shack. She is incredibly close to both her brother and uncle, although they both tend to get her into dangerous situations. Her twin brother Dipper is the person she spends most of her time with and the person to whom she cares the most about. She views Dipper as part of her team and he helps her accomplish what she doesn’t feel she can do on her own. During the summer she is being raised by her Uncle Stan who she trusts and loves completely. She enjoys spending time with him and they share the same sense of humor. Uncle Stan is also always there to protect her in dangerous situations, although he has a permissive or Laissez-Faire parenting style. He once stated “This sounds like a thing a responsible parent wouldn’t want you doing. Good thing I’m an uncle.” While in his home Mabel is raised areligious.
Friends Mabel has an extensive network of friends as she is social and tends to talk to everyone. At work she interacts with Soos, a twenty something year old man whom she views as part of the family, and Wendy, a 17 year old she asks romantic advice from. She also has two friends who are her same age and as weird and eclectic as her: Grenda and Candy. Together they do normal girl things like talk about boys and make-up and attend concerts and slumber parties together. Mabel also has a pet pig named Waddles whom she takes everywhere, and who is both her soulmate and best friend via personal report.
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Developmental stage: School age (6-12) growth and development Due to Mabel’s age of 12, she is in the school age category for growth and development. Children in this stage typically gain 4.5 to 6.5 pounds a year and grow approximately 2 inches annually (Perry, Hockenberry, Lowdermilk, & Wilson, 2014). The average height and weight for a girl at 12 is 59 inches and 93 lbs. At 58 inches and 93 lbs Mabel is at a normal height and weight for her age, with an appropriate BMI of 20.8 which falls in the 78th percentile (WHO, 2017). 4
Mabel also has had all of her permanent teeth erupt which is a characteristic of school age children (Perry et al, 2014). Although she has her permanent teeth she shows no other signs of pubescent development.
Fine and gross motor skills Fine motor skills
Gross Motor skills
School-age children demonstrate increasing fine motor abilities and make great strides in writing and drawing. They also are able to master handicrafts such as needlework, woodworking, and beadwork (Perry et al, 2014). Mabel loves arts n’ crafts and is constantly doing some form of crafting which is congruent with her age range. She knits, draws, and scrapbooks constantly. She even made her uncle a wax figurine of himself. 5
Changes in body proportions make school-aged children more graceful and steadier on their feet. They are able to climb, ride a bicycle, dance, skate, skip and jump during this age. They also have a gradual increase in dexterity that makes them more limber. Mabel is constantly going on adventures with her brother in which she must climb, jump, and ride a bike away from danger. She is on par with others in her age group for gross motor skills. [3]
Piaget: concrete operational thought During this cognitive development stage, children develop classification skills, move from perceptual to conceptual thinking, finalize the concept of conservation, and are able to see the perspectives of others (Perry et al, 2014). One of the characteristics of this stage is also that children begin to like collecting things. Mabel is clearly in this stage as she is occupied with collecting stickers, sweaters, and pictures. She also classifies her friends by who is her best and second-best friend. Mabel additionally is able to see from another’s points of view, which helps to guide her actions when she is confronted with tough situations such as one of her friends never having a father.
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Erikson: industry vs. inferiority At 12-years-old Mabel is in the Industry vs. Inferiority stage in which a child focuses on achievement. In this stage a child carries through with tasks and activities that they can bring to completion. At this age they need and want real achievement. Feelings of inadequacy may occur if too much is expected or if they cannot measure up to standards set (Perry et al, 2014). Mabel appears to be developing a sense of industry as she is both encouraged for her initiatives and confident in several of her abilities. During the course of her summer stay in Gravity Falls she ran a successful program to get her uncle elected Mayor in their small town. At the completion of the race, when her uncle and others told her that they never would have won without her, she realized that she was very good at politics and that this skill might help her in the future. She also worked with her peers several times in order to solve the mysteries of Gravity Falls and this helped her to develop a sense of pride in her accomplishments and abilities.
Kohlberg: conventional morality During this age older school children are able to judge an action by its intentions rather than the consequences (Perry et al, 2014). They also judge the morality of an action depending on peer approval. They are often good in order to be seen as pleasant by other people. Mabel at this time is struggling with what it means to be a good person. She has a reputation for being a good person and when this is compromised via a rumor she goes around the town performing good deeds to be once again seen as a good girl. The approval of her peers means enough to her for her to do this. At the time Mabel is also able to judge other’s actions by whether or not the intention is [4] morally good, as she makes a big decision to back her Uncle Stan even though the consequences could be dangerous.
nutrition Dietary Recommendations for children School age children of Mabel’s age need approximately 1,500-2,200 calories a day (U.S. Department of Health & Human Services, 2015) . Of these calories children should consume adequate amounts of dairy, meat, fruits, vegetables, and grain. Children should be taught to avoid or limit calories that come from fast food and foods that do not promote growth such as sugars, starches, and excess fats (Perry et al, 2014). This is essential to ensure the proper growth and development of the child. The American Heart Association (2014) currently recommends the following for children:
Mabel’s diet Mabel’s diet currently consists of almost entirely junk food. While she active and at a normal BMI, she is not consuming the macronutrients she needs in order to grow and develop in an optimal way. Mabel rarely eats fruits, vegetables, or meat and instead eats a diet of highly processed grains with some dairy. Her diet is rich in sugars, starches, and excess fats. Mabel and her caregiver Stan are in need of education of what Mabel should be eating in order for a balanced diet. Mabel is not entirely to blame for her diet as she eats what is available in her home which is plentiful amounts of candy, chips, soda, and food that she gets out of the vending machine in their living room. 7
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Orem Feelings Met: Mabel verbalizes her feelings when she is angry or frustrated to her twin brother or to one of her close friends.
Family & friends Met: Mabel spends a majority of her time with her uncle and brother who support and protect her. She also has several close friends who she can confide in and whom are always there to comfort her.
Sex & Sexuality Unmet: She is attracted to several boys but is unsure how to talk to them. She is described by several individuals as boy crazy. When she was asked out by one boy whom she didn’t like she was unsure about how to communicate with him. She needs further education on how to deal with these issues.
Drug/Alcohol use Met: She does not use drugs or alcohol. She knows that they are not good for her health and no one around her exposes her to these substances.
Body image Met: Mabel’s view of her body is extremely positive. She states that she is adorable and her actions reflect this. She also has no tattoos or piercings, although she does like to use stickers as pretend tattoos.
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Qsen Quality and Safety Education for Nurses (QSEN) was developed to prepare nurses with the skills, knowledge, and attitudes needed to improve the quality and safety of their practice (QSEN Institute, 2014). This is essential as it helps to minimize the risk of harm to the patients through both system effectiveness and individual performance. In the case of Mabel, the QSEN [6] core competency of safety will help the care of Mabel go more smoothly and reduce the risk of accidents.
Family & Patient Teaching Nutrition Even though Mabel has a normal BMI of 20.8, her diet consists of foods that do not promote growth such as sugars, starches, and excess fats, which is common for her age range (Perry et al, 2014). It is important to educate parents as children usually eat what their family members eat and parents may not be aware of the value of a nutritious diet (Perry et al, 2014). Interventions: ● Teach Mabel and her Uncle Stan the elements of a wholesome diet ● Instruct Mabel on how to use MYPlate, which will show her how many cups of each food group she will need in order to have a balanced diet with ample macronutrients. ● Refer to dietician if necessary
________________________________________________________ Physical development Mabel is experiencing late appearance of secondary sexual characteristics. This is occurring in a time when preadolescents do not want to be different and it may make her uncomfortable with her body. Interventions: ● Encourage Mabel to verbalize her feelings and concerns regarding her view of self in relation to her peers ● Promote positive body image expectations ● Give Mabel information and written materials about specific developmental milestones that apply to her ● Assist Mabel to examine perceptions of self as reflected in negative “self-talk,” and turn these into positive statements of self-worth.
________________________________________________________ Social development As this age Mabel’s peers form a more important function and she will join them for steady participation in her peer group, which may expose her to peer pressure and bullying. Interventions: ● Encourage family interaction and involvement ● Educate Mabel on effective counterarguments to deal with peer pressure ● Teach Uncle Stan the signs that may indicate that Mabel is being bullied such as nonspecific ailments and complaints, poor school performance, and refusing to go to school
________________________________________________________ Safety teaching As Mabel is becoming more independent, she is constantly going on adventures and being confronted by monsters. Because of this she is at an increased risk for bodily damage injury. The most effective means of prevention is education of the child and family regarding the hazards of risk taking (Perry et al, 2014) Interventions: ● Help provide facilities for supervised activities to take children out of dangerous areas ● Encourage playing in safe places. ● Teach child to say “no” when confronted by uncomfortable situations.
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References American Heart Association. (2014). Dietary Recommendations for Healthy Children. http://www.heart.org/HEARTORG/HealthyLiving/Dietary-Recommendations-for-Hea lthy-Children_UCM_303886_Article.jsp#.WVXadBjMzq Perry, S. E., Hockenberry, M. J., Lowdermilk, D. L., & Wilson, D. (2014). Maternal child nursing care (5th ed.). St. Louis, MO: Elsevier Mosby. QSEN Institute. (2014). QSEN competencies. http://qsen.org/competencies/ U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. (2015). Dietary guidelines for americans. https://health.gov/dietaryguidelines/2015/ WHO. (2017). Height for age 5-19 years. http://www.who.int/growthref/who2007_height_for_age/en/
Images: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9.
http://gravityfalls.wikia.com/wiki/File:S1e4_mabel_bedazzled_face.png http://gravityfalls.wikia.com/wiki/File:S1e1_mabel_sticking_out_tongue.pn g http://gravityfalls.wikia.com/wiki/File:S1e2_family_photo_5.png https://www.cdc.gov/growthcharts/data/set1clinical/cj41c022.pdf http://gravityfalls.wikia.com/wiki/Mabel_Pines?file=Mabel_Signature.png http://gravityfalls.wikia.com/wiki/File:Short8_price_stickers_page.png http://gravityfalls.wikia.com/wiki/File:S1e13_But_they_taste_just_like_chip s.png http://gravityfalls.wikia.com/wiki/File:S1e5_mabel_chugging_smile_dip.pn g https://www.bustle.com/articles/94928-12-reasons-gravity-falls-mabel-pi nes-should-be-your-life-hero
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