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Name: Jennifer Brewster

Date: May 7, 2013


Bluefield State College

EDUC 200 Child Adolescent Growth and Development


Case Study
I.

General Information
Name: Ben
Age: 7
Grade: 1st
Birth Date: July 20, 2005
Resides With: Mother, sister, and mothers boyfriend. Parents are
divorced he also stays with his father and his girlfriend often.
Siblings: Sister Age 11
Physical Description: Height: 4 7, Weight: 65 lbs. Hair Color: light
brown, Eyes Color: Blue

II.

Background (Interviewed Mother)


Birth Weight: 6 lbs. 7 oz.
Pregnancy and labor: Bens mother said that her pregnancy with Ben
was normal. She went into labor three weeks early with him. Ben was
rushed to another hospitals NICU because of fluid that had gathered in
his lungs. He was released from that hospital a week later.

Age for Development Firsts


Crawling: 8 Months

Sitting: 9 Months
Walking: 11 Months
Talking: He had delayed Speech due to Ankyloglossia (Tongue tied).
First real words after surgery to correct Ankylogossia at 13 months. Ben
still has to take speech in school. Ben is assessed every year for his
progress.
Toilet Training: 22 months

III.

Pre-School History (Interviewed

Mother )

Ben attended two years of Pre-K. His teachers worked extensively on his
speech in Pre-K. Ben could have went into kindergarten a year earlier
but he was receiving extra attention for his speech so he was given an
additional year in Pre-K at the decision of his parents and the school
officials.

IV.

School History (Interviewed Teacher Bens 1st grade teacher and Bens
mother)
Ben has had no issues so far in school. Bens teacher said that Ben is a
very good student. She rarely has any issues with him. If he starts to go
off task or starts to fidget in his seat she just calls on him with a question
or comment and he corrects his behavior. There have been a few times
that he has had to flip a card for behavior but most of the time he is good.
She says that she enjoys having him in her class. His teacher said that he
now works twice a month with a speech specialist in school. His speech
has improved so much this year that he can clearly be understood.

V.

Observations of Child

I have known Ben and his family for years so I got to observe Ben at his
mothers home and at school. After school Ben and his sister normally go to their
fathers home. The day I observed Ben at home it was a break in routine for Ben
and his sister because they didnt go to their dads after school. His mother says
that his sister takes a big role in helping him with his schoolwork. While Bens
sister is struggling in school, she is helping her brother with his homework in the
afternoons. There is no one to help Bens sister with her studies so she is at a
disadvantage. She has failed one grade the year her parents got a divorce and is in
danger of failing this year as well. Bens mother says that his father cant help Ben
or his sister with their school work because he doesnt understand it. She also said
that she has problems helping both of her children with their school work because
she hated school and hates doing their homework with them.
Ben and his sister dislike their mothers boyfriend and it is very obvious
when you observe them together. Bens mother said that the children cant stand
her boyfriend because he argues with Ben and his sister like he is their age. When
Ben is at home with his mother he leaves the room if his mothers boyfriend comes
in. I wondered when I was watching them if he had ever tried to discipline the
children. I was told by Bens mother that Ben is no longer allowed to play with his
gaming system because he accidentally erased a saved point in a game that his
mothers boyfriend was playing. I didnt question her about the issue because she
made it clear that she didnt want to discuss it further. Bens mother said that he
has been wanting to stay with his father more and more. He now stays with his
dad for longer periods of time after school. His mother says that she takes him to
school most days and doesnt pick him up from his fathers home until around 8:30
or 9:00 pm because the children dont want to be around her boyfriend.

School is a different story for Ben. When observing Ben he seemed more
comfortable in his class than when he was at home with his mother. Ben noticed
me when I went into the class. I sat in the back of the room so that I would not
make him nervous. He kept glancing over at me and he wasnt paying attention to
what the teacher was saying. His teacher noticed him starting to fidget and ask
him a question about the crossword puzzle they were learning about. He refocused
and answered her. He is seated in at a group of desks next to the teacher. I noticed
that Bens desk in school is neater than the other students desks. All of the other
students has extra pencils and papers on their desks. Ben only had his pencil and
workbook out. When it was time for reading he put his workbook away and
brought out his reading book, most of the other students just piled their reading
books on top of their workbooks and the teacher had to tell them to put the other
things away. Ben also helped the students around him find their place when they
were reading and on their crossword puzzles. There was a student who sat at the
next table who had out paper and was drawing on it. Ben raised his hand and told
the teacher about the boys behavior. The teacher responded and corrected the
other boy. The interaction between the two gave me the impression that Ben told
on other students often.
When the teacher would ask the class to answer her questions together as a whole
Ben didnt say a word. He would answer when he was called upon and even went
to the board to answer a question. I saw him talking to himself when he was
figuring out an answer on his paper he was using what Vygotsky called private
speech. He had never done a crossword puzzle before and he was talking out the
solution to the problem. He was called on for the answer and he got it correct.
I noticed that when he got fidgety his teacher would ask him a question or
make a comment to him. I wondered at first if it was because she knew that I was
there to observe Ben and she wanted to make sure that he was seen in a good light.
I found out later when I interviewed her that he was a good student, but if she
would have just let him fidget he would start to drift off and she would lose his
attention so she comments and asks him questions often. She said that he was very
hands on with his learning. Bens teacher says that he is a very good student and
she loves having him in her class.

VI.

Summary
Ben has overcome so much from his childhood. He still has problems
with his speech but the progress that he has made in the last year has
been astounding. He is doing well in school while his sister is struggling.
I think this is because his sister has taken a role of a parent for Ben. She
makes sure that Ben is taken care of and that he stays out of trouble at
home. Bens relationship with his mother seems to fall into the insecuredisorganized (or disoriented) attachment that is associated with parenting
that is negative, intrusive, or abusive. This was discussed in chapter 9 in
our text. Disorganized attachments are linked to parents who have
suffered childhood traumas, or have unresolved difficulties with their
own parents. (Madigan, Moran, & Penderson, 2006; Main & Hesse,
1990; Main & Solomon, 1990) Bens mother has experienced trauma in
her childhood and doesnt speak to one of her parents.
In my opinion Ben has separated his home and school life. They are
two different worlds for him. At school Ben seems to be on the same
educational level as his peers, he may even be slightly above them. He
gets along well with the other students in his class. Ben likes positive
attention and I think that the reason for this is because of his home life.
He takes pride in the things that he can control. He can control nothing at
home but he can control how things go for him in school. This would
make sense when compared to Eriksons theory of Eight Stages of
Psychosocial Development. Ben would fall into the Industry versus
Inferiority stage in which children gain confidence and a sense of
industry emerges when comparisons with peers are favorable. Ben takes
pride in being a good example of behavior. He seeks attention from his
teacher and wants to behave in a manner that makes him a positive
example. If he sees another student not following directions he lets the
teacher know right away. By tattling he is showing his teacher and peers
that he is being good and that other child is not being good. This
behavior would also fit in with Eriksons Industry versus inferiority stage
of development which occurs between the ages of 6-12 years old.
Ben solves problems for himself at school. He also helps other
student when he can. He assists the teacher by letting her know when

someone is misbehaving. Overall I hope that I have several students in


my classroom like Ben. He is a good student. Im not sure that he will be
able to continue to separate his home life from his school life but I hope
that he is one of the resilient children that succeed despite growing up
under negative conditions.

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