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PEPSI Screening
Virginia Murillo
Hearing about this project seemed very interesting to me and challenging. How can I
observe someone I know, and tell their parents whom I also know, what their child is missing or
what they need to work on? I chose to observe my 9-year-old godson named Jason born October
27, 2009 from Hispanic background. He is Mexican and Salvadorian. Jason is in the 3rd grade
His mother Jackie which is one of my best friends gave birth to him at 20 years old. His
father would occasionally pick him up on the weekends. Jason has a younger brother named
Tommy who is 3 years old and a step brother named Jonathan who is also 9 years old. The boys
get along even though there are a few bickers here and there like normal siblings. Tommy’s
father Mario treats Jason as his own son and Jason even calls him dad.
When Jason was small Jackie needed a lot of help. She was a single parent and had to work
full time to provide for herself and her child. I would help as much as I can by babysitting Jason
in order for her to work and at times, so she can have a night out. From the time Jason was 6
months old to about 3 years old he spent every day with me and we enjoyed every minute of it.
Even though he liked being with me he would be upset and cry every time his mother would
drop him off. He just wanted to be with his mom all the time. When my friend Jackie got in a
serious relationship with her now boyfriend Mario, everything started changing. She got a new
job offer that payed her more money and she didn’t have to work as much. She had more time to
spend with Jason and received more help at home from her boyfriend, so I didn’t see Jason on
Now that Jason is in school and lives with his parents in California we do not see each
other as often but I still bring him with me every summer for at least a week. Unfortunately,
about 3 years ago when Jason was about 6 years old, his biological father passed away. Jason
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still has a relationship with his paternal grandfather and uncles but is closer to his maternal
family.
Jason has always been underweight. As a child you had to make sure he finished his food
or else he would not eat and play with his toys all day. Now that he is older he likes to eat. I was
somewhat surprised when we went to McDonald’s restaurant and asked for 2 sandwiches. Even
though it is very good that he is eating, he mainly like unhealthy foods. He does not like
vegetables or lean proteins. He likes fast food and foods that are high in carbs and sugars.
Recently he has gained a lot of weight. He is not excessively overweight but compared to how he
was he has put on some weight. According to an article is SF GATE “Children who consumed
more fattening foods while eating fast food were also likely, in general, to eat more unhealthy
He has never really been athletic or in sports. He likes to go out and kick a ball or swing a
baseball bat, but he hasn’t been on a team or doesn’t go outside to play very often. Jason lives in
an apartment complex with no front yard, back yard, or playground. That might be one of many
reasons why he is inactive. He usually just plays with his toys, watches movies, plays with his
tablet or plays video games all day. “The average 8- to 12-year-old now plays 13 hours of video
games per week, while the average 13- to 18-year-old plays 14 hours of video games per week”
(Metrics 2.0, 2004). This is accurate with Jason for playing video games, however he will spend
One thing Jason is really concerned about is his physical appearance. When he comes to
visit me in Vegas for the summer he makes sure he gets in the pool or goes out until later in the
afternoon, so he doesn’t get “darker”. When I asked his why is he so concerned with his skin
color? he replied, “Because people don’t like dark people”. His birthday was just about a month
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ago and for his birthday present he wanted shoes that Jordan’s brand name. “Our peers contribute
to our sense of belonging and our feelings of self worth” (Chirban, 2018). I see this behavior
with Jason. Now that he is in school he wants to be up to date with his fashion to fit in with
classmates.
According to J’anne Ellsworth “At nine years old a child feels and expresses a sense of
personal dignity and self-responsibility”. Jason is responsible and independent when it comes to
his schooling. He makes sure he sets his alarm early for school. He gets up, brushes his teeth,
eats cereal, and then wakes his mom up to take him to school. He emphasizes on not being late
or absent. He worries about the consequences of being absent and does not want his grade to be
affected.
Even though Jason is very responsible in school he is not as productive at home. He is not
too responsible with eating healthy, doing chores, or picking up for himself. When his parents
ask him to wash his dish or make his bed he gets a temper and fusses. “According to research by
Sandra Hofferth, children between six and twelve years of age spend an average of just under
three hours per week on housework” (Kenneddy-Moore, 2018). That is consistent with Jason.
He does not spend more than 30 minutes a day doing chores. Getting him to eat healthy is
another struggle. Since his parents are always on the go, they are used to picking up fast food on
daily basis. This affects Jason’s desire for nutritious food and will affect his health greatly.
Jason has a younger brother named Tommy which he lives with. And Jason does not like
having to be a role model for Tommy. Tommy will copy everything Jason does and at times
Jason gets in trouble for not doing the right thing. This affects Jason’s sense of independency
and he can’t do everything he wants. According to curiosity “In a 2004 study, Richard Rende, a
professor of psychiatry at Brown University, helped find evidence supporting the idea that
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siblings may be the single most important influence on children”. This is true in Jason’s case, If
Jason is using his tablet and Tommy sees him he must share with Tommy. Tommy is 3 years old
and careless he has dropped the tablet and broke it numerous times. I understand Jason’s
In school Jason does not have many friends. He knows right from wrong, and when another
student does something that is wrong, Jason is quick to tell the teacher. “Children may also tattle
because they want to get on a parent or teacher’s good side and because they think there may be
a reward for their not doing that bad thing their sibling or classmate is doing” (Lee, 2018). The
children in his school call him tattle teller and try to stay away from him. Jason doesn’t care, he
proudly says “yeah I am tattle teller because you guys do bad stuff”. Him tattle telling makes him
Jason is manipulative at home with Tommy. If Tommy does something bad, Jason is quick
to tell mom and dad. But if Jason does something bad, he convinces Tommy not to tell. Tommy
always falls for Jason’s kind words and empty promises, so he never tells on his older brother.
Although an article in the Huffington post states “Youngest children are manipulative, social,
outgoing, great at sales. They got away with murder as kids and know how to get around
people,”. That has not been the case for Jason and Tommy. Tommy is a sweet young boy that
does anything his parents and his brother would tell him to do. Jason knows he has control over
him and makes him do things to cover his mistakes. Jason knows he is doing wrong by
manipulating his brother. When I asked him “why do you do that? That is not nice, and you
shouldn’t be that way” he replied, “I know, I feel bad sometimes, but I don’t want to get in
trouble”.
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Jason is very intelligent, but like many children he does not like homework. He gets home
from school and wants to play video games, even after his parents tell him over and over to do
his homework. “It’s the child who can’t really rebel, so the only way to rebel is to delay doing
what the parent is asking them to do” (Weinstein, 2018). I can definitely see this happening with
Jason. For the most part Jason is well behaved. But I do see him procrastinating for his
convenience.
Jason’s is not so successful in his social life as in other areas. Classmates stay away from
him because he tattles excessively. I think that him not having very many friends is one reason
why he wants to be up to date with his gadgets and clothing. According to Risas.Org “children
are also maturing socially and will now likely begin to express a desire for clothing that conveys
social status”. As I mentioned earlier, Jason wants to be up to date, and wants the best clothing.
He asks for Levys, Jordans, Converse and other brands that are considered cool. He wants to fit
in with students in other ways since his tattle telling pushes his classmates away.
A way for Jason to fit in is playing video games. According to Psychology Today “we
strive for relatedness — the need to feel like we matter to others and that others matter to us”.
This is his escape to have many friends and fit in. In the virtual world other kids do not know
who you are and regardless of your physical appearance, they choose to play and interact with
you. Jason is part of a group in a game called Fortnite where they meet online at a certain time to
In the virtual world he has no rules. Kids always have someone telling them to be quiet, sit
down, finish your homework ect. But online you manage your own actions. “In a game, players
have the autonomy to call the shots, do what they want, and experiment with creative strategies
to solve problems” (Eyal, 2018). When he plays online with his online friends they each have
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tasks. I hear them say things like “watch my back while I build this house” or “they are coming
from the right side, get them”. They get to build their own house and protect their fort.
Jason is very intelligent, and I would consider him pretty up to date with his intellectual
development. He is above average in school and is a very responsible kid. He does everything he
can first before asking an adult for help. He wakes up and choses his clothes for school and gets
ready on his own. Even though he would rather not do homework, he does not ask for help
unless he is really struggling. He enjoys solving problems, doing puzzles, lego’s, science
experiments and school projects. According to PBS Kids “Eight-year-olds demonstrate more
highly-developed thinking skills as well as the ability to solve problems with creative strategies”.
Even though Jason is 9 he has been showing these skills from the time he was about 6 years old.
He is also aware of time and distance. When he was smaller he would always tell me that if
I wanted to be in California in the morning I would have to leave Las Vegas at night time. When
he would come to Las Vegas it would be at night and as he would fall asleep on the way, so he
would wake up the next morning in Las Vegas. Now if I tell him that I am leaving from Vegas at
8 a.m. he does the math and says that I should be there at 1p.m. Now he comprehends time and
distance. According to CROC Children website he should be able to tell time and distance
Jason is very considerate. He understands that he has a younger brother and a step brother
that he must share with. Even though he does not always agree with sharing, he is very
understanding and compromises. If he chooses pancakes for breakfast, his step brother will
choose pizza for lunch and his youngest brother choose tacos for dinner. They will all have to be
okay with it and compromise because they each had they option. He is also aware that there are
people that are less fortunate than him. According to an article in Phycology today “The problem
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lies with us, their parents and teachers who should be challenging them to think about those less
fortunate than themselves”. Every year for the holidays his family participates in social charity
events. They give out food for the less fortunate and donate toys to children in need.
100%
90%
80%
70%
60%
50%
40%
30%
20%
10%
0%
Physical Emotional Philosophical Social Intellectual
Jason Average
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There is no right or wrong way to raise a child. I believe that every parent does the best
they can with the resources that they have. Some recommendations I will give to his physical
development would be to get Jason more active. I will recommend that he gets into a sports team
to get his body moving, and more social interactions. I will also recommend for his parents to
incorporate home cooking into his daily life. I understand that life gets crazy and it is easier to
For emotional development I would recommend that his parents get more involved with his
daily routine. Even though he is a very independent child it would be nice for is mother, or
brother, to be up with him and maybe eat breakfast together before school. I would also
recommend that he gets a journal of some sort to let out his emotions on paper. Being the oldest
Jason being a tattle teller is not bad per se, but I would recommend that they teach him to
keep certain things to himself. As he gets older consequences are probably going to get worst. I
think his philosophical development is a little different than other children due to the hardships
he has been through. I also recommend for his parents to be a little more observant when he is
with his brother. Even though I am sure they are aware of Jason manipulating Tommy they
His social development needs the most help in my opinion. It is crucial for someone to do
well socially because it is a part of our everyday lives. He needs to learn to trust people and have
people trust him. Once again, I think sports is a great way to go. The teammates trust each other
and must work together to win. Jason does not get out much and spends most of his time with his
little brother and online friends. He needs real face to face interactions with more kids his age.
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His intellectual development is his strongest point. He is an academic over achiever and is
in touch with humanity. He is very understanding, humble, and kind. Even though he does like to
wear brand name clothes and have cool gadgets, he knows that he only gets rewarded when he
does well academically. The recommendation I would give is to not give that much importance
to materialistic things.
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References
2.0, M. (2018). Metrics 2.0: Video Game Addiction: 81% of American Youth Play; 8.5%
http://www.metrics2.com/blog/2007/04/04/video_game_addiction_81_of_american_youth_play_
85.html.
Chirban, J. (2018). Appearance and Peer Pressure. [online] Psychology Today. Available
at: https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/age-un-innocence/201403/appearance-and-peer-
pressure.
Curiosity.com. (2018). Older Siblings Might Be More Influential to a Child Than Parents.
child-than-parents-curiosity/.
Lee, K. (2018). How to Teach Kids the Difference Between Tattling and Telling. [online]
can-do-about-it-620114.
Gregoire, C. (2018). How Birth Order Affects Your Personality. [online] HuffPost UK.
personality_n_7206252.html.
at: https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/growing-friendships/201303/chores-and-children .
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Weinstein, A. (2018). Why Kids Procrastinate and How to Help | Education.com. [online]
https://www.education.com/magazine/article/Why_Kids_Procrastinate/%20/.
Eyal, N. (2018). Kids’ Video Game Obsession Isn’t Really About Video Games. [online]
you/201808/kids-video-game-obsession-isn-t-really-about-video-games.
Oswalt Morelli, A. (2018). Rhode Island Student Assistance Services. [online] Risas.org.
Pbs.org. (2018). Your Eight Year Old . Child Development Tracker . Child Development .
https://www.pbs.org/parents/childdevelopmenttracker/eight/index.html.
Children's, C. (2018). Child Development: Ages and Stages - CHOC Children's. [online]
services/ages-stages/ .
angels/201012/whose-fault-is-it-kids-are-so-self-centered.