PEPSI Results

PEPSI Screening Results Report

Susan A. Villatoro Noriega

College of Southern Nevada

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Biography

The subject is a seven-year-old girl. She is a Caucasian middle-class girl in the first grade

at a public school. She turned seven at the end of September this year. I asked questions

regarding her development to her mother. She lives with her two parents and her younger brother

who is three years old. Her mother is a civil engineer, and her father works in a government

establishment.

Physical Development

The girl is growing and losing baby fat, leading her to have lankier limbs than before. She

is getting better with her coordination and balance resulting in more complex movements such as

moving around while dancing. She is now able to ride a two-wheeled bicycle without training

wheels, which were needed previously. She can perform movements that are done while standing

in place, for example, twisting and spinning. She shows better skill at performing simple chores

like making her own bed and sweeping floors. She has had a growth spurt recently and got taller

(Morin, 2019. Sect. 2). She has yet to lose any baby teeth, which according to Healthwise (2020),

she should lose about four in the next year (Sect. 2). Her small muscle control is advancing and

this piques the child's energy and enthusiasm. Touching, and feeling as well as other kinesthetic

activities become exciting and a love for coloring and drawing emerges as well as for games like

marbles and doing puzzles (Ellsworth, 1999. Age Chart). She is also becoming better at sports

because of her increased mobility and balance.

Emotional Development
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The 7-year-old can regulate her emotions a bit better now as well as has gained more

emotional intelligence. She can now handle last minute changes and transitions better than before

and not be as overwhelmed. Her attention has shifted more on to people and things outside her

family and home environment. This means that she wonders about things in the outside world

like school and other places. She is also able to describe the causes and consequences of her

emotions, like saying “I felt … because I …” She has not yet started to use self-calming

strategies such as “repeating phrases or taking deep breaths, when feeling distressed” (Morin,

2019. Sect. 3). She has started to feel self-conscious and to seek validation from others now. She

is also starting to become more sensitive to the feelings of others and become more empathetic.

Lastly, she has overcome some fears that she had when she was younger, but she can still be

afraid of the unknown. (Healthwise, 2020. Sect. 4) Her "Bad days" usually come along with not

following directions, having to be returned to reality, or to the tasks she is currently working on,

as well as getting more easily distracted. Fear has become more prevalent in her life and there

has been “increases in night terrors, sleep walking and talking, fears of monster talk” (Ellsworth,

1999. Age Chart). She has talked about occasions where after hearing a scary story, she has

trouble sleeping at night and or experiences nightmares so she tends to avoid talking about

monsters.

Philosophical Development

The girl is developing an internal sense of right and wrong, meaning she is beginning to

determine what she believes to be right or wrong before others tell her. She also holds an

absolute/unchanging idea of what is or not appropriate behavior. She believes that rules must

remain rigid and not be changed. She, however, does not determine her guilt based on the

amount of damage done. Her moral wrongness originates from doing what is “forbidden.” In
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PEPSI Results

other words, she thinks that doing something wrong is only doing something she is not supposed

to. She feels that peer aggression and transgression of rules are especially offensive and will tell

on her peers to validate herself and because of the view that rules are "sacred.” She believes that

intention is important, and the thought getting caught or not getting caught does not become

more important than anything else to her. Self-justification, explaining herself and her actions to

others, has become relatively common with her. When asked if the 7-year-old “believes in

obedience to rules as a requirement to those in authority - not questionable, but avoidable

through not getting caught” (Ellsworth, 1999. Age Chart), Audrey’s mother answered no,

meaning that she still obeys rules when others are not watching or can catch her going against

the rules.

Social Development

The girl now develops friendships, mostly with other children of the same gender. She

plays in larger groups sometimes but also needs time to herself (Healthwise, 2020. Sect. 4) She is

beginning to care more about the opinions and thoughts of other people rather than just her own.

She continues to develop empathy and a strong sense of what is moral and fair. She naturally has

become more attached to other adults besides her parents such as her family friends, teachers,

etc. She likes to share her knowledge with others, including adults, and talks about what she

learned at school. She shows the ability to understand why people are acting a certain way as

well as their feelings. She treats her peers with respect when they are playing games together

(Morin, 2019. Sect. 4). She joins playground games with her classmates. She continues to value

her teachers as she is able to succeed at school. Recently, having a best friend has become an

important aspect of her life. Moodiness and sadness have become common parts of her life. Her
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PEPSI Results

spare time has started to be spent thinking or doing things alone, like reading, watching TV, etc.

(Ellsworth, 1999. Age Chart)

Intellectual Development

She asks questions and searches for answers about the things she experiences and the

people she meets. She also feels proud when she shares what she knows. She loves teaching and

helping her younger brother and other children as she shows off her new knowledge and skills.

Her Math and reading skills are steadily increasing, as well as her capacity to recognize words

and do simple word problems. She has begun to do mental math, specifically adding and

subtracting. She has not begun working on fractions yet but has begun to learn about shapes in

structures in the world like buildings and houses. Her vocabulary and reading skills are

developing and growing more. Her knowledge of sight words has broadened and she can learn

up to thousand at this age according to Morin (2019) She has also begun to explore and read

more complex chapter books. She is able to read with more “fluency (speed, accuracy, and

expressiveness)” and have more comprehensive discussions about books. She is also able to

write more intricate, articulate, and interesting essays and stories. She can name the elements of a

story (plot, characters, setting, etc.) in books and or shows. She is also now solving word

problems in math. Lastly, she uses “increasingly complex and creative strategies to solve

problems” (Sect. 5). Meaning that she is beginning to think creatively and producing her own

solutions to problems she faces.

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Graph

Recommendations

The girl has only recently turned seven so she has a lot of time and room to grow and

reach the milestones so I am not worried about her development. Even though she is still in the

younger end of the spectrum, she is already reaching the baseline and even exceeding it. I would

recommend her parents to keep encouraging her to be physically active so that she continues to

improve and strengthen her skills and large as well as small muscles. Also, ensure good nutrition

and sleep habits so that she can continue to be healthy and grow stronger. Regarding her

emotional development, I would recommend introducing her to self-regulating behaviors like the
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ones mentioned (taking deep breaths and repeating phrases) and to prioritize an environment

where she can calm down when experiencing strong emotions containing various sensory

experiences and books. As well as validating and naming her emotions. For philosophical

development I would recommend to keep being examples of moral behaviors and keeping

sensible rules. Also, just keep observing her behaviors when in a situation where a rule is not

followed and to work through it first before punishing so that she does not turn to lying as to not

get caught and to not ask questions that set her up to lie such as “Did you do/not do this?” Even

though one has witnessed the event. Next, Social development I recommend for her teachers to

keep actively encouraging relationships between all students. Parents to make opportunities for

her to see her friends in different environments other than the classroom. Lastly, I would suggest

to keep positively reinforcing her achievements and to build her confidence up so that after this

stage she will not keep feeling self-conscious and will not need so much validation from others.

Lastly, I would recommend to keep her enthusiasm about school subjects going and showing fun

ways to use her skills. Praise her achievements and keep providing educational content at home

and encourage her creativity and ways to solve problems.

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References

Ellsworth, J. (1999). Seventh Year. ESE504 Methods and Materials in Special Education.

https://jan.ucc.nau.edu/~jde7/ese504/class/pepsi/PEPSIObserv/year7.html

Morin, A. (2019, November 6). 7-Year-Old Child Development Milestones.

VeryWellFamily. https://www.verywellfamily.com/7-year-old-developmental-milestones-

620704

Healthwise. (2020, May 27). Milestones for 7-Year-Old. C.S Motts Children’s Hospital.

https://www.mottchildren.org/health-library/ue5719