EDUC 121-Child and Adolescent Development

MyVirtualChild Report
Name________Maggie Vogt______

Date____4-23-15___________

MyVirtualChild Report 4 Adolescence (12-18 years)

1. Describe any physical or behavioral signs of incipient puberty, including changes in physical
appearance, behavior or emotions at ages 12 and 14 years.
(2 points)
At the start of age 12 Lilliana is starting to look more feminine and less tom-boyish. Towards the
end of age 13 she seems to look the same. However, since she turned 12 she now wears shorts to
her knees instead of pants, tennis shoes, and a sleeved shirt. When she turns 14 she proceeds to
look even more girly wearing an elbow length shirt, a knee high skirt, and small heels. Her
features also seem to be a bit softer in her face region. Lilliana also seems to have longer
smoother legs and bigger hips/thighs than ages 12 and 13. The only thing that changed in her
emotions was around age 12 almost 13 she would be happy sometimes when coming home from
school or be really upset and cranky and would only get more so if you asked her about it, with
which she would reply with a nothing. Also she got braces at about age 12 and seemed rather
excited about them. The transition to high school at age 14 has been somewhat stressful for
Lilliana. She sometimes gets sulky or whiny. Little insults from peers and small setbacks in her
classes seem to have an exaggerated effect on her. Lilliana also occasionally gets upset and
becomes cranky or gives me the silent treatment when I tell her about issues such as bedtime,
chores, curfew, clothing choices, music choices, etc., but otherwise we get along pretty well.
2. What activities and experiences at ages 12 and 14 has your teen been involved in that might
promote healthy behavioral practices, physical fitness and skill in sports? (2 points)
At age 12 I encouraged her to walk with me when she gets upset to get her mind off of things in
hope that she will eventually do it on her own. At age 14 Lilliana tried out for her high school
softball team but did not make it. This made her sad for about a week before she moved on. At
this age she has also been encouraged to eat healthy foods and take walks or exercise with me.
3. Describe one change in your childs thinking (e.g., changes in humor, abstract thinking, or
theory of mind) and discuss how this might be affecting his or her interactions with you and your
responses and his or her interactions with peers. Cite evidence from the course that these kinds of
changes occur in early adolescence.
(4 points)
One change in my childs thinking I believe was her theory of mind from being in a couple
Psychology courses in high school. She seems to be able to carry on lengthy conversations to do
with Psychology and opposing views as well as her own opinions on things like politics, religion,
and minor things to do with personality. I think this is affecting her interactions with me in a way

that she likes to discuss things with me and this helps both of us communicate very well. She
also made a joke about being like a therapist to her friends.
4. How important have your teens relationships with peers been to his/her social development,
emotional well-being and school achievement from 14-18 years of age? (2 points)
From ages 14 to 18 I think that Lillianas relationships with her peers helped her socially develop
only slightly because she has always been social and seems to like interacting with people. In
high school she was more of an outgoing popular person than previous though. I think it did help
her emotional well-being as she was nervous going into high school because she thought some of
her friends and her would grow apart or not continue to be friends. Her school achievement I do
not believe was a part of her social interactions with other students; instead I think that came
from her own doing and how hard she worked as well as put an effort into her school work,
chores, extracurricular activities, etc.
5. How has your teen adjusted at 14-18 years of age to typical adolescent issues such as risktaking, drugs, alcohol, and sexual interests, and how have you responded to your teen? (2 points)
Lilliana adjusted fairly nicely and quickly she never did drugs or alcohol. My significant other
and I both talked to Lilliana about not using drugs or alcohol and since she was worried to go to
school we told her as long as she steered clear of kids that got into trouble with drugs and alcohol
that she should be fine. However, I did notice her sexual interests start to develop and sat down
and had a talk with her when she was about 16. Also just in case she and her boyfriend were to
do anything I had a talk with her about safe sex, condoms, and birth control.
6. Use the 7th & 9th grade report cards and your own observations to summarize your childs
academic skills at this point. What specific activities might promote some of these skills? What
careers or courses of study might be best suited to your teens abilities and interests? (2 points)
Lilliana constantly contributes to cooperative group activities and respects the rights and
possessions of others, has consistently appropriate social interaction with peers, and even seems
to be a kind of peer leader. Also her word reading, spelling, and writing skills are strong. She has
received A's in 7th grade English, Social Studies, and Spanish. She got a B in both 7th grade Math
and 7th grade Science. Lilliana took an art class in 7th grade as an option, and got an A. The art
teacher wrote a note attached to the report card that said this was a real area of strength for
Lilliana. From my own observations I would have to say that her 7th grade year was very
successful and that she did increasingly well in areas that she had trouble with at earlier ages
such as Math and Science.
In the 9th grade Lilliana got good marks for citizenship from most of her teachers. She has
received A's in Spanish I, English Honors, and World Geography. The English and Spanish
teachers both commented "a pleasure to have in class." She received a B in Algebra I and a B in
Biology. She received A's in her fine arts classes this past year and a comment that her work was
very creative. She also received a B in music and didnt seem too interested in taking music
classes next year. From my own observations I would have to say that even though she needed a

tutor for a while she is doing a lot better in Math and Science courses still receiving Bs on her
report cards. Also I am rather impressed with her language skills as well as English and History. I
was never good at Math or learning Spanish myself, instead I was good at French, English,
History, and Science. In a way I think she is like me in the way she learns.

7. As the program ends, what pathways does your child appear to be on in terms of physical,
cognitive, social, emotional and moral development? Choose three aspects of your child to
discuss. To what extent could you have predicted these pathways based on what you knew of
your child's earlier development? (4 points)
Her cognitive development is beyond what I would have expected it to become due to myself.
My cognitive skills are well developed they just werent advanced as some of Lillianas were at
her age. Her physical development turned out just fine and she got less involved in sports in high
school and more with Art and Music courses. I think this is a result of her interests and when she
was a child she always enjoyed drawing more than music or playing sports. Her social
development took on a sort of rapid development growth because she has always been a social
butterfly since she was a little kid. Her pathway at the end of high school that she chose was artdesign at a college that she got accepted into of her choice, as she was accepted by several. I
would have to say that to an extent I knew and hoped that she would develop a liking or love for
art and books like I did but also that she would be able to choose a career with it. So I guess I
could say I am happy that my prediction became reality in a way. Also I knew something had to
come about because she was always interested in art, drawing, photography, etc.
8. Describe one specific way in which you think your parenting mattered for your childs
development, based on evidence from the course regarding the contributions of parents to child
development. Describe one specific way in which your child developed that appeared to be
influenced by factors outside your control, such as genes, random environmental events or the
general influence of contemporary middle-class American culture. (4 points)
I think my parenting mattered for my childs development because she would get praised when
she did things the right way or good things and punished with bad things. That is how I was
brought up and I think it is a great way to teach kids what they should and should not do. Also I
gave her certain responsibilities to upkeep and chores to do as my parents did me. However, for
factors outside of my control I would say she seemed to develop slimmer and taller than I did so
I would have to assume that is to do with genes as well as her hair and eyes are different than
mine. Given the fact that you do not know what the significant other looks like I think that
maybe she picked up the genes from him. Also one random environmental event that had a small
general influence on Lilliana was when she went to the Zoo when she was a little kid and saw all
of the different animals; this helped her develop new words, sounds, and speech in learning what
each animal was and the color they were as well as how to say them.