PEPSI Screening

Michael Granado
CSN
EDU 220
Dr. Hooks
 My PEPSI screening will be conducted on my oldest son. Aaron Michael Granado, is a

wonderful loving 6-year-old boy. He lives in Las Vegas, Nevada with his parents who are

divorced on a 50/50 custody schedule. He has a step-sister of the same age, a younger 2-year-old

brother and a new born baby sister. I would say he has a good relationship with his father and

step mother. He takes pride in himself for being a big brother, and is protective over his siblings.

Aaron is also a kindergartener at Iverson Elementary, which he really enjoys attending. Prior to

kindergarten, he was in Pre-school from age 3 to 5 until the time came to start school. The

majority of Aarons family also lives here in Las Vegas. From grandparents to Aunt and Uncles

and cousins on both sides.

As like any young child his age he likes watching T.V. He says his favorite shows are

Power Rangers, and watching YouTube kids. He, like his father loves Star Wars, has seen all the

movies and shows and is one thing he tells most everyone about. The term NERF or nothing has

a very significant meaning to Aaron. He has many NERF guns which he and his siblings play

with quite frequently. It is a common thing at his fathers house to see numerous foam bullets

strewn about. Aaron as energetic as he is also enjoys playing the Wii video gaming system. For a

6-year-old he is pretty adept at playing some of those games.

Aside from having a good family foundation, for at least half the time because he rarely

talks about his situation at his mothers house (not to say anything is wrong of course). I can say

he has had thus far in his limited amount of time here on earth a good childhood. During the

course of this paper I will be examining my sons physical, emotional, philosophical, social and

intellectual development. I will be supporting my examination topics with a graph and

recommendations for each area.

 Physical development can be defined as the process in which the body grows, change and

develop during the course of a lifetime. This is not limited to the process a body makes while

advancing via age, it can also mean a persons general fitness; muscular development and if an

individual is under or over weight. Aaron being 6 years old is finishing the process of being in

the preschool development going into the kindergarten stage. When observing Aaron, I noticed

him fingernail biting quite often and doing nervous twitches. Energy is often released in the

form of nervous habits - for example, pencil chewing, fingernail biting, and general fidgeting

(Snowman and McCown, pg.84) He would display these actions while seemingly not stressed,

most of the time while relaxing watching television.

Fine motor skills are something else I did some observation time on. Aaron though in

kindergarten receives homework. With that homework, he does such tasks as writing his name.

Writing numbers and some short stories. All of which he does with pencil. Large-muscle

control is still superior to fine coordination. Many children, especially boys, have difficulty

manipulating a pencil. (Snowman and McCown, pg. 84) Aaron has a lot of difficulty writing

legibly. He knows how each letter and number should look but lacks the patience to really make

his writing legible. Unlike his step-sister who has very good writing and is of the same age

Aaron has a lot of ground to make up in this area. The National Association for the Education of

Young Children curriculum guidelines specify that children learn through opportunities for

exploration, experimentation, and manipulation in play. (1990)

I have the privilege to take Aaron to school in the morning and in doing so he has some

extra time to play on the playground. I observed his play and found that as time progressed he

attempted to do the monkey bars. After a few days of only being able to go to the first rung, he
was able to progress to do multiple rungs of the bars. After trial and learning that swinging his

body would propel him was he then finding success. Thus, improving his motor skills.

I as previously stated I only get my sons half of the time due to divorce. While taking

notes on the emotion aspect of this assignment I knew I would have a challenge. Children are

becoming sensitive to the feelings of others. Unfortunately, this permits them to hurt others

deeply by attacking a sensitive spot without realizing it. (Snowman and McCown, pg. 87) This

is like the text when it says its unfortunate when this happens. When Aaron has to do a chore, or

pick up he can sometimes get emotional to the point where he cries and begs to go back to his

moms. I know he loves being with my wife and I, but feels the only way to get out of doing work

is by going to his moms. With everything that he does if he does not get it on the first try he

tends to get upset about the task. He does not like to fail at given assignments. Students are

sensitive to criticism and ridicule and may have difficulty adjusting to failure. Young children

need frequent praise and recognition. (Snowman and McCown, pg. 86) I was finding myself

after noticing this trend having to reassure and console him. Telling him its ok, we cant do

everything right on the first try. The essence of trial and tribulation did not have a tangible

meaning to him.

On the other side of the spectrum is when he is able to do something after failing a few

times he has shown to express gratitude and enjoyment. A sense of self accomplishment can be

seen on his face. Gains self-esteem from feeling capable and demonstrating new skills (e.g.,

says, "I know how to read this!"). Is increasingly aware of his or her own characteristics and

skills. (PBS Parents) Though his frustration with certain tasks takes over for him when he

expresses that happiness when he finally does it done. There is no better feeling as a dad to see.

Like all things, we have to take the good with the bad, Aaron still needs to learn this. It is still a
work in progress. I see him being able to master this area as time passes and he learns more

about the phrase of practice makes perfect.

I had the hardest time trying to distinguish Aarons philosophical development. As its not

something I was accustomed to really looking for in my child. I came across a study done that

measured a childs philosophical development that correlated to a parent/teacher conference we

had. In the meeting, Aarons teacher expressed a significant change in Aarons willingness to wait

his turn and raise his hand when knowing an answer to a question. The children's progress was

observed in how they adjusted to the rules of the discussion such as raising a hand when they

wanted to make a contribution, sitting still, listening to other children, waiting their turn and

concentrating. (Ingibjorg Sigurborsdottir) This was extremely fascinating to learn that just the

act of raising ones hand and waiting ones turn was associated with the philosophical aspect of

the PEPSI screening.

Language is an essential part of growth and considered a portion of philosophical

development. Since Aaron has acquired more understanding and use of the English language he

is able to properly express himself more. Amanda Morin from understood.org describes that a

milestone in this area for a child of Aarons age should, In kindergarten, most kids understand

and can use thousands of words, usually in sentences five to eight words long. Many 5-year-olds

have the language development needed to tell stories, jokes and riddles; may understand simple

puns. Aaron likes repeating jokes he hears on his YouTube Kids channel, or saying knock

knock jokes that doesnt make any sense to anyone but him.

Cheating usually increases since child "has" to win. (JAnne Ellsworth) Ms. Ellsworth

places this statement under the philosophical portion of her PEPSI screening. When playing
games with Aaron be it outside play or board games, I would notice not so much the cheating

aspect but more or less a skewing of the rules. He does this in order to change the outcome in his

favor. An example is when we would play NERF guns and if hit by a dart he would say it didnt

hit him or that shot doesnt really count because it was in his leg etc. Now when he would play

with his sister on the Wii or any other game he would be fine and play or participate until the

game would go in the others favor. He wouldnt say he quit but would give excuses such as Im

bored with this now I want to play a new game. I couple this with the statement about not

winning and also the fact that he doesnt want to lose to his sister, who happens to be a girl.

Socially is an area where Aaron does not have that many challenges with. He has many

friends in class, and friends on his football team. He is able to interact with children his age and

older. And tries to fit in conversations with adults by adding what he thinks is related based off

the information he has gathered. Again, while observing him during the morning drop off at his

school, I noticed he would interact with his male classmates over the female classmates. There

was even a noticeable reluctance to talk to the opposite sex. He would immediately acknowledge

the boys with hellos and I would have to say to him to say hi back to the girls. Preschool and

kindergarten children show definite preferences for gender of play peers. (Snowman and

McCown, pg.79)

At home Aaron has begun to remind his sister and little brother of the rules of the

house or tell them to keep on task while cleaning. He attempts to act as the authority figure

when an adult is not present. They start understanding more complicated things like right and

wrong. Additionally, Follow the rules most of the time; may criticize kids who dont follow

the rules. (Amanda Morin) He has to be reminded that he needs to focus on his own tasks and

let mommy and daddy help the others keep on task. Another noticeable social aspect is play with
his sister and gender based play. Awareness of gender roles and gender typing is evident.

(Snowman and McCown, pg.79) When the play consists of make believe and playing house or

other imaginative games that have known characters such as Sailor Moon. Aaron would always

play the male based role. For house he would always be the daddy and have a job and pay for

things while his sister would have to be mommy and cook. I believe this is from an outside

source as in my household both my wife and I cook, clean do laundry etc. When they have,

character based play, again like Sailor Moon he is always the male character, when his sister

states that he should be a female character he says I cant be that person because I am a boy.

Intellectually is where Aaron shines the best. He has gotten accolades from his teacher

for being ahead in his reading, writing and math skills. Aaron is in this area not the norm when it

comes to thinking. Most children his age are impulsive and less reflective. Reflective students,

in contrast, prefer to spend more time collecting information (which means searching ones

memory as well as external sources) and analyzing its relevance to the solution before offering a

response (Morgan, 1997). (Snowman and McCown, pg. 131) When given a problem I

continually noticed that he wouldnt rush to an answer and would take a few moments before

giving his response. I asked him why it taken him a moment and he said for one case that he

knew the answer and remembered it from a science show.

Aaron being ahead of his peer group in the given lesson in school better learns by using

the mastery learning technique. is an approach to teaching and learning that assumes that most

students can master the curriculum if the following conditions are established: that students (1)

have sufficient aptitude to learn a particular task, (2) have sufficient ability to understand

instruction, (3) are willing to persevere until they attain a certain level of mastery, (4) are

allowed whatever time is necessary to attain master, and (5) are provided with good quality
instruction. (Snowman and McCown, pg. 175) Aaron does not perform well in cooperative

learning groups not because of lack of peer relationships, but rather that the majority of his

classmates are behind him in knowledge. He is currently reading at a first-grade level, has

mastered sight words going into the required third grade 100 sight words, and I have also been

told he is currently showing signs of understanding second grade math concepts.

I did also notice that Aaron when left alone talked to himself. This mostly occurred while

taking a shower and he thought no one was around to hear him. Talking aloud to oneself

reaches a peak between the ages of six and seven and then rapidly declines. (Snowman and

McCown, pg. 87) He would speak to himself about what he was doing, for instance, Ok now

Im going to wash my hair, thats done now I am going to stand here for a bit or when hes

playing video games alone, oh common man why is this happening!. Though when alone and

speaking to himself he would always tell me what had happened, when he was talking to himself.
 PEPSI
120

100

80

60

40

20

0
Baseline 6 yr old Physical Emotional Philosophical Social Intellectual

PEPSI Linear (PEPSI)

The graph is a representation of where I believe Aaron lies. His physical score is higher

from the base line of an average of 50 due to his high activity. Playing sports and high motor

skills.

Emotionally he is about what I would feel is average, he displays many characteristics of

a what a 6-year-old should be displaying here.

Philosophically he displays some but not all. He doesnt steal, knows the difference

between right and wrong. And displays a sense of sadness when he is told he did wrong.

Socially he scored the lowest. He does not display much of a normal child his age should

be displaying. He acts more his senior in terms of getting along with others. He consistently

displays proper manners, and is extremely empathetic.

Intellectually he scored the highest. Due to his method of learning and how much he does

know for only being in kindergarten. He is above his peers.

 While finishing up this screening I found that Aaron for the most part is above the

suggested ideals of a normal child his age. For the physical portion, I recommend that he

continues to engage in sports. This will continue to develop his motor skills and learn more about

his body. Developing muscles and learning about new ones in the process. Emotionally he needs

to continue to grow, and hopefully come to terms with his parents separation. Continue love and

support from both parties can help facilitate a transition for a healthy life. And that the two

households are different. This will most likely be a continual process until he gets of a more

mature age.

Philosophically I recommend that he continue to learn about right and wrong while also

learning more about language. Broadening his sense of self can also be beneficial to Aaron.

Socially though in my opinion scored low doesnt necessarily a bad thing. The his more mature

in most ways than not. He should be praised for his advancement and continue to be an example

to others in terms of making friends and leadership. He would be best placed as a student tutor

and peer.

Intellectually though highest scoring is my biggest concern. He knows that he is smart

and knows that he knows the information being presented. I feel that he should be constantly

challenged to do a higher level of learning until he caps out for higher instruction. I feel his

intelligence if not challenged will enable him to be complacent and not try to his upmost ability.

The term of I know this already why do I need to do this will be used more frequently than it

already is. Perhaps a discussion for the GATE program at school, giving him higher learning

material or again becoming a peer tutor to others when he finishes assignments would best suit

him. This would allow him to make us of class time while not being a distraction to others.
Aaron is an amazing child and son. I was happy to do this PEPSI on him. Not only did I learn a

lot about my child but helped me to become a better father.

 Works Cited

Ellsworth, J. (n.d.). Retrieved May 05, 2017, from

http://jan.ucc.nau.edu/~jde7/ese504/class/pepsi/PEPSIObserv/year6.html

Morin, A. (n.d.). Developmental Milestones for Typical Kindergartners. Retrieved May 03,

2017, from https://www.understood.org/en/learning-attention-issues/signs-

symptoms/developmental-milestones/developmental-milestones-for-typical-

kindergarteners

(n.d.). Retrieved May 03, 2017, from

http://www.pbs.org/parents/childdevelopmenttracker/five/socialandemotionalgrowth.html

National Association for the Education of Young Children. (1990). Guidelines for appropriate

curriculum content and assessment in programs serving children ages 3 through 8.

Washington, D C.: Author.

Sigurborsdottir, I. (1998). Philosophy with children in foldaborg: Development project in

foldaborg, a preschool in reykjavik for children from 1-6 years. International Journal of

Early Childhood, 30(1), 14-16. Retrieved from

http://ezproxy.library.csn.edu/login?url=http://search.proquest.com/docview/194773276?

accountid=27953

Snowman, J., & McCown, R. R. (2015). Psychology applied to teaching (14th ed.). Australia:

Cengage Learning.