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PEPSI SCREENING

Brittney Cox

Professor Richardson

EDU 220

College of Southern Nevada

26 April 2022
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Biography
The individual being observed for this PEPSI Screening is a 6-year-old boy. The child

lives at home with both parents, and 4 other siblings, all sisters, ages 4, 10, 11, and 15 years of

age. Mother is a stay-at-home-mom while father is an active-duty member of the United States

Air Force. The family is part of the middle-class

The child was born in the state of Ohio where he lived for approximately 14 months while

separated from his father who was deployed to the middle east. The child was then reunited with

his father as the family then moved overseas to a military base in Okinawa, Japan where they

lived until 2019. At the age of 4, the child and his family then moved to Las Vegas, Nevada

where they now currently reside. While moving often implements changes in the lives of

children, this child remained mostly unaffected due to his early age at the time. The child had no

family or close friends located in Okinawa, Japan which affected the departure. The culture

shock of moving from a foreign country back to the United States was harder to cope with than

the leaving of any friends. The child struggled with the differences in cultures, such as food

options, the local people being able to now speak his language, and the safety differences of his

environment.

The child has lived in the same home since the move to Las Vegas in 2019. The child

attended a full-time state funded preschool for the 2020-2021 school year at a local YMCA, and

now attends Kindergarten at his zoned public school elementary.

The child’s biggest struggle comes with the often departure of his father. His father sporadically

goes on military-related missions lasting from 2-6 weeks in length. While the child struggles
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emotionally with the dad missing, he is often surrounded by extended family members who

come to help mom when dad departs.

The child participates in many activities and sports outside of school and has many close

friends in the neighborhood. Child is an active member of a club soccer team, baseball team and

has expressed interest in football. Child is often found spending free time outside with the

children of the neighborhood or swimming in the community pool. The child also has a great

relationship with parents as well as has regular visits from extended family.

Physical Development

The child being screened is six years-old and progressively growing. The child currently

stands 47 inches in height, and weights 52 pounds. The average height for a 6-year-old ranges

from 42-51 inches tall with an average weight of 36-60 pounds (Galic 2019). The child is a

healthy height and weight falling in the average ranges for both according to the Livestrong

chart. This may be in part due to the physical activity the child participates in daily allowing

them to maintain a healthy weight and be fit.

The child also wears glasses due to a minor case of nearsightedness. Nearsightedness,

also known as Myopia, is a vision problem in which it makes objects in the distance difficult to

see (Kids Health 2020). The child had been diagnosed with this approximately 4 months ago

after failing an eye exam at his annual yearly health check and being referred to an eye doctor.

The child was then given a mild prescription of –1.0 and recommended to wear the glasses in

class, or in other activities in which he must read from a distance. The glasses were not

recommended for reading, or computer usage as the child can read things that are close to him.

The child also suffers from a condition known as Acute Dermatitis, also known as

Eczema. Eczema is a term used for several types of skin swelling, many of which cause dry,
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itchy skin that develops rashes on the face, inner elbows, knees, and hands and feet (Medline

Plus 2016). The child often gets these rashes in his armpit, knees, and side specifically in the

winter months when the weather is drier. To combat this condition the child applies lotion daily

and has a special prescription cream in which he applies to outbreaks.

Overall, the child is in great physical health and has no physical developmental concerns.

The child is of healthy size, and surpasses all physical developmental milestones required by his

age group.

Emotional Development

The child being screened expresses a wide range of emotions in a normal range. He

experiences happiness, sadness, frustration resulting in an occasional tantrum, and expresses

himself on why he feels those ways when asked.

When arriving home from school the child is always asked how his day was or what he

did at school. The child is truthful and quick to respond. The child will tell his mother if his day

was bad and explain what happened that made him feel that way. He will also tell his mother

what made him happy, or sad as well.

At school his teacher says that the child is very well emotionally regulated and does not

show much frustration, however, he is very chatty with his particular group of friends,

sometimes at inappropriate times. When yelled at as a group the children will sometimes laugh

and joke as if the punishment were funny when together, but when punished and singled out

from his friends the child is tearful and embarrassed and will often remain quiet and distant.

According to J’Anne that constant chatter and even fidgeting in the 6th year is normal in children

(Ellsworth 1998).
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At home the child is incredibly competitive and easily frustrated with his siblings. While

they often have a loving bond and will tell each other affectionate words and spend quality time,

the snap of a finger can cause a rivalry. This may be due in part to the fact there are five children

inside this home, and rivalry is often caused due to competition for parental attention (Rykman

2022).

While undiagnosed by a professional the child appears to have some anxiety issues, with

multiple fears of things. For example, the child has a large fear of the dark and is often terrified

of sleeping in his own room alone, despite the numerous lights the parents have set up. The child

also often asks for reassurance in things that make him nervous that should not concern the

average 6-year-old. When in the car the child is often worried the car will run out of gas or break

down leaving them stranded. When asked mom states that has never happened to them, but the

child always checks the gas level of the car. According to The Mental Health Foundation these

are all signs of anxiety in school aged kids (The Mental Health Foundation 1997)

Philosophical Development

J’Anne Ellsworth states that during the 6th year children often begin lying frequently and

partaking in petty theft, and that is true with this child being screened. The child has begun

testing the limits within the home with what he can get away with and what he cannot, often

becoming embarrassed or expressing self-doubt when caught (Ellsworth 1998). The child has

been caught asking parents for money, and when told no he steals it when they are not looking.

Once caught the child often cries or says without the purchase of said item no one will like him,

or that he needs said item to fit in with his friends.

With the exception of the small petty theft occasions at home the child desires to be seen

as good, which is more related to that of the 5-year-old rather than that of the 6-year-old. The
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child has a constant desire to be the best helper for his parents and be the most praised out of the

siblings. According to Ellsworth, it is common for children in the 5th year to get pleasure from

being perceived as good or labeled as helpful (Ellsworth 1998).

The child is aware of the rules both inside the house and at school, and that by not

following them a person is to be faced with some sort of punishment. The child rarely gets in

trouble at school, but passionately believes there are classmates and students who regularly break

rules and that is “not fair.” Inside the home when a rule is broken the child shows remorse and

often apologizes without being asked. The parents handle punishment by talking to the child

about the rule broken, and discussing why that is not ok, and the reasoning behind why the rule

was broken. According to Kohlberg, children of this age should be in the first level of

preconventional morality, which is an accurate representation for this child. According to

Kohlberg's theory, children at this level often see rules as fixed and absolute, and that by obeying

the rules you will avoid punishment (Cherry 2021).

Social Development

Socially the child appears to be on track for the average 6-year-old. The child partakes in

multiple social situations both in and out of school and has developed numerous relationships

within his life.

In his home life the child has a healthy relationship with his parents, but often is found

tattling on his siblings. The child will often make attempts to boss around both his older and

younger siblings, and when the effort fails, he will cry and tattle to parents. According to J’Anne

Ellsworth this is a common social development for a 6-year-old. At home, the child is often

trying to make himself better or find diverse ways to stand out. For example, the child has

idealized large arm muscles, and is constantly asking what he can do to grow his own; often
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reflecting in the mirror and admiring his body. The child regardless of skill often lacks

confidence in himself. While on the sports field he will often get discouraged if another

teammate scores a goal before he did or has possession of the ball more times than he.

In school the child has a group of students that he refers to as his “best friends.” The group is

comprised of approximately 4 students, all boys, which is normal at this age according to the

textbook (page 85 of textbook). When conjugating with his group of friends the child often likes

to be bossy and lead the group in activities. Child then struggles when friends do not want to do

things his preferred way.

Outside of the relationships he has formed the child struggles when interacting socially

with strangers. When approached in a store, or out in public, the child tends to put his head down

and ignore any type of social interaction. Child also does not like to have center of attention

placed on him in public, often shutting down and covering face when a group of people are

looking at just him.

Despite the numerous relationships and friendships, the child has developed he is still

quite attached to his parents, struggling to be away from them for longer periods of time. Despite

many attempts at a sleepover with friends, he often prefers to come home instead as he misses

his parents. While children at the age of six are learning to separate and individualize themselves

from their parents, it is still common to have a form of separation anxiety (Wisner 2022).

Intellectual Development

In school the child being screened is thriving. He is often at the top of his class for many

achievements however the teacher has also expressed he is the only student in his class to have

completed a full preschool program, giving him an edge on his peers. In school the child excels
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and meets all standards in both math and reading and enjoys doing both. Child knows his

numbers 1-100 and knows all 26 letters of the alphabet as well as their sounds.

At home he often practices his list of sight words with his parents nightly as a type of

homework. When doing so he often finds it easiest to say his thinking process aloud when

attempting to grasp unfamiliar words and sounds. According to the textbook this is normal for an

early primary school aged child to do when learning. The child is very eager and excited to learn,

and practice reading new things, however, he often gets overwhelmed and sometimes tearful

when he is struggling more than achieving. J’Anne’s 6th year intellectual development states that

it is common for the thinking process to be very susceptible to “shutting down” if the child does

not feel successful (Ellsworth 1998).

Unlike average kindergarteners, the child is particularly good at mental math. Most

Kindergarten aged kids require their fingers to do simple addition and subtraction often not

grasping the mental aspect of addition and subtraction until second or third grade years (Morin).

However, the child being screened is exceptionally good with both addition and subtraction with

numbers 1 through 20 without the use of his fingers.

Graph
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Recommendations

Physically I recommend that the child continues to stay active throughout the day

maintaining the recommended 60 minutes a day, while also continuing a healthy diet low in

sugar and fats. The child should eat the recommended 2 servings of both fruit and vegetables a

day and limit his juice intake while focusing on water only. Both in school and at home the

recommendation is to continue practicing small hand eye coordination with activities involving

scissors or learning to tie his own shoes.

Emotionally I suggest the parents work to combat the child's anxiety in the best ways

possible. The parents should continue reasoning and finding ways to calm the child. If the

anxious tendencies continue the parents should consult a doctor or therapist in talking to the

child. Another recommendation would be for the parents to schedule one on one time with each
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and every child in the household (five). This would help prevent sibling rivalries when children

are often competing for attention.

Philosophically the parents need to work on setting boundaries and punish accordingly.

While petty theft and lying is deemed normal for this age, it should not go unrecognized, and the

child should be talked to when the event occurs. For example, when catching the child in cases

of petty theft Ellsworth suggests that recognition and restitution work best in changing the

behavior.

Socially the parents should continue to work on the child understanding the value of

taking turns and listening to what his friends have to say/their opinions. Parents should also

remind their child of the importance of continuing to his manners in times in which he does not.

Another recommendation I would make is to encourage the child so that responding to those in

public is not scary and is ok. I would also continue to give positive feedback to the child and

remind him that his body is nothing to be ashamed of, and that not everyone looks the same. The

child, while obsessed with having muscles, is still young, and knowing his body is good enough

the way it is, is essential for his self-esteem. I would also recommend the teacher help aid in his

social skills by encouraging him, but not overly pushing him to share information with his

classmates or present it to the group.

Intellectual the child is thriving. My recommendation would be to continue encouraging

to read, and that it is ok to struggle. Praise the child when his work and effort are good and

continue constant positive reinforcements. At this age Ellsworth says a child's thinking process is

susceptible to shutting down if they do not feel successful. So if the child is starting to feel

overwhelmed or showing signs of an emotional breakdown the best recommendation would be to

give the child a brain break, and time to cool down before starting again.
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Reference Page

Cherry, Kendra. “Kohlberg's Theory of Moral Development” Very Well Mind, 24 April 2021

https://www.verywellmind.com/kohlbergs-theory-of-moral-development-2795071

Accessed 27 April 2022.

Ellsworth, J’Anne. “PEPSI A Screening tool for understanding the whole child. 1998

https://jan.ucc.nau.edu/~jde7/ese504/class/pepsi/PEPSIObserv/year6.html Accessed 25

April 2022.

Galic, Bojana, “Average weight and height of a school-aged child” LIVESTRONG, 26 July 2019,

https://www.livestrong.com/article/276954-normal-height-weight-for-a-school-age-child/

Accessed 26 April 2022.

Kids Health “Nearsightedness” Kids Health, November 2020,

https://kidshealth.org/Nemours/en/parents/nearsightedness.html Accessed 26 April 2022.

Medline Plus. “Eczema” 15 August 2016, https://medlineplus.gov/eczema.html#:~:text=Eczema

%20is%20a%20term%20for,swell%20and%20itch%20even%20more. Accessed 25 April

2022.

Mental Health Foundation, “The Anxious Child” The Mental Health Foundation, 1997,

https://www.mentalhealth.org.uk/sites/default/files/anxious_child.pdf Accessed 27 April

2022.

Morin, Amanda. “Math Skills at Different Ages”, Understood, 2020,

https://www.understood.org/en/articles/math-skills-what-to-expect-at-different-ages?

_sp=92d4891a-e982-4806-adc9

172bc86931f2.1651167520339#Kindergartners_(age_5_years) Accessed 27 April 2022.

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Rykman, Sydney. “Sibling Rivalry” University of Michigan Health, February 2022,

https://www.mottchildren.org/posts/your-child/sibling-rivalry#:~:text=Sibling%20rivalry

%20is%20the%20jealousy,frustrating%20and%20stressful%20to%20parents. Accessed

27 April 2022.

Wisner, Wendy. “Developmental Milestones of a 6-year-old’ Very Well Family, 03 February

2022, https://www.verywellfamily.com/6-year-old-developmental-milestones-620703

Accessed 26 April 2022.