An Example of Narrative Observation on a Child: Child Development

Physical Development of Ryan: An Example of Narrative Observation on a Child

For this assignment, I observed what appeared to be a 6-year-old boy named Ryan. I witnessed this child at prospect park in Brooklyn. The area in which I observed the child allows bike-like gear, animals, and BBQ. The park was swarming with both dogs and children. Prospect Park has a nice play arena for the children which includes swings, slides, and monkey bars.

I first observed Ryan’s physical development, and fine and gross motor skills.

He looked roughly 3 feet tall and a good 35 pounds. I noticed Ryan looked a little shorter than most kids in his age range playing in the park. The boy seemed to be having a hard time dominating the monkey bars. He would wrap his hand around the first bar and the second, but when Ryan would come around the third monkey bar, his little hand would slip, and he would fall into his father’s arms. Eventually, Ryan gave up the monkey bars and refused to give them another try. Ryan and his father then began to play catch. The boy and his father exchanged a few throws, but Ryan was unable to throw the ball either fair or accurately. By the age of 6, children should be able to climb things, throw a ball and catch a ball. I was unable to discover many fine motor skills from Ryan, though he did happen to find a stick, hold it and pretend to write on the concrete as if it were a pencil. Ryan’s spatial orientation ability appeared to be fine, as he could maintain his body posture while running, walking, and skipping through the park.

Intellectual Development Insights

I then observed Ryan’s intellectual development, which includes his language, perception, and memory. When observing Ryan, I realized he is one garrulous child. I overheard the boy having a conversation with his father. From what I heard, Ryan had a satisfactory vocabulary. He was explaining to his father that he wanted the shoes that all his friends had. His father came about saying, ‘ok, son, when we go to the mall.’ to which Ryan replied, ‘You said that last time Daddy.’ It seemed that Ryan had a solid memory. Ryan was able to express all of his needs and wants due to his excellent linguistic abilities. I didn’t happen to witness any mathematical or scientific, or historical thinking from Ryan in the 30 minutes I spent observing him.

Ryan’s Emotional Development Observations

After that, I observed Ryan’s emotional development. Ryan appeared to be having a hard time hearing ‘no.’ not unlike most children in his age group. When Ryan’s father would explain to him not to run, push kids, or bother the girls in the park, Ryan would rebel and do it anyway. About 10 minutes in, I noticed Ryan felt very angry. Later I realized he was unhappy because his father did not take him to buy some game he had been asking for. Ryan appeared to have a negative attitude when he was not satisfied. The boy was a very curious child; he would pick objects up from the ground, turn to his father and ask, ‘What’s this?’. After his father would answer his question, he would again reply with ‘why’?

Social Interactions and Leadership: A Glimpse into Ryan’s Social Skills

Finally, I observed Ryan’s social skills. Being that he was only about six years old, he had admirable social skills. Ryan loved to interact with other kids at prospect park. From what I saw, he was trying to build relationships with the other children. Toward the end of my stay, I noticed Ryan interacting with a group of boys. In the group, Ryan showed the other boys what he wanted them to do. Seeing Ryan’s competency to manage in a group showed me that he retained strong leadership skills. When Ryan was playing with other boys his age, he was the happiest that I saw him during my 30-minute observation.

References:

1. Child Development Institute. (2023). Developmental Milestones for Your Child’s First 5 Years. Retrieved from: https://childdevelopmentinfo.com/ages-stages/child-development/developmental-milestones-for-your-childs-first-five-years/

2. Smith, L. (Ed.). (2021).** Child Development and Theories.** Verywell Family. Retrieved from: https://www.verywellfamily.com/child-development-4014667

3. Vasquez, L. (2019). The Role of Play in Children’s Development: A Review of the Evidence. Zero to Three. Retrieved from: https://www.zerotothree.org/resources/322-the-role-of-play-in-children-s-development-a-review-of-the-evidence

4. New York City Department of Parks & Recreation. (2023). Prospect Park. Retrieved from: https://www.nycgovparks.org/parks/prospect-park

5. Houser, R., & Griffin, C. (2015). Child Development: Theory and Practice 0-11. Pearson.

6. Guralnick, M. J. (2011). Why Early Intervention Works: A Systems Perspective. Infants & Young Children, 24(1), 6-28.

7. Berk, L. E. (2017). Child Development. Pearson.

8. Meece, J. L. (2016). Child and Adolescent Development for Educators. McGraw-Hill Education.

9. Center on the Developing Child at Harvard University. (2023). Serve and Return. Retrieved from: https://developingchild.harvard.edu/science/key-concepts/serve-and-return/

10. Cherry, K. (2023). Erikson’s Stages of Psychosocial Development. Verywell Mind. Retrieved from: https://www.verywellmind.com/erik-eriksons-stages-of-psychosocial-development-2795740

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