5 years have passed and Hunter is now 13 years old. Hunter continues to have difficulties communicating
and expressing his emotions. Jake is
rarely home except to eat and sleep and always keeps to himself. Hunter knows that he is not the same as the other kids at school and
seems to resent having to go to a special period every day. Middle school has been rough experience for
Hunter and makes getting him up in the morning a nightmare for Rick and Sandy. His medication seems to take the edge off his
tantrums, but his parents are starting to get worried. A few days ago, one of Hunter’s outbursts
spun out of control and resulted in him throwing a mug across the room and smashing
a cherished family heirloom.
* Describe typical developmental milestones for a 13 year old. As best you can given the information you have, evaluate the extent to which Hunter's development so far has deviated from those milestones throughout his lifespan.
* What can Rick and Sandy do regarding Hunter’s aggression?
* Should Hunter’s parents take him back the psychiatrist for
more medication?
* What kind of transition planning is likely to be in place for Hunter? Indicate 3 specific transition goals that one might find in Hunter's current IEP.
There are three forms of development that should be happening in a 13 year old boy, physical, cognitive and social development. Normal physical development for a 13 year old would consist of a growth spurt in height and weight, increased muscles and “filling out” the body, voice deepens, body hair increases, they are always hungry and they become clumsy. Intellectual, or cognitive development consists of improved reasoning skills, recognize that current actions will affect their future, begins to individually determine right from wrong and there is an emergence of personal goals. Some social characteristics of a 13 year old would be spending a lot of time alone, lack of confidence, lack of social skills with adults, very concerned with body image, friends are more focused in groups and there is an overall lack of self esteem. Although we do not know very much about Hunter’s physical appearance or cognitive development, he shares very many similar social habits as an average 13 year old boy (other than the tantrums). Thirteen is a very awkward age and children are still trying to figure out who they are and what their goals and aspirations are. It is perfectly normal that Hunter keeps to himself. A lot of middle school children do have a very difficult time in middle school because this is primarily where bullying begins, which may explain his unwillingness to attend school in the morning. Although his social actions are mostly normal, the tantrums are a rare trait of any 13 year old boy. This is where he deviates from the rest of his peers. Tantrums are more typical of a 5 or 6 year old in the category of social development, or that of an emotionally disturbed individual (whom would do something similar to throwing the mug across the room).
ReplyDeleteGreatSchools Inc. Child development: 13-16 years-old. Retrieved from http://www.greatschools.org/parenting/health-nutrition/870-middle-adolescence.gs
Regarding Hunter's aggression, Rick and Sandy can take him to more counseling sessions and generally let Hunter know that they are on his team- they aren't trying to fight against him and understand his frustration. If more therapy sessions with the psychiatrist suggest that he may need a higher dosage of his medicine or a new prescription to handle his sudden and more serious outbursts then so be it.
ReplyDeleteWe would only suggest Hunter be on a medication that would calm his nerves and emotions, nothing too serious that would affect him in adverse ways.
Since Hunter is aware of his disorder and that he is different from other students, we should start transitioning him out of the ‘special period’ each day and incorporate it into his normal classroom. We may need to find an assistant who can work directly with Hunter so that his teacher is not overwhelmed. However, this assistant should act and help other students as necessary so that Hunter doesn’t feel like he is getting special treatment.
ReplyDelete-Since some behavior problems may be due to frustration of not understanding, Hunter will Develop strategies for seeking assistance.
-Hunter will gradually be transitioning from Pull out resources to resources within the classroom. During the first week the session period will be 10 minutes shorter, etc until he is fully in the classroom.
- With this transition plan, Hunter will work on his interaction skills by participating in classroom play and activity.
From Group 3--
ReplyDelete1. Although the doctor increased Hunter’s medication he is still having anger issues. Does this mean that the certain medication he is using is not successful, or will this aggression never change even if he changes medication or increases his dosage again?
From Group 3--
ReplyDelete2. Once Hunter is placed in a 'normal' classroom, do you think his behavior can be a distraction to his peers and their learning? Could this cause parents of other students to start complaining because they feel Hunter may be a threat to their children's education and/or in general because of his temper problems? Also will this inclusion help his interaction skills positively? If he has preferred being by himself previously, will the normal classroom actually help with interactions?