Assignment 1: A Case Study Of Briana As A 4-Year Old Girl

The chapter describes Briana as a 4-year old girl who has a very high level of initiative and is very energetic. Briana also exhibits the qualities a good attention span. Decision making and a sense of autonomy. She displays guilt where she feels her actions are not morally correct. She is seen to be very imaginative as well. She is clearly a child who enjoys plays of all sorts which is a necessary for children in her age group. Briana’s high level of initiative is recognized and appreciated by the teacher. When Briana plays house with her classmates, she assumes the role of a mom which gives her a sense of control and power. She pretends to spank a boy as a part of this role. If I were her teacher I would look for signs and factors to decide whether she was actually pretending or her actions could be harmful to the other students or to the learning environment. One sign to look for would be the …show more content…
The reason is the fact that this age group requires play of all sorts. Children of this age group assume roles of power which allow them to say or do things they are not able to otherwise. This act was actually a part of Briana’s imagination, which means she was exploring ideas and being creative by creating a world and manipulating it according to her choices. By pretending to spank the boy, she was dealing with feelings of anger. By pretending to be a mom, Briana was exercising her wish to give orders and telling other children what to do; something she is not able to do as herself. By restricting such an activity, a teacher would limit a child’s creativity and ability to explore their imagination. Therefore, as long as the pretention stays within limits and other children play along and the act is not morally threatening, it should not be stopped by a