Virtual Child Reflection Paper

In this paper, I will discuss my experience raising a virtual child. I will begin by explaining my initial ideas on how I hope to parent while also explaining how those ideas related to one of the major theories of development. Next, I will discuss the temperament of my child and connect those to a challenge I faced while raising her. Finally, I will touch on where my child stood developmentally at age 12 and whether or not I believe my child had a “good outcome” based on my parenting choices. I named the virtual child I was given to raise Charlotte. As I raised Charlotte, I began noticing that I had to parent her as if she was older than she was. Charlotte seemed to often outgrow her age bracket quickly. I found myself having to more than I expected as a parent. Prior to raising Charlotte, I believed that I would be able to easily enter back into the workforce. This was altered once I understood the options for childcare and how much more Charlotte would benefit from having a parent at home. This impacted my partner and I in terms of income, but it also made our relationship stronger. I Despite these physical parenting adjustments, I found that my ideas I had on …show more content…
As Berk and Meyers state about the dynamic systems theory, I believe that “the child’s mind, body, and physical and social worlds form an integrated system that guides mastery of new skills” (Berk & Meyers). The dynamic systems theory focuses on both nature and nurture, something that I think is extremely important to my ideas on parenting. DSP supports the idea of there being many courses of development along the spectrum of biological makeup, everyday tasks, and social experiences vary. (cite) By thinking about the different aspects of life that would impact development, I hoped I would provide my child with a good outcome of