The Elephant Man free essay sample

Moreover, he defined several groups that can be affected by the process of stigmatization. One of the groups included people with various deformities and anomalies that were often called abominations of the body. The play â€Å"The Elephant Man† by Bernard Pomerance is a bright example of the impact of the society on the personality. We see the main character Joseph Merrick who suffers a lot from the harsh attitude of the society. The main reason of such attitude was his ugly appearance and proteus syndrome that caused overgrowth of the bone and all the deformities and anomalies of his body. From the early beginning Merrick was never treated as a real human. He was considered to be a creature, animal and beast. Merrick used to be a constant object for laughter and humiliation. Society avoids â€Å"freaks† and people who seem to be strange or ugly and simply different from them. Moreover, many people think that if a person is somehow disabled physically he is also mentally disabled. We will write a custom essay sample on The Elephant Man or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page Such people are often labeled as freaks or second-rate people. Certain disabilities and anomalies cause social humiliation and constant reason for the stigmatization. In this play by Bernard Pomerance we see how Dr. Treves tries to help Merrick overcome stigmatization and accept himself as a real human who can have normal life and enjoy little things as understanding, care, attention and simply spending time outdoors, in the nature or visiting cultural places as theatre and others. We see how difficult it is for Merrick to cope with the impulses and feelings of the society that depict their negative attitude and disgust to him. Even when Merrick finds his home he is still often hurt by the reaction of some nurses or visitors who are frightened of him or who consider him to be an object of amusement. However, Merrick is a very compassionate and smart person and he never gets angry, he simply understands the attitude of the society. Moreover, he never tries to fight for his human rights. He accepts things and events the way they are. The main problem of this play is that Merrick can’t love himself and consider himself to be a human being. The attitude of the crowd and their harsh feelings substitute the true feelings of Merrick. However, Dr. Treves helps Merrick to believe in himself and live his life full of little happy things as every human being should do in spite of the harsh reality and many obstacles.

Free Essays on Drugs And Their Abuses

Drugs have become a very serious problem in the United States. They have become a component of one’s every day lives. This Nation’s reliance on drugs for pleasure, depression, and medical relief dominates the political and economic scene. Much debate over the drug issue occurs daily. Pleasure is one of the main reasons for drug use in America. Drugs are used daily by all different age groups. Some of the more common drugs used are marijuana, alcohol, cigarettes, and heroin. Among the younger users, marijuana, alcohol, and cigarettes are most prevalent in our society. Alcohol is widely used by both adults and teens. More often than ever we are seeing younger kids get in alcohol related accidents. It is becoming heavily abused as each minute passes by. More and more people are getting addicted to alcohol and are running their lives. Sure, it does give them a buzz and a good feeling for a while, but once one gets addicted it can totally ruin their life. Marijuana is also a very harmful drug. When one uses it for pleasure, they are looking for a high that last for four or five hours. A person might just start to smoke once in a while, but before no time, they are addicted to it and there’s no turning back. Marijuana is known to be a stepping stone. That is true, 90% of those using hard drugs, such as heroin, started with marijuana. People do get a high and do feel good but overall marijuana is bad for you. If used as a teen it can cause retarding of the normal brain cells. Cigarettes on the other hand are not thought of as being a drug. Well they are. Cigarettes are probably the easiest drug to get a hold of. When a person smokes, they not only put themselves in danger but they put other in danger also. When a person lights up a cigarette they get short buzz. At the same time they are also harming their body’s. Nicotine, which is what gets people addicted, can cause many illnesses. It is known to cause lu... Free Essays on Drugs And Their Abuses Free Essays on Drugs And Their Abuses Drugs have become a very serious problem in the United States. They have become a component of one’s every day lives. This Nation’s reliance on drugs for pleasure, depression, and medical relief dominates the political and economic scene. Much debate over the drug issue occurs daily. Pleasure is one of the main reasons for drug use in America. Drugs are used daily by all different age groups. Some of the more common drugs used are marijuana, alcohol, cigarettes, and heroin. Among the younger users, marijuana, alcohol, and cigarettes are most prevalent in our society. Alcohol is widely used by both adults and teens. More often than ever we are seeing younger kids get in alcohol related accidents. It is becoming heavily abused as each minute passes by. More and more people are getting addicted to alcohol and are running their lives. Sure, it does give them a buzz and a good feeling for a while, but once one gets addicted it can totally ruin their life. Marijuana is also a very harmful drug. When one uses it for pleasure, they are looking for a high that last for four or five hours. A person might just start to smoke once in a while, but before no time, they are addicted to it and there’s no turning back. Marijuana is known to be a stepping stone. That is true, 90% of those using hard drugs, such as heroin, started with marijuana. People do get a high and do feel good but overall marijuana is bad for you. If used as a teen it can cause retarding of the normal brain cells. Cigarettes on the other hand are not thought of as being a drug. Well they are. Cigarettes are probably the easiest drug to get a hold of. When a person smokes, they not only put themselves in danger but they put other in danger also. When a person lights up a cigarette they get short buzz. At the same time they are also harming their body’s. Nicotine, which is what gets people addicted, can cause many illnesses. It is known to cause lu...

Art and Human Values Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 1

Art and Human Values - Essay Example This is portrayed in the different ways in which different cultures manage to mingle using art and how they manage to communicate or bring out messages and their feelings, as well as, beliefs using art (Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh). According to the (Sayre, 3), different cultures understand and use the value of landscape differently and thus the differences in the way through which various cultures make use of landscape in the art can be used to bring out the differences between these cultures. If four different approaches to landscape are considered the differences between the American, Australian, Chinese and African cultures can be seen in the kind of art that these different cultures used to produce. These works of art not only present the differences in the times that they were produced but they also show the differences in lifestyles, and use of the available space in making the works of art. The Slovene Ethnographic Museum shows an example of the way different cultures use different works of art. It is endowed with various collections of Slovene art in a single museum where people can go and find out more about the Slovene culture, and the way they used to live back in the ancient days. This doe not only apply to the Slovene, but many other Museums in the world are specialized in presenting or show casing the art of different cultures. These museums of cultural identities were not established for any particular reason, but they bring out the true identity of different people and show the differences in different people, in the world. Some of the characteristics and traits of people that can be discovered from art includes their wisdom, knowledge, skills, creativity, values and their heritage (ASEMUS). From the regions of British Columbia, it is established that the Kwakiutl, a Native American Ethnic group, used to paint their masks for various occasions in their communities. They were, however, not the only

Smoking in Public Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Smoking in Public - Essay Example Nonsmokers who inhale used smoke breathe in the same dangerous chemicals as the smokers do. The more smoke one inhales, the more unsafe chemicals one will breathe in. There is no danger-free level of presentation. Used smoke from cigarettes can bring about or exacerbate numerous ailments, including pneumonia, bronchitis, asthma, and coronary illness. The individuals who are presented to elevated amounts of smoke on a long haul premise are prone to create ceaseless, possibly deadly infections. Indeed, even short introduction can bring about wellbeing issues, for example, migraines, stuffy nose, disturbance of the sinuses and eyes, hacking and can likewise trigger other breathing or heart issues (National Research Council). It is a particularly serious issue for people with allergies or chronic diseases. The U.S. Surgeon General discharged condemning discoveries from the first government-authorized investigation of cigarette smoking in 1964 (National Research Council). This report unequivocally connected smoking to specific malignancies and various other wellbeing burdens, successfully moving the issue out of the hands of sponsors and once more into the general wellbeing space (National Research Council). The report started the start of almost fifty years of tobacco industry regulation, starting with marking laws and confinements on promoting. Regardless of persistent battles on public awareness, industry contenders may in any case market cigarettes, however just under the spotlight of government investigation. Significantly, a smoking ban is an open policy that incorporates criminal laws and regulations that preclude smoking in certain spaces of public use and workspaces. There are changing meanings of smoking utilized in this enactment. The strictest definitions characterize smoki ng at this very moment inward breath of any tobacco substance while the loosest characterize smoking presently lit tobacco item. Smoking bans are likewise forced in light of the fact

Black Death Cause and Effect Essay Example for Free

Black Death Cause and Effect Essay The Bubonic Plague or the Black Death has been in the history books since the medieval times. This deadly disease has claimed nearly 1. 5 million lives in Europe (Gottfried). The Black Death hit Europe in October of 1347 and quickly spread through most of Europe by the end of 1349 and continued on to Scandinavia and Russia in the 1350s. Not only did the plague effect the European population by killing one-third to two-thirds (Gottfried), it also hurt the social and economic structures of every European society. How it spread The Black Death actually first appeared in the Himalayan region around 1250 AD. There are several theories as to how the disease made its way to Europe. One theory is that since the plague is transmitted from a bite of a flea, that fleas that lived on marmots that were indigenous to the region were the original transporters (Clay,1). The first recorded appearance of the plague in Europe was at Messina, Sicily in October of 1347. It was believed to have arrived on trading ships that came from the Black Sea, past Constantinople and through the Mediterranean (Gottfried). This route was used to bring import items such as silks and porcelain, which were carried overland to the Black Sea from as far away as China (Gottfried). No one know the exact point of origin of the Black Death but what most scholars will agree with is that the disease reach Europe by rodents. The reason given was due to the climatic shifts in the area which caused a shortage of food. The disease ridden rodents’ migration put them in contact with human populations, thus, putting humans in contact with the disease carrying fleas. So many people were impacted because most people lived in very crammed and tight spaces. This also made waste disposal an issue, which caused people to just tip their waste out the window of their home, bringing the rats. Because everyone was so close, the fleas could easily infect hundreds of people in one day, so no one was safe (Gottfried). The people that did manage to escape death was due to the fact that their immune systems being able to withstand the plague (Gottfried). Types of Plague What killed so many wasn’t due to just one type of plague going around; The disease that devastated Europe was caused by three different types of plague: bubonic, pneumonic, and septicemic. All three are bacterial infections caused by Yersinia pestis (Gottfried). The most common form was the bubonic plague. Fleas that lived on the plague-infected rats spread the bubonic plague (Gottfried). After 6 days people who were infected with this strain would develop flu-like symptoms and blood pressure drops, heartbeats faster, and a sudden fever erupts, accompanied by chills, weakness, and headache. Next, a black pus filled bump surrounded by an inflamed red ring shows up at the place that was bitten (Gottfried). The lymph node would begin to swell with pus. When the enlarged lymph nodes would burst they would also emit dark colored blood and pus. This is how the name Black Death came to be coined (Vunguyen). A second type of plague was that of pneumonic. This plague could spread with a sneeze and could quickly jump from person to person and though it was less common than the bubonic form, but more deadly. This form was contracted through breathing in a mutated, airborne strain of the bacteria. The infected person would experience fluid building up in the lungs. This very unfortunate circumstance would, in turn, cause suffocation of the infected individual. This particular form of the bacteria would cause death within a short time span, usually two or three days (Boeckl). The third type of plague was speticemic plague. Though it was the least common out of the three, it was the deadliest. Septicemic plague was carried in the blood and was contracted only through blood-to-blood contact. The person infected with this type would develop a high fever but they would not develop many outward symptoms that they had contracted the plague. The individuals who were infected with this final strain of the bacterium were usually dead within 24 hours. Almost all who contracted either the pneumonic or septicemic plague died from the infection (Boeckl). Causes of the Black Death The causes of the Black Death – the flea, the rat, and the bacillus Yersinia pestis– have been labeled the â€Å"unholy trinity† (Boeckl). The flea is able to live in environmental conditions of about 74 ° Fahrenheit and 60% humidity (Ibid). Before the Black Death reached Europe, they were experiencing those same types of weather conditions. The rat flea, Xenopsylla cheopis and the human flea, Pulex irritans, are both capable of transmitting plague (Boeckl). Sometimes, an infected flea cannot ingest blood because Yersinia pestis obstructs its digestive tract. The blockage causes a flea to regurgitate into a bitten host rather than ingest the host’s blood, thereby infecting the host with plague (Boeckl). Unable to eat, the famished flea will bite with more frequency, accelerating the spread of plague. A flea can be carrying Yersinia pestis without it blocking the flea’s digestive tract, in which case the flea does not transmit plague when it bites a host. Also, Yersinia pestis can only enter a victim through a bite, as the bacilli cannot pass through intact skin (Gottfried). Social Changes The disease took a major toll on the population of Europe but as it wiped out communities it also caused changes in the social structure of European society. Europe was run by a feudal system (Vunguyen). As death took its toll, people started to question the way of life. When the Black Death swept over Europe and wiped out a third of its population, it also dismantled Feudalism. The feudal system was structured like a pyramid with the King being at the top and having complete control. The King owned everything; he had the power to decide who he would lease the land to. If he did allow a citizen to lease part of his land, before doing so they had to swear to an oath of loyalty (Vunguyen). People who did rent the King’s land were called Baron/Baronesses (Vunguyen). The leased land was called a manor, and the Barons were often called the ‘Lord of the Manor’ (Vunguyen). They were allowed to establish their own system of justice, mint their own money and set their own taxes. The Barons had to serve on the royal council, pay rent and provide the King with Knights for military service when he demanded it in return for the land they had been given (Vunguyen). When the King and his court travelled around the country, the Barons also had to provide lodging and food. The Barons kept as much of their land as they desired, then divided the rest among their Knights (Vunguyen). Knights were given land by the Baron in return for military service when demanded, and to protect the manor. The Knights kept as much of the land as they wished for their own personal use, and distributed the rest of it to serfs – although they weren’t as rich as the Barons, Knights were quite wealthy (). Serfs were given land by Knights in exchange for free labor, food and services whenever it was desired. They had no rights and weren’t allowed to leave the Manor. They had to ask their Lord’s permission before they could marry, and were often mistreated and poor (). The serfs or peasants were a key group in the population so when they started to die off, everything went downhill. The serfs served everyone on the pyramid and now Barons were willing to pay higher wages and offer extra benefits (Vunguyen). All their life they had lived off the serfs’ hard work, and were willing to pay them to stay on the manor to continue slaving for them. When the serfs died, the foundation on which feudalism relied upon was broken. The pyramid of power broke, and everything was a mess. Serfs left to find high wages due to the labor shortages. The land that had usually been the primary source of wealth was now worthless (Vunguyen). Entire estates were deserted as families fell to the plague and died, or fled in a vain attempt to escape its fury, were there for the taking (Vunguyen). As Europe evolved away from relying on land as the main source of prosperity, a rising middle-class claimed more and more wealth and prestige, as the once-noble began to quickly lose both (Vunguyen). The end of Feudalism had started and progressed each day as the plague claimed more lives. As the days went on people wondered, if they needed to change the way they lived or worshipped God. Many found that if they continued to live and worship as they had for centuries, the plague was not being pacified (Clay). This caused many people to abandon the way of life that they were accustomed to and chose a life that contrasted with social norms. A large group of people, desperate to point their fingers at someone, alleged and accused many different ‘groups’ which included ‘witches,’ lepers and Jews (Clay). In central Europe, the flagellants convincingly charged the Jews. On a tragic day in Strasbourg alone, over 8,000 Jews were killed for being the target of vain suspicions (). This quote shows just how the mind of Europeans changed: Many were uncertain about the cause of this great mortality. In some places, they believed that the Jews had poisoned the worlds, and so they killed them. In some other areas, that it was a deformity of the poor, so they chased them out; in others, that it was the nobles, and so they [the nobles] hesitated to go out into the world. Finally, it reached the point where guards were posted in cities and towns, and they permitted no one to enter, unless he was well known. And if they found anyone with powders or unguents, they made him swallow them, fearing that these might be poisons (Clay, 2-3)†. Someone who survived the plague wrote â€Å"Everyone appeared to be rich because they had survived and regained value in life. Now, no one knows how to put their life back in order(Clay, 3). No one knew how to put their life back together after the plague hit. When all the chaos died down and order was restored, the society was much different than what it once was. The disease did not discriminate; it killed people from all different social classes. The peasants now saw that everyone was made up of the same flesh, even though who once ruled over them. This epiphany led the serfs see the inequality of the system and they saw it as unfair and unjust (Clay, 3). Because of all the affliction and misery there was much lawbreaking and because most of the law enforcers had also been hit by the plague there was not much that was done about it (Clay, 3). † This quote shows just how their mentality was changing. Lawbreakers could not be stopped especially by the lords and so once peasants realized all ties could be broken, they gained a new level of freedom (Clay, 4). Peasants and lord relationships were not the only thing that changed; individuals in the same social circle were forced to interact with one another differently. As a result of so many deaths, women were now being served by male servants and it did not matter if they were of noble birth or not. Men serving women was something taboo and unheard of before the plague, but the disease made that change. Noble women had to a find a different lifestyle under normal circumstances, these women would have been dishonored and shunned but this was not the case. Economic Effects All the death that fell upon Europe created a major labor shortage. It was a dominos affect, if the plague hit an area or manor in the summer, there wouldn’t be enough serfs to harvest the crops in the fall. If it hit in the winter, there wasn’t enough workers to plant new crops in the spring (â€Å"The Black Death, 1348†). So inevitably there wasn’t any one left on farm and maintain the land. The one’s who did withstand the plague, moved else-where for better wages (â€Å"The Black Death, 1348†). Not only did it affect the farms, it hurt businesses or building projects. Cathedral that usually were beautiful and performed weekly services were left eerily empty with no priests to conduct services. The barons did not have enough knights and serfs to cater to them and so many manors were abandoned. When someone dies normally, there would be a service and immediately be buried, well that didn’t happen during the Black Death era. No one was left to bury the dead. Citizens, lower and middle classes were scared, they stayed in the homes believing they would be safe. The shelter did not stop the disease from entering and since they were poor they did not get the care and attention they needed and most of them died (â€Å"The Black Death, 1348†). Instead of suffering, many decided to take their own lives and committed suicide in the street; others died in their homes but only found because their neighbors smelled the decaying body. Dead bodies were everywhere on every corner and in every home that wasn’t abandoned (â€Å"The Black Death, 1348†). â€Å"Most of them were treated in the same manner by the survivors, who were more concerned to get rid of their rotting bodies than moved by charity towards the dead. With the aid of porters, if they could get them, they carried the bodies out of the houses and laid them at the door; where every morning quantities of the dead might be seen. They then were laid on biers or, as these were often lacking, on tables† (â€Å"The Black Death, 1348†). Bodies upon bodies were brought to the church every day and almost every hour so it was impossible to give them a proper burial especially since they wanted to bury each person in the family grave, according to the old custom (â€Å"The Black Death, 1348†). â€Å"Although the cemeteries were full they were forced to dig huge trenches, where they buried the bodies by hundreds. Here they stowed them away like bales in the hold of a ship and covered them with a little earth, until the whole trench was full† (â€Å"The Black Death, 1348†). Cultural Effects The plague not only affected humans it also impacted the arts. In the Medieval period, people had concentrated mainly on the Church, God, and personal salvation. The plague was evident in paintings, sculptures, and architecture, everything was centered on death. The arrival of plague â€Å"harkened in a new darker era of painting. Paintings were overflowing with tortured souls, death, dying, fire and brimstone† (â€Å"The Effect of Black Death on Art and Artists in the Medieval Period†). Thousands of painters, craftsmen, patrons of the arts died during the plague. The disease tore a hole in the heart of the cultural world. The effects of the plague were lasting, bringing a somber darkness to visual art, literature, and music (â€Å"The Effect of Black Death on Art and Artists in the Medieval Period†). Writers and painters imaginations became dark and gloomy. The unknowing survival created a atmosphere of gloom and doom influencing artist to move away from optimistic themes and turn to images of Hell, Satan and the Grim Reaper (â€Å"The Effect of Black Death on Art and Artists in the Medieval Period†). Many painters simply gave up art with the idea that it was hopeless to try and create beauty in a hellish world. The Decameron by Boccaccio, a collection of medieval tales and folklore is the most famous literary work that came from that time period (â€Å"The Black Death†). The collection is set in the Italian countryside where aristocrats, fleeing the Plague as it ravages Florence, are stranded without their usual entertainments. To pass the time, they tell each other stories, from which Boccaccio harvested a rich storehouse of traditional narrative. The Decameron eventually became the foundation for many other Renaissance works, including several of Shakespeares plays (â€Å"The Black Death†). Positive Consequences It’s hard to find positive in so much death but the plague actually helped in a few ways. First being manpower, because of the shortages, manpower had so much more value. Peasants weren’t readily available in large numbers so the ones still alive found themselves in high demand (â€Å"The Black Death†). The ones who had all the power, kings and dukes, now found themselves bargaining with laborers over working conditions, and also the lower class were able to demand better pay for their services (â€Å"The Black Death†). Also, serfdom was terminated, so those peasants that were slaves and tied to the land were no longer obligated to farm and serve. And one other positive result of the bubonic plague was the development of medicine as a science in the West. Islamic doctors had advocating general cleanliness and the value of studying anatomy but Western healers prior to the black death were still using practices like the theory of humors (â€Å"The Black Death†). But when Plague wiped out nearly all the doctors of Europe, because the doctors had to attend to the dying and because of this were exposed at a higher rate to the more virulent pneumonic form of Plague. With so many doctors dying, it created a change in both personnel and precept (â€Å"The Black Death†). Strangely, western medicine owes much to plague. Conclusion The Black Death started in 1347 and continued for a full five years, this devastating plague spread throughout Europe, leaving more than twenty million people dead. The consequences to Europe were profound. Besides immeasurable death, traditional medieval society broke, the economies were fractured, and art and literature took a turn from light to dark. Though it spread throughout Europe, the Black Death was world-shattering and shows how even the smallest of things, the microbial world, can at times steer the course of human civilization.

Strength Training for Children and Adolescents

Strength Training for Children and Adolescents This essay will particular focus on the links between a child development and training load by critically discussing, bone development, muscle mass and strength, menstruation in young females, issues of obesity and physical inactivity, aerobic and anaerobic exercise, and injury. After highlighting the contemporary research surrounding these links, the findings and methodology are evaluated. To begin, a brief definition of training load is put forward. The findings founds within training load and children may not be a as straight forward as it appears as much research has looked at the link between training load and a childs development, through peered reviewed research. The ways of assessing physical activity training load and development, as well as the reasoning why they should and should not take part in exercise, with reference to bone and muscle changes. Also the implications to menstruation in young female athletes and which exercise type of exercise is better for the young. As well as the negative issues relating to injury during physical activity, with reference to the potential affects in to adulthood. Physical activity and health is also known to be beneficial, however the methods and ways in which this is done may give different results. This will be discussed through how physical activity can improve the quality of life and also how being inactive can have issues. It will be looked at through many health conditions including cardiovascular diseases, hypertension, osteoporosis, cancers, and obesity, and also how physical activity can reduce the chance of getting some of these health conditions. It must firstly be mentioned what training load is. Training load is the amount of exercise completed and how much energy used (Rowland, 2005). Children and adolescents have taken part in physical activity through school in physical education classes, but there are those who enjoy exercise more than others. In each case there are physiological implications which can occur, such as developmental issue which can include, bone and muscle problems, injury and health issues such as heart disease, cancers and obesity, as well as menstrual complications in females. Also there are implications for children and adolescents who do not exercise. As children progress into adolescence, the influence of peers and peer pressure becomes noticeable and a widespread decline in physical activity becomes more of a problem. Generally boys will tend to participate in some sort of exercise or sport with friends at a higher intensity than girls (Sallis, 1993). Rowland (2007) suggested that physical activity has many benefits for the young, as it promotes health, thus making you healthy in adult life. However Rowland goes on to mention that more research is needed to look at factors such as frequency and duration of physical activity during childhood as this can determine how reliable the health outcomes maybe in adulthood. Furthermore it was suggested that in the long term that if adolescents are physical active it will enhance bone health and reduce certain cancers such as breast cancer. However Twisk (2001) discussed the onset of many chronic illnesses which start at child and that strategy should be put in to plan to reduce disease early on in life. Exercise found that one important way to stop the on set of disease, but increasing physical during childhood and adolescence. Evidence found that exercise guidelines for children and adolescents is weak, and additional it was found that only a small amount of research which found that exercising when young can be related to health in a dulthood. This can suggest that guidelines based on the public, should be more focused on health benefits, rather than how much exercise should be completed on a daily basis. Behm, Faigenbaum and Klentrou, (2008) produced a review on the recommendations of resistance training on paediatrics, with the correct training methods can be safe and improve health. Studies measuring (anthropometric) children have not found to show an increase in muscular hypertrophy with resistance training in paediatrics with cystic fibrosis and cerebral palsy. Surprisingly it has been mentioned that there is no minimum age to start resistance training in children, however this does need to be structured when exercising. The resistance training in children needs to be with a qualified instruction and while being supervised. This seems in many cases to be unachievable as not every child can have instruction with exercising (e.g. a child running is exercise but does not need instruction or supervision), never the less resistance training exercise can aid in muscle strength, endurance, balance, power and co-ordination and many health benefits. Moderate stress on bones (e.g. weight-b earing exercise) builds a stronger skeleton. Heavy loads or extreme forces can retard bone growth. Therefore, power and heavy weight training should be avoided until later stages of development. Training should be closely monitored during adolescence for signs of stress / overuse. Bones are more susceptible to fractures when growth plates (cartilage sights that are not yet ossified) are still present. If bone growth accelerates faster than muscle length, then undue stress can be placed on the skeleton during growth spurts; this can be exasperated by repetitive exercises or movements. Burrows (2007) found that diseases such as osteoporosis are becoming increasingly high, however weight-bearing exercise is a good way to enhance bone mineral density, making it stronger, if this exercise is continued throughout the growth period. It has been suggested that sport needs to start at perpubertal age to obtain peak bone mass. Sports such as gymnastics and football are recommended to increase peak bone mass. Within this research area there also seems to many authors suggesting that training load will be good for muscle and bone strength, especially weight bearing training as this strengthen the body, additional some authors have mentioned professional support and instruction in training will stop the chances of getting injury, but surely injury will be enviable, as it is the individual who is doing that specific exercise or sport can have an accident. Despite this there are other issues with training load on the young, especially in females and menstruation, as Eliakim Beyth, (2003) study found when looking at exercise training, menstrual irregularities and bone development in children and adolescents. Weight bearing exercise has been know to be important in bone development, this is even more important in children and adolescents, as bone mineral density reaches around 90% of its peak by the second decade. Physical activity in childhood and adolescence can reduce the risk on bone disease such as osteoporosis in later life. However strenuous exercise in females can affect there reproductive system causing athletic amenorrhea (this is the stopping of menstruation for six months or more). This is becoming more popular as it is 4-20 times higher than the general populations, especially in the female athlete. This can lead to skeletal fractures, unstable spine and vertebral joints, as well as menstrual abnormalities. As a result fema le athletes would have to reduce training, to reduce skeletal affects, as this is more harmful to bones growth, especially if a child or adolescence is still at the rapid growth stage at this time and prevent changes in menstruation. Further issues relating to adolescents and training load are growth, maturation and strength. Bernadette (2006) study looked at whether moderate-high amounts of dance training would influence linear growth and sexual maturation if girl ages 8-11 years old, through puberty. Results found that no change of height velocity of the dancers in year one. However when controlling the groups for maturations, fat mass, lean mass and also extracurricular activities (not dancing), there where found to be no changes in growth or velocity growth in height, sitting height or leg length. Thus finding that there was link between age at menarche and hours and years of dance training. Also resulting in no affect occurring in moderate high level of dance training in linear growth or maturation. However it has been found that preadolescent boys and girls can see meaningful gains in strength with proper training. Although it has been documented that adults and adolescents can achieve significant improveme nts with strength training, training gains for children have been questioned. The argument that led to the false belief that children couldnt benefit from training was based on two presumptions. First, it was considered unlikely that notable changes in muscular strength and endurance could occur prior to puberty, due to lower levels of circulating androgens (e.g., testosterone). The underlying assumption was that higher levels of androgens were necessary for improvements in muscle size and strength to occur. Second, children naturally become stronger as they grow, and strength gains beyond that were thought improbable. Previous studies, which seemed to support this, were often limited in study design and research methodology (such as low intensity, low volume or short duration training protocols). Nevertheless, this data seemed to suggest that resistance training was ineffective in the very young population. Faigenbaum (2000) A growing body of scientific evidence in support of childrens strength training has arisen within the past decade. The literature provides strong documentation that both male and female preadolescents can improve strength significantly with well-designed resistance-training programs. Recent reviews analyze the available research by comparison. Although a relatively small number of studies were included, one review revealed that a majority of studies demonstrated strength gains between 13 and 30 percent as a result of training (Falk Tenenbaum, 1996). Another reported similar results for children and youth, and each of the studies included in this review indicated that resistance training was generally effective, regardless of participants or study characteristics (Payne, Morrow, Johnson Dalton, 1997). Gains from strength training for preadolescents are generally attributed to neural adaptations and motor learning, rather than circulating androgens. Muscle hypertrophy, or an increase in the cross-sectional area of a muscle, is not usually detected in children as a result of training. Since muscle size has been correlated with strength, studies indicating no increase in muscle hypertrophy implied that strength training was ineffective in younger participants. On the opposite side of the scale there are those children and adolescence who do not exercise. It is well known that obesity is one of the biggest health problems across the world, but with children becoming less physical active this will be inevitable, along with several other major diseases which can include coronary heart disease, hypertension, osteoporosis, diabetes mellitus, lung disease and some cancers. Watts, Jones, Davis Green (2005) study found evidence that non physically active children are most like to become less physically active in adulthood, furthermore it is encouraged that physical activity habits in children help patterns of exercise in adulthood. Random control trails have been designed to look at exercise training in both children and adolescence. The studies found exercise does have beneficial outcomes, but it does always reduce bodyweight, it does however have more beneficial effects to changes in fat and lean body mass, thus showing the need for better asse ssment in future exercising training studies. Exercise can improve cardiovascular fitness and muscle strength, but little affect on blood lipids and blood pressure in obese youths. Similar important studies have found that exercise improves vascular endothelial function, which was found to be a substitute measure to predict the atherosclerotic risk in children and adolescents who are obese (Celermajer, Sorensen Gooch, 1992).Training studies have found an improvement in vascular function, however an absence in changes in lipid fractions, haemodynamic variables or glucose metabolism as exercise appears to have a beneficial effect on the vasculature (Watts, Beye Siafarikas et al, 2004) Another area which is essential in a children development is the aerobic and anaerobic development in children and adolescence. Cardiovascular function being in childhood but is also different of those of an adult. Children have smaller heart chambers and lower volume than adults, thus finding a lower stroke volume than an adult during rest and exercise. Children have a smaller stroke volume, but a child has a higher maximal heart rate compared to an adult. An adolescent, max heart could be found to be higher than an adult but not quiet as high as a childs (Sharp, 1995). Although higher heart rates can not be compensated for a childs lower stroke volume and theres a childs cardiac output is lower than in adults (Wilmore Costill, 1994). Thus suggesting that more of the cardiac output goes to working the muscle in children than it would in adults (Wilmore Costill, 1994). Children are found to be more naturally aerobic, rather than anaerobic, but unfortunately there are few studies wh ich have found that aerobic capacity in children will improve with training aerobically. Furthermore Rowlands (1992) argued that no studys have been complied which has the specific outline of 12 weeks training, over three days per week, with heart rates of 160 beats per minute over twenty minutes as a minimum requirement, as well as a large group of participants, with a control, thus being similar to an adults training schedule. Rowland found that if children complete a similar aerobic training routine and intensity to an adult, they would improve there V02 max between 7 and 26%. Which suggests children can improve aerobic fitness from an adult training program. Sharp (1995) found that children have a lower lactate production and the anaerobic threshold in children give heart rates of between 165-170 beat per minute, which is similar to a trained endurance adult. Yet sedentary adults anaerobic threshold is between 120-150 beats per minute. Which means that heart rate will be higher in a sedentary child than an adult. More evidence has supported high intensity stimulus theory that activity level in children is not related to V02 max (Rowland, 1992). As children are not as active as they once were, Armstrong Welsman (1994) stated that they are still aerobically fit, which suggest children are naturally fit. Thus, to improve a childs natural fitness, a good, strong training program is needed. Whether children exercise aerobically or anaerobic, there is the issue of heat conditions, also know as thermoregulation. Falk (2008) found that children produce more heat per kilogramme body weight than adults, but their thermoregulatory system is not as good. This is partly because they sweat less. For example, a 12-year-old boy may sweat 400ml per square meter of skin per hour, compared to an adult mans 800ml. Girls and women sweat proportionately the same, although less in absolute quantity terms. Children also tend to have higher skin temperatures, which hinder the flow of heat from body core to the periphery. However, children have a proportionately greater skin surface area the smaller they are. A young adult weighing 64kg will have a surface area of about 1.80 square meters; an eight year- old weighing 25kg will have a skin area of 0.95 square meters, i.e. 36 per cent more surface area per unit of weight. This helps to correct thermal imbalances, but can be a disadvantage whe n running in direct sun (or swimming in cold water) with the possibility of a faster rate of overheating (or overcooling). Injury is another common occurrence in children who take part in sport and exercise during there development. Adirim (2003) found that within the US around 30 million children take part in sport and exercise, and many of those have an injuries, which is due to overuse, also of those injuries over one third where of school age. With the physical and physiological differences of children and adults, this is one reason why children are more susceptible to injury. Overuse injuries are common, overuse injuries occur from the repetitive application of submaximal stresses to otherwise normal tissues. (Outerbridge Micheli, 1995) Injuries which are the most common are the ankle and knee. Overtraining and exposure to excessive levels of physical activity can cause an increased chance of injury, overuse injuries can affect normal physical growth and maturation. Prevention is the key, gradual rather than sudden increases in stresses and intensity can usually avoid physical breakdown. Early chan ges of the training program can ensure successful return to sport. In conclusion, it can be found after looking through peered reviewed research that training load can have both positive and negative aspects. In research it has found that Moderate stress on bones builds a stronger skeleton. Furthermore heavy loads or extreme forces can retard bone growth. Thus, power and heavy weight training should be avoided until later stages of development. Training load and menstruation in female athletes can have detrimental affects on reproductive development. As a result female athletes would have to reduce training, to reduce skeletal affects, as this is more harmful to bones growth, especially if a child or adolescence is still at the rapid growth stage at this time and prevent changes in menstruation. Surprisingly children are becoming more susceptible to many more health conditions as a result of falling physical activity levels, even when knowing that exercise can improve cardiovascular fitness and muscle strength, but little affect on blood lipids and blood pressure in obese youths. Although it has been found that children are most aerobically fit rather than anaerobic, but unfortunately there are few studies which have found that aerobic capacity in children will improve with training aerobically. Children also have a lower lactate production and the anaerobic threshold in children give heart rates which are similar to a trained endurance adult. Furthermore thermoregulation in children produce more heat than adults, but their thermoregulatory system is not as good. However to correct thermal imbalances, but can be a disadvantage when running in direct sun, with the possibility of a faster rate of overheating or overcooling. Finally injury is another aspect which occurs during a childs development, when taking part in sport and exercise. The most common injuries are overuse (joints commonly affected are ankle and knee). Children are most susceptible to injury during development as they are not coordinated and react slower than ad ults. Its also been found that instructions in training will stop the chances of getting injury. References AD Faigenbaum (2000) Strength training for children and adolescents, Clinics in sports medicine, 19(4): 593-619 Sharp NC. (1995) The health of the next generation: health through fitness and sport. Journal of the Royal Society of Health, 115(1):48-55. Falk, Bareket; Dotan, Raffy, Childrens thermoregulation during exercise in the heat a revisit (2008) Applied Physiology, Nutrition, and Metabolism, Volume 33, Number 2, 1, pp. 420-427(8) Outerbridge RA, Micheli LJ. Overuse injuries in the young athlete. Clin Sports Med. 1995;14:503-516 Celermajer DS, Sorensen KE, Gooch VM, et al. Non-invasive detection of endothelial dysfunction in children and adults at risk of atherosclerosis. Lancet 1992; 340: 1111-5 Watts K, Beye P, Siafarikas A, et al. Effects of exercise training on vascular function in obese children. J Pediatrics 2004; 144: 620-5 Falk, B., G. Tenenbaum (1996) The effectiveness of resistance training in children: A meta-analysis. Sports Medicine 22(3): 176-186. Payne, V.G., J.R. Morrow, L. Johnson S.N. Dalton. Resistance training in children and youth: A meta-analysis. Research Quarterly of Exercise and Sport 68

Poverty Reduction Essay

Poverty reduction requires us to be clear about what we mean by poverty, who are the poor and what is the best way to help people escape poverty. Discuss with reference to the multi-dimensionality of poverty? Poverty is a term used to refer to the poorer people of society; local, national and global, whether this is relative poverty, where people in that society suffer due to the cost of living and lack of income or absolute poverty, where people struggle with acquiring even the most basic of needs. There is huge debate about what is regarded as poverty as within the context of multi-dimensionality of poverty, people may be regarded as relatively poor in one country but relatively wealthy in other countries. Defining who is poor and who is not poor is no easy task. (Worldpoverty, 2010) tells us that originally, everyone was poor, but with technological developments, some people gained wealth, which was not being distributed effectively, which caused a growing division between the wealthy and the poor. However, the main issue is that the countries that have the wealth, relative and absolute poverty still exist. Taking the USA as an example, it is estimated that despite being one of the richest countries in the world, up to 25% of the population are considered to be in relative poverty because they do not have the same level of wealth as others. Out of the 25%, a further 3% are estimated to be in absolute poverty, meaning they cannot afford even the most basic of goods, such as a roof over their heads or food (Worldpoverty, 2010). Those in poverty in the USA are proportionately poor to those in the same situation as people who live within less developed countries, not only because they are the poorest, but because of the cost of living in different countries differs greatly (Davis, 2008). Despite this, people who reside in the USA are still considered to be richer than people in some African countries, where people live on less than $1USD a day (UNDP, 2008). This informs us that people in absolute poverty in more developed countries are arguably better off than people in less developed countries; this adds to the varying dimensions about what people regard as poverty. Although not an official term for this situation, these people are living in True Poverty, where they are the poorest people in the world and are not better off than anyone else in the world. We can see that when comparing the poor in different countries although some may earn more than others, the cost of  living has to be taken into account, which is why it is harder to escape poverty in richer countries due to the high costs of basic goods. Nevertheless, given this variability, clearly, this is just one element of what is acknowledged as part of the multidimensionality of poverty. We already know that people in poverty do not have the means to purchase all the basic goods for a suitable lifestyle or cannot afford even the basics, but how do we actually determine the point where someone is in poverty and how is it shown. This can mainly be shown in the form of economic modelling. (Sloman & Wride, 2009) demonstrates the Lorenz curve and the Gini-Coefficient to discuss the definition of poverty on a national scale. The ideal situation would be where everyone has the same level of wealth, which would represent the perfect income distribution line (45 degrees). However, this will never be the case, as there will be some people with more wealth than others and therefore it would be highly impractical since some people will inevitably consume more than others. The Lorenz curve shows the distribution of the national income as a proportion of between the rich and the poor. Because a relatively low proportion of rich people have more of the national wealth, this makes the curve steep towards the end. This results in a smaller amount of national wealth being distributed between the poorer people. The Gini-Coefficient shows the inequality between the Lorenz curve and the perfect income distribution line. In an ideal situation to combat poverty, more of the poorer people require more of the wealth. Consequently, the lower the Gini-Coefficient, the more effective the attempt at alleviating poverty in that country will become. Since this is only a national model and it only uses national income, it cannot be used on a global scale; this is mainly due to there being too many circumstances to take into account when comparing rich and poor countries. There are believed to be many different possible ways to combat poverty, but there is no defined sing le solution as of yet. The global community define poverty as people in third world countries; within this context, the main objective and aims include charitable efforts towards alleviating the poverty within these areas. One of these aims is to help people to help themselves. Particular issues arise from fundraising and transitionary procedures, where communication issues can arise whilst providing people with the necessary  trade knowledge and skills to fend for themselves. One of the most widely considered views on tackling poverty is to train people in poverty with skills to help them fend for themselves more effectively, or even more efficiently. Many different charitable organisations aim to help with this type of poverty alleviation. (Smith, 2005) discusses the views that charitable organisers have to identify what it is that poor communities lack and then help these communities by providing the appropriate training and resources, which in turn can be used to create a better living environment that is more sustainable and potentially more environmentally friendly. In addition to this, some poor communities are being held back by ‘Local and global forces’ which hider the quality of life. By working with these particular forces, living conditions and community relations would generally improve, particularly if this involves extreme poverty cases. In one particular case study, the international charity CAFOD has overseen development operations in a town called Soweto, just outside of Kenya’s capital Nairobi. A short video clip shows how the charity has helped unify the slum town and helped to create jobs through skill development and business entrepreneurship courses. As a result, more people in the town now run their own small businesses and are slowly earning more money to help sustain their own lives (CAFOD, 2007). Additional support has been implemented in community and co-operative projects, such as the communal farm, where animals are raised by the community and the proceeds after selling these animals is shared throughout the town. The way in which the training has been incorporated into people’s lives has ensured that the townsfolk have become mor e independent. The skills that have been learned by some of the poor populations will eventually be passed down from generation to generation, which also implies that the sustainability of the development project is strong. There are many different global organisations that set out to help people to help themselves, which is a very effective way to help people out of extreme poverty. But how do we tackle the types of poverty in developed countries such as the UK or the USA? People who reside within these countries and are classed as living in poverty are classed as living on very low or no income at all and are heavily dependent on state benefits. (Atkinson, 1995) explains with references to the Lorenz curve and the Gini co-efficient that over time the distribution of wealth has become slightly  more equal. Fig.2 shows how since 1949, there have been some effective efforts to alleviate a small proportion of the poverty in the UK and how over this period, a small percentage of the wealth has been taken from the top 10% and given to the bottom 50%, thus reducing the Gini-Coefficient. (Atkinson, 1995) also explains that this has been achieved through more efficient management of collecting taxes. Despite parts of the information not being consistent, a basic analysis of this data illustrates that the Gini-Coefficient had indeed fallen by 4% over the course of the 30 years in question. However over this period of time, not all of the reduction in top earnings was being transferred to the bottom 50%. Instead a large share of the reduction was being transferred to the next 40%, which doesn’t particularly help the bottom 50% of earners. Using this example, another strategy that could be used to assist those in poverty is to increase the tax rate on high earners more, redistributing the national income more fairly. This is a scheme already in effect, however high earners are finding loopholes within these tax regulations which restrict the amount of money being redistributed. (Robin Hood Tax, 2010)There is some debate however of imposing a new tax so small (est. 0.05% on all transactions over  £10,000 GBP), it will be almost impossible to avoid. However even  £10,000 would only result in a tax bill of  £5 which is well worth paying. By adding these very small amounts together, the funds that could be generated are estimated to be over  £300Billion GBP a year. The idea is supported by well over 100 different charities and relief organisations, who would use the money generated to fund all kinds of work to relieve many different types of poverty in many different countries, both developed and developing. Using this method of relief collection will ensure the fight against poverty is well funded because the main cause of poverty ties down to money at the end. Another method to solve poverty would be to develop and implement a stronger welfare system, which could work out for both developed and developing countries. (Schiller, 2004) argues that in most cases poverty is caused by a bad upbringing, based on family morals, lack of a decent education and thus the inability to be ‘financially independent’. There is also the strong argument that poverty can be caused by people that don’t  want to work and are happy to receive welfare and be classed as in poverty, thus creating a ‘trade-off between income provision and work incentives.’ If governments wish to reduce the level of poverty in their country, they need to make jobs more appealing and financially rewarding, although with the current economic climate this is easier said than done. The real issue here is that if a solution is to be found using this strategy, it will no doubt not be in the best interests for everyone; sacrifices and compromises will have to be made at some stage. The types of welfare should depend on whether people don’t want to work or can’t work, through illness, disability or age. (Schiller, 2004) also argues that it is tough to ‘distinguish the potentially employable’ people from the rest of the poor, so these would be solved by utilising separate welfare systems, which would aim to satisfy as many people as possible. Obtaining the right welfare solutions would bring some people above the poverty line, although mismanaging these systems could see those already out of poverty falling below the line. From this, employment schemes would offer my incentives such as pay increases, additional training or even promotion prospects. Helping people out of poverty should start with correcting the right level of assistance they currently receive and helping them get into work. In conclusion, to solve poverty, and its many different dimensions, it is important to establish the nature of the poverty and how serious it actually is. For those in extreme poverty, especially in developing countries it would be appropriate to include more assistance with regards to developing skills which can be used to start trades and cooperative community projects, ensuring people help themselves out of poverty, or even the whole community. For people in developed countries however, the current welfare systems that people utilise, may need revising as some people require more help than others. The prospects of working also need to be more appealing than basically living off the welfare state to ensure people lift themselves out of poverty and hopefully stay that way but those still in poverty while working do require the extra financial assistance to escape poverty. References Atkinson, A. B. (1995). Incomes and the welfare state. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. CAFOD. (2007). Kenya: Helping people out of poverty. Retrieved March Tuesday 2nd, 2010, from Youtube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YRopnCUpwGA Robin Hood Tax. (2010). Retrieved March Tuesday 2nd, 2010, from http://robinhoodtax.org.uk/ Schiller, B. (2004). The economics of poverty and discrimination 9th edition. Pearson – Prentice Hall. Sloman, J., & Wride, A. (2009). Economics 7th edition. Harlow: Prentice Hall. Smith, S. C. (2005). Ending global Poverty. Palgrave Macmillan. UNDP. (2008). Human poverty index. Retrieved March Monday 1st, 2010, from Human development reports: http://hdr.undp.org/en/statistics/indices/hpi/ Worldpoverty. (2010). Retrieved March Monday 1st, 2010, from World Poverty: http://world-poverty.org/default.aspx Bibliography Davis, M. (2008). Dealing with Poverty. Retrieved March Monday 1st, 2010, from Hubpages: http://hubpages.com/hub/Dealing-with-Poverty Dwyer, R. (2010). Poverty, Prosperity and Place: The shape of class segregation in the age of extremes. Social Problems , 114-137. Havnevik, K. (2000). The institutional context of poverty eradication in rural Africa. Stockholm: Elanders Gotab. Qisilbash, M. (2003). On the Arbitrariness and Robustness of Multi-Dimensional Poverty Rankings. Retrieved March Monday 1st, 2010, from UIA: http://www.uia.mx/humanismocristiano/seminario_capability/pdf/17.pdf WorldBank. (2005). Poverty Lines. Retrieved March Monday 1st, 2010, from World Bank: http://siteresources.worldbank.org/PGLP/Resources/povertymanual_ch3.pdf Appendix Fig.1 Bowes, P (2010) derived from Sloman, J & Wride, A (2009) Economics 7th edition. Harlow: Prentice Hall Fig.2 Bowes, P (2010) derived from Atkinson, A B (1995) Incomes and the welfare state. Cambridge: Cambridge University press, pp17: Table 1.1

Educational Observation of Development of a 5th Grader Essay

Archie is a 10 year old in the fifth grade class here at Friends’ School. He’s attended this school from preschool until now, a total of seven years. He lives in the neighborhood and tends to be one of the first kids in the classroom every morning. In general he seems to be a happy child, smiling often. He has a tendency to be quite goofy at times and struggles with impulse control, often speaking out in class or being disruptive by talking or making jokes. This seems to stem from his ADHD, which he is on medication for. Though he has many challenges related to his ADHD, he displays an aptitude for math, enjoys reading, loves computers and is full of random facts that he adores to contribute. His general health seems fine however we have noticed that he spends quite a bit of time in the bathroom on occasion. We suspect that he may have digestion/constipation issues, however this is unclear and only speculation, as his younger sister is known to have these issues. He is on ADHD medication and takes that daily. He chooses not to eat a snack mid morning, but seems to eat a light lunch every day. He is of average height and weight in comparison to his classmates. He has plenty of energy daily and hasn’t missed any school due to sickness in these first 5 weeks of school. Archie is the oldest of two children. His younger sister is in the second grade here at Friends’ School. His parents are his adoptive parents, though his sister is biological – I do not know any further information about this at this time. His parents are both Lawyers by trade, though the Mother is the only one currently practicing. His father is the Hockey Coach at DU. I see both parents frequently here at the school dropping off and picking up their children. In addition, their Nanny and Aunt are often here at the school and heavily involved in their lives. They also are very involved with them at home and are on top of Archie’s behavior including enforcing consequences. Why I selected this child? The decision on which child to choose was an interesting process for me. I found it quite difficult because I truly wanted to learn the most from this process as possible. Not only about this one individual child, but learning that will relate to future students in my classes. I knew that I wanted to choose someone that didn’t fall into the gifted/exceptional categories  academically because in the future I don’t see myself working with kids that are outliers on either end of extremes, and didn’t feel I would learn what I wanted to by choosing someone from those categories. Once removing some of those kids, that also removed some of the obvious choices with quirky personalities! However, I find myself lucky to have a number of interesting and bold personalities in class and no one that seems to get overlooked or blend into the cracks. I took a look at the kids that were right were they needed to be academically, however had some barriers to learning socially/emotionally/behaviorally etc. Who needed extra help in ways that I don’t currently know how to attend to? How do you support these types of kids and encourage them to be part of the group and follow norms without squashing their own unique personality? By asking myself these, among other questions, it became obvious that Archie was my choice. I see my future classrooms having at least a few children like him that have ADHD or similar learning issues. I want to know how to relate to these kids, encourage them, and support them. I also hope to learn how to help them manage their own behavior in the classroom to allow the other children to learn and not be a constant distraction which often leaves them feeling like an outsider or looked down upon by classmates. Key questions about this child: 1. How severe is his ADHD disorder, when was it diagnosed, what is being done to help him compensate? What aspects of his learning are most affected by this disorder? 2. How to understand what life is like for him from his point of view? 3. What is the main cause for his inabilities to self regulate and his lack of impulse control? 4. Does his behavior change based on the time of day or day of the week? What about subject matter? 5. What are his strengths academically? Weaknesses? 6. Where is he developmentally in comparison to his classmates? National Norms? 7. Physical Development? (coordination, stamina, fine motor skills, rt/lt dominance, nutrition etc) 8. Mental/Cognitive Development? (multiple intelligences, level of executive function etc) 9. Does he have any other health issues? Possible digestive/constipation? 10. What is his background in regard to being adopted and does that have any bearing on his current issues? (ie. Drugs/alcohol birth parent? etc) 11. Does his  sister have any similar behavioral or learning issues? 12. Who are his friends and how does he relate to them? Do any of his issues get in the way of those relationships? 13. How does his family & life outside of school affect his daily life in school? (ie extracurricular activities, consequences, family culture, parental expectations etc) 14. What language and questions are best when communicating with this child? What approaches work? What encourage him vs deflates him? 15. How does he function in large groups, small groups, pairs? 16. How does he respond when he’s faced with something difficult or makes mistakes? What motivates him to try harder? Participate? Key questions for me to learn from this study: 1. What can we do as teachers to help him with these issues?   2. How can I connect with him and support him?  3. What can I learn from this child’s behavior and needs that I can use with other future students? 4. What exactly is ADHD and how does it affect a child’s learning? 5. How might I better support and motivate children with learning disorders? 6. When comparing students development in general, what factors influence their development? Physical Development Archie falls into the category of the Middle Years which occurs from the ages of six to twelve. This is a time when growth slows down in comparison with the periods preceding and following it (Stone & Church, 1984, p426). Archie is 10 years and 2 months old. He is one of the youngest children in his class, though his physical development seems to be consistent with that of a typical 10 year old. He is 56.5 inches tall and weighs 80 pounds. When directly compared to his 20 classmates, both male and female, his height falls in the middle of the pack at the 10th tallest and his weight slightly higher at the 15th heaviest. When compared to the national average growth charts in the United States, he falls into the 75th percentile of 10-year-old boys in both height and weight (Center for Disease Control and Prevention, 2000). His BMI, calculated at 17.6, places him into the 65th percentile for boys his age and is deemed a healthy weight (Center for  Disease Control and Prevention, 2012). He has not hit his adolescent growth spurt yet, which is not expected until he turns twelve or thirteen. (see Appendix B for all growth charts) Overall, Archie’s general health appears good. Since the beginning of the school year, he has only missed one day of school due to being sick. This seems to be on par with others in his class. He has been clinically diagnosed with ADHD and is currently on medication for this issue. The medication is administered in the morning then again at lunchtime by our administrative staff. He has expressed the annoyance of having to take the medication during the day at school but said that it really helps him in class, so it’s worth it. Archie said he has been taking ADHD medication since he was in second grade and it has tremendously helped. In addition to the ADHD diagnosis, we have observed some potential digestive issues. A few times a week, Archie will disappear for long periods of time in the bathroom. When asked if everything is all right, he says yes, however this is abnormal behavior for a 10 year old. It is understood that his younger sister who is in the 2nd grade does indeed have constipation issues, so we think that may be affecting Archie as well. Over the course of my 6 weeks of observations, this bathroom behavior continued which leads me to speculate that something is going on in regard to his digestion and elimination. The ADHD medication does not appear to affect his physical health, however his eating habits do seem to be affected. The majority of the children eat a snack every morning around 10am and Archie never does. I’ve asked him why and he says he isn’t hungry. He prefers to get on the classroom computers for the 15-minute duration of snack time. For lunch everyday, he brings a Vanilla Ensure along with a few other nutritious items. Ensure is a nutritional shake that has essential vitamins, minerals, fat, and protein, along with aiding in digestion and providing energy. I was told he started bringing these last year to make sure that he was getting some nutrition during the day because he often times did not eat much. I also wonder if a secondary reason has to do with his digestive issues. He nearly always drinks the Ensure and occasionally eats the other items he brings. He is nearly always one of the first children done with his lunch and is eager to get on the computers to play a game. In addition to his daily snack and lunch habits, I have noticed that when offered snacks or sugary treats he never partakes. A few examples are  during birthday celebrations or the harvest festival, both of which consist of potluck treats brought in by classmates. In addition, the music teacher says that he never takes the skittle reward claiming â€Å"he said he doesn’t need extrinsic motivation!† It seems that there is a clear link between his ADHD medication consumed during the day and his lack of appetite. I am unsure of how he eats at home, however seeing that his height and weight fall into healthy categories, his current nutrition must be providing what he needs. Throughout the day, his energy levels are consistent, however his focus and attention seem to be best in the morning. Many times a day we gather the group into a circle. He tends to be fidgety and move a lot, so he is allowed to sit on a stool during these times (unlike other children who sit on the floor). These times seem to be the most difficult for him to manage impulse control, stay focused and suppress excess energy. These behaviors are consistent with his ADHD and there have been modifications in the classroom, such as the stool, to support him with that. His mood seems to stay consistently jovial throughout the day, and his bodily movements don’t seem to express this aspect of him. It appears his motor skills are appropriate for his age, though it is clear during observation that those skills are not nearly a s advanced as many of his classmates. His large motor skills show the most obvious discrepancy. His movements when running, kicking and throwing a ball are awkward, jerky and only mildly coordinated (See picture #8a in Appendix A). Children with ADHD are notoriously clumsy and tend to have problems with how they perceive their bodies in relation to space (Freed & Parsons, 1997, p64). His PE teacher says that he has never been that great at sports and often seems to exaggerate his bodily movements. She suspects some of the exaggeration is to be humorous and to distract from his lack of coordination in comparison to the other students. Energetically he seems to easily have the stamina to keep up with the sports and activities at hand, however, the interest in these activities seems to be lacking. This shows up not only in PE class but also on the playground at recess. Over many days of observing Archie at recess, never once did I see him participate in any kind of sport activity. Daily the other children are playing kickba ll, capture the flag, four square or tag, and he never chooses to join in. He often chooses to hang out with the same 2 to 3 boys engaging in non-physical activities while talking and sitting on the picnic  table, under the play structure or hanging from the chain loops. A few times I observed him reading by himself on the playground. I find it intriguing that his energy and body movements inside the classroom seem heightened, yet he does not feel the need to exert this energy outside of the classroom. Personal interest and aptitude in sports seems to play a role in this discrepancy. However, it leaves me curious as to what else might be influencing his physical behaviors and choices. In addition, it is said that during the middle years, motor skills blossom as children become proficient at many types of physical activities, skills and games (Stone & Church, 1984, p450). This also makes me wonder what he might be missing out on developmentally by not having interest in these physical activities. His fine motor skills are on par with the other students in his class. Though his handwriting is not always perfect, when he takes the time, it is often much nicer than the other boys in the classroom. His written work, both writing and math, is legible, tends to be larger letters, and of average quality (see Appendix C ). His drawing and art skills are less advanced, more careless and not as refined as evidenced by picture #6b & 6b of his art project box in comparison to four other students (see Appendix A). His attention to detail in writing is much more pronounced than in drawing (see Appendix C, 4/5/6). He is right handed, holds the pencil appropriately and writes with adequate pressure. He is sufficiently coordinated with scissors and math tools as well. There is no evidence that his fine motor skills are deficient, just not as advanced as some though on par or exceed others in his classroom. Overall, Archie’s physical development seems to fit the usual pattern of his age group. The differences I have observed are in his gross motor skills being less coordinated than others and his lack of interest in physical activities during recess and PE. I have not noticed any physical development issues that are affecting his learning or social interactions, though it is clear that his ADHD does have an impact on all areas of his life. Cognitive Development Perhaps the most intriguing aspects of Archie’s development are in both the social/emotional and cognitive realms. He is a generally happy child that comes to school everyday with a positive attitude and a smile on his face.  He is caring and empathetic to others and is quite self-aware and reflective. He has the tendency to be quite goofy, often looking for ways to be the class clown and generate a laugh. Controlling his urges to speak out, move about or be appropriate in the moment is very difficult for him. You can see that he often acts first then thinks later. His impulses seem to get the best of him at times and often leads to him causing interruptions and getting into trouble. You can see that he is a good-natured boy and means well, however his low executive functioning skills make it difficult for him in the classroom. Luckily, his happiness seems to remain strong and resilient despite his social/emotional shortcomings. All of this can be accounted for when viewed through the lens of a child with Attention Deficit Disorder. Therefore, we must first examine his cognitive development before addressing his social/emotional development. ADD is described as a neurological syndrome that has three primary symptoms: impulsivity, distractibility and hyperactivity. The American Psychiatric Association states in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-IV-TR) that 3%-7% of school-aged children have ADHD (Freed & Parsons, 1997). Research shows that each year there is a drastic increase in reported cases and boys are more likely than girls to be diagnosed. Why might this be? Children with ADD or ADHD (incorporating the hyperactivity component) are often easily distracted, find it difficult to listen, follow directions, trouble sitting still and control impulsive behaviors. It is not surprising that in the typical school system that a child with these issues would be looked at as a nuisance and difficult to teach. Freed and Parsons (1997) say that the percentage is growing because of the cultural influences and failure of our educational system to understand and adequately address it [ADHD]. In their book, Right-Brained Children in a Left-Brained World, they make the argument that mostly gifted and virtually all children with ADD share the same learning style (Freed & Parsons, 1997, p17). They are often highly visual learners, with non-sequential processing and creative tendencies. Interestingly enough, Howard Gardner’s multiple intelligence theory also addresses this discrepancy in learning behavior. Gardner’s multifaceted view of intelligence suggests a plurality in view of mind and intelligence, recognizing many different facets of cognition and their strengths and weaknesses (Gardner, 1993, p6). Our  American school system has been set up to support left-brained learners who are strong at regurgitating information but weak at creative and problem solving skills. The ADHD ch ild does not fit well into this rubric, which results in his disorder looked at as a problem as opposed to a gift. Both theorists suggest that there are students like Archie who think differently and possess strengths that are not explored or supported in the traditional school system of our left-brain focused society. Luckily, we as educators are learning and expanding! As stated in The Compassionate Classroom, â€Å"The trust level rises markedly when students realize that a relationship based classroom teacher is supporting their common needs rather than ranking their academic differences.† (Hart, Hodson, 2004, p. 20) As I stated in my introduction, my decision to choose this child was in order to learn what I could do as a Teacher to help these non-traditional learners flourish in their education. Archie was formally diagnosed with ADHD in the second grade and began seeing the school psychologist at that time. His kindergarten/first grade teacher said they had been talking to the parents since kindergarten about the need for some intervention and possible learning issues, yet the parents were quite resistant up until the second grade. At that point, they did decide to get Archie evaluated and it was determined that he had ADHD and medication would help him. Due to Archie being adopted, I found it intriguing that his biological sister also had ADHD. What is the hereditary link and how does adoption play a role? After further investigation, one study published by the Journal of Abnormal Psychology found that out of 808 adopted children ages 4-18, 21% had enough behavioral symptoms to qualify for a diagnosis of ADHD. This is over twice the rate in the general population (Connell, P). They also say that 40% of children with ADHD will have a parent with ADHD, usually the father (Adesman, MD). Wow! It isn’t a stretch to start to see the link and why. ADHD greatly effects the executive function of an individual, so poor impulse control and accompanying behavior may account for the factors that make these numbers abnormally high. These adoptive children are exposed to more risk factors such as smoking, drinking, drugs, malnutrition, neglect, and unplanned pregnancy (Kunz, 2010). Archie and his sister came from the same set of birth parents three years apart. It does not surprise me at all to think that these siblings were exposed to any number of risk factors  seeing that the parents chose to give up one child and then got pregnant 3 years later and gave that one up as well! One of the areas most affected by ADHD is in the realm of executive function. In a 1990 study published in the medical journal Lancet, a discovery was found when using PET scans to measure the brain activity in 9 children with ADHD. The scans showed an abnormally low cerebral activity in the frontal areas of the brain responsible for concentration, language development, attention span, impulse control and logical, sequential reasoning. Conversely, they found higher activity in the occipital or rear lobe, which is the primary visual area of the brain (Freed & Parsons, 1997, p36). If the areas of the brain most affected by ADHD are associated with carrying out executive function, that wo uld explain Archie’s behavior in many ways. His biggest issue is with impulse control. He calls out answers and comments consistently throughout the day, and has a hard time waiting to be called on when he’s excited with an answer. His humor is often interjected at inappropriate times and if you ask him why he chose to do what he did, he often says he couldn’t help it and that he had to. It seems that in the moment, he doesn’t â€Å"think† before he acts. When in a group at circle his attention starts out on task but then diminishes quickly over time. If he is working independently he often needs to sit by himself in order to focus. I’ve observed that he participates in small groups pretty well, however if with certain kids he just goofs off. His strength seems to be in cognitive flexibility as he is able to problem solve, adjust to various settings and is socially aware of others and their point of view. A great example of this perspective shift is when he is pulled aside for inappropriate behavior. Once removed from the initial impulsive moment he can easily see how his behavior was inappropriate or disrespectful to the class or teacher. Archie usually becomes apologetic and submissive, saying sorry and that it won’t happen again. I’ve been impressed by his mature response to these instances and level of respect shown. Many children might make excuse after excuse, however, he admits that it was a poor choice on his part and moves on. Theorist William Damon had an interesting six-stage theory on human moral reasoning and its relation to authority. It seems to me Archie falls into the fifth stage of special preparation where the superior is seen as superior and obedience is founded on respect and faith in the authorities  concern (Stone & Church, 1984). Despite Archie’s ADHD diagnosis, he appears to be developing cognitively at his appropriate age level. In both 4th and 5th grade, his writing and reading assessments place him squarely performing at grade level (see Appendix D). For the writing he was given a prompt to write a story, create a rough, then final draft. For reading, he was asked to read a short story out loud and respond to a series of comprehension questions. When comparing the two grade level evaluations, you can see the improvements made from year to year and the expansion of his abilities in these areas. If you take a look at his current writing samples, you can see his personal expression expressed and some really creative thinking, in addition to the accurate use of conventions (see Appendix D). Louise Bates Ames, Ph.D. says that typical ten year olds combine ideas in short, choppy sentences but with enough punch to catch the readers interest (Ames, p42). This is evidenced by his personal narrative story on page 6 of Appendix C . He seems to enjoy math, actively participating and contributing in his 5th grade level math classes. His math worksheets and homework indicate that he has a solid knowledge of the curriculum being covered and can do it on his own in and outside of class (see Appendix C, 7/8/9/10). He shows a similar eagerness and competency in Science, Spanish, Spelling and Technology. His music teacher says that he tends to goof off more than not and is awkwardly coordinated with instruments or drums in comparison to other children. However, he has expressed a love for music and is currently enrolled at The School of Rock in drum lessons. His parents said that he is doing quite well. I wonder if this individual musical instruction works for him better than in a whole class group environment. ADHD children have difficulty filtering out all the stimuli and their nervous system is on overload (Freed & Parsons, 1997, p55). If Archie feels more stimulation than other children, that can explain his difficulty in certain highly stimulating learning environments like music or PE. Middle years children typically turn their attention toward the world at large. Piaget describes this as the stage of concrete operations, during which children have limited capacity for abstract thought but can deal with objects quite fully (Stone & Church, 1984, p. 493). Piaget believes that children construct their knowledge of the world though active manipulation with materials (Pawlina, 2011) Essentially, learning by  experience. Archie is most engaged in school when he is actively â€Å"doing† something and problem solving. When administering the Piagetian tasks he showed competent levels of knowledge in laws of conservation, reversibility and demonstrated logical thinking. When asked why he knew what he knew, most of his responses were matter of fact and then expanded in very creative and unique ways. For example, in the water level comparison, he said they were the same amount because I didn’t take any water out†¦.†unless it quickly evaporated† ha ha. Or when asked about the wood beads, he very animatedly exclaimed, â€Å"What do you mean? They’re ALL wood!!! So obviously more wood beads!† and laughed. Archie always has a humorous, clever remark to add in all his interactions. Though not always appropriate, his sense of humor is one of his biggest strengths. This in addition to his creativity and ability to think beyond what he sees in front of him tells me that he has progressed beyond the concrete operational stage in ways that aren’t accounted for in Piaget’s tests. Critics of Piaget’s theory note that he does not account for other competencies a child has developed. I believe this is where Gardner’s Multiple Intelligences theory and Right and Left Brain Dominance theories realistically cover far more of the learning population in our world today. In taking a Right Brain, Left Brain dominance test (TPT, 2012) we concluded that Archie is a combination of both left and right brained. Though he is right handed and a right foot kicker, his eyes and ears are left dominant (see Appendix E). We took some time to go over the typical characteristics of each and he claimed he identified with nearly all of the Right brain qualities. I then gave him The Connell Multiple Intelligence Questionnaire for Children (Connell, J.) which is a series of statements you are to check off if it describes you (Appendix ). Archie scored highest in the areas of Word Smart, Nature Smart and People smart. These categories correspond to Gardner’s labels Linguistic, Naturalistic and Interpersonal intelligence (Zeiger, 2012). This does not surprise me! In observation, it is evident that Archie is extremely creative with his words, both written and oral, he has a charismatic, humorous, and sensitive personality in addition to showing interest in science, geography and nature in general. Social/Emotional Development Archie’s social and emotional development seem to reflect similar advances as his cognitive development. Being that your happiness is generally based on your experience of the world around you, it is clear that Archie is at a happy place in life. Ames (1998) says that a typical ten-year-old has generally reached an enjoyable state of equilibrium. They love life and share it enthusiastically with those near and dear (p21). This truly seems the case for him as he comes to school every day in a pleasant mood, a smile on his face, eagerly interacting with classmates and has only complained about not liking homework! In his earlier years at Friends School, the school psychologist started to work with Archie to build his low self-esteem, ease anxiety and self regulate impulse control. Right off the bat she implemented play therapy, allowing him to choose materials that help him express himself. He chose a lot of mastery kinds of games that he was able to solve or figure out and this made him feel better about himself. She says he was always a well-intentioned kid, he just doesn’t think before he acts. This behavior got him into a lot of trouble in 3rd grade, so she worked with him on better control and choosing which children to be around. At this time he had only been formally diagnosed with ADHD and on medication less than one year. She said, â€Å"Once his bio-chemistry was corrected, he had to go back to learn what the other children had already learned about choosing friends, making good decisions and controlling impulses. â€Å" It makes sense that these areas of social finesse are behind those of his classmates and affect his interactions to this day. Social difficulties often accompany special needs learners and giftedness, I see this clearly represented in both Archie and other students with these labels in my classroom. Regardless of his past, I see that classmates really seem to enjoy his humor and contributions. No doubt his caring and empathetic nature, along with that humor, are his strengths socially. When administering the Piagetian tasks, I asked him about how he thought 5th grade was going. With a big smile he said â€Å"fine, I like it.† I proceeded to ask about his friends and who was a best friend. Many times he said â€Å"I have lots of friends†, but no mention of a best friend. Louise Bates Ames state’s in her book Your Ten-to-Fourteen-Year-Old that some ten-year-old boys have a â€Å"gang† of friends whom they seem to like about equally: â€Å"To me they aren’t best friends. They’re all my friends† (p262). In my observations I noticed  that Archie gravitates to specific friends during recess, while chatting in the classroom during transition or in the morning before classes. These friends are nearly always boys. He initiates conversation often in these circumstances; most times extremely enthusiastic about whatever it is he would like to share. On the playground, it’s most common for him to choose 2-3 boys to hang out with and have conversations throughout the entire recess, preferring that to any sport or activity. The fact that he only chooses to socialize with other boys is consistent for his age group. Nearing the end of the middle years, the majority of girls and boys are not interested in the opposite sex†¦yet. However, they are aware that boy-girl relationships lie ahead of them (Ames, 1989, p38). Erikson describes the crisis of this period as industry vs. inferiority saying that children are aware and eager to acquire information about sex (Stone & Church, 1984, p451) Though I am not there for their sexual education classes on Fridays, I did observe during a field trip that Archie was joking around about those types of relationships, teasing a few of the girls, and making jokes of bladder infections. It was good natured and harmless, this indicates to me that he is aware of the future potential, though clearly not ready for it himself. Play touches on every aspect of development and learning (Rogers & Sawyer, 1988, pvii). Due to his common choices at recess, I have not adequately been able to observe Archie’s choices of play. It is common for this age group to move from symbolic play into an interest in games with rules. This transition period roughly corresponds to Piaget’s concrete operational period of cognitive development (Rogers & Sawyer, 1988, p20). An exception in Archie’s recess choices was a time for a few days where there was a group of about 20 children of all ages who created a game using the used tires on the playground. I watched the interaction for two days in a row and was quite impressed with the level of creativity they all displayed in the rules of this game and how well they self monitored it’s progression. Archie was actively involved as one of the referees. He did not ever participate in the competitive aspect of the races, but immensely enjoyed being the keeper of the rules, telling others where to go, start the race and call the winner. He even ran inside once to get a camera to capture the â€Å"photo finish† (see picture#3b in Appendix A). Piaget outlined two criteria for games with rules: competition and mutually agreed upon or  formal rules to govern the activity (Rogers & Sawyer, 1988, p50). This playground game certainly fits that criterion. I think it is interesting to note that he chose a role where there was no competitive motivation, but allowed him to be in charge and step into a leadership role. I loved seeing this for Archie because leadership is an area I don’t think he has much experience with. This game gave him the opportunity for success! Research tells us that play contributes to learning and cognitive maturity in so many ways, I do wonder what impact the lack of play has on his social development. When working in groups, Archie is often supportive of the others and contributes, however is rarely the leader. Often he will get off task and interject humor becoming a disrupter. This happens especially when grouped with certain other boys in the room. He seems to work better independently or with one other partner, especially when he is interested and there are hands on activities. Though he knows who these students are that trigger his inappropriate behavior, he still needs to work on making better choices. Therefore, it is paramount to help him facilitate good choices when choosing partners or groups. We actively remind him and others to make good choices, and if that is not displayed I quietly pull him aside and ask if that was his best choice of partner or behavior. He immediately get’s a sheepish grin saying â€Å"no†, looking down in humility. In any intervention of behavior that I’ve observed with another adult, myself included, he is consistently respectful and more than willing to listen, including the ability to quickly admit when his is wrong. Ames (1989) says â€Å"Ten’s usually respect the teacher and often accept her word as law even more than that of their parents.† (p41) Overall, Archie is a well-integrated, happy child who is learning and developing socially and emotionally. He gets along with others, displays caring and empathy, is happy with the friends he has and enjoys a positive experience of school. Any shortcoming he has is easily explained by the affect ADHD has on his executive functioning skills and general maturity. It has been helpful to learn that I need to focus on helping Archie implement tactics that help him make better choices in the future, and not focus on bad behavior. Clearly, his impulse control gets the better of him, so any way to help him to increase his awareness around others is imperative. Summary Archie is a great kid, with lots of potential along with some unique learning needs. His sense of humor and excitement is contagious, making him quite a likable child. He has the combination of many factors influencing all aspects of his development. It is exciting to hear the feedback of previous teachers and therapists; his development has come a long way since entering the school in preschool. He has shown consistent improvement in his academic abilities from year to year and marked improvement from second grade until fifth since being medicated for ADHD. In my observation of him in the classroom, it seems that his behavior has much to do with his level of interest he has in the topic and who he is surrounded by. We are actively looking for ways to help him succeed and give him the right environment to promote his learning. Giving children many modalities of input and experience is key to tapping into all the intelligences of both right and left-brain learners. Visual, verbal, kinesthetic, and artistic aspects must be incorporated into lessons to support all learners. Archie has consistently displayed higher than average intelligence when he is actively engaged and fully understands what is expected of him. It has been such a privilege to take a closer look at someone else’s life in an attempt to learn them better so that you may then be better. He has helped me create empathy for him and others that have learning impediments like ADHD, poor executive functioning skills or social/emotional deficits. It is fascinating to look back and review my initial questions posed for this study and see that I have been able to answer them all to some degree! Not only do I have a greater understanding of this specific child and his development, but an increased knowledge of what is going on for students with special needs and how I may help them. As teachers, our understanding of where a student is at and how to get them to the next level is essential to our children’s learning. Vygotsky says that through observation, we can know a child’s Zone of Proximal Development (ZPD) (Pawlina, 2011). In this space of what a child can do independently and what they can do with adult support, lies the opportunity of learning and development. This child study has provided that opportunity for acute observation and questioning of what a child with ADHD and right brained learning tendencies needs. We as educators need to adapt to the needs of our individual learners. Archie is lucky to be in a school where social emotional needs are a strong focus in  the classroom. This allows him the support he needs to accommodate his reduced executive function skills, yet the space to express his creativities and unique personality. Gardner says in his 1993 book Multiple Intelligences: In my view, the purpose of school should be to develop intelligences and to help people reach vocational and avocational goals that are appropriate to their particular spectrum of intelligences. People who are helped to do so, I believe, feel more engaged and competent, and therefore more inclined to serve the society in a constructive way† (p9). I completely agree with Gardner and see myself as a liaison to learning. Maybe Alexandra K. Trenfor said it best â€Å"The best teachers are those who show you where to look but don’t tell you what to see†. Works Cited Adesman, Andrew (2012) Expert advice: ADHD and Adoption. Retrieved October 21, 2012, from http://www.parents.com/parenting/adoption/parenting/adhd-adopted-child/ American Psychiatric Association (2000) Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders: DSM-IV-TR. Washington: American Psychiatric Association. Ames, Louise Bates. (1988) Your ten-to fourteen-year-old. New York, NY: Dell Publishing. Center for Disease Control and Prevention. (2000, May 30). Retrieved October 21, 2012, from http://www.cc.gov/growthcharts Connell, J.D. The Connell Multiple Intelligence Questionnaire for Children. Scholastic Teaching Resources Retrieved October 21, 2012, from http://printables.scholastic.com/ Connell, Pam. (2012) ADHD and Adopted Children. Retrieved October 21, 2012, from http://adoption.families.com/blog/adhd-and-adopted-children Freed, Jeffrey & Parson, Laurie. (1997) Right-brained children in a left-brained world: unlocking the potential of your ADD child. New York, NY: Fireside. Gardner, Howard. (1993) Multiple intelligences: the theory in practice. New York, NY: Basic Books. Hart, S. & Hodson, V. (2004). The compassionate classroom: relationship based teaching and learning. Encinitas, CA: PuddleDancer Press. Kunz, Marnie. (2010, March 23) Adoption & ADHD. Retrieved October 21, 2012, from http://www.livestrong.com/article/83314-adoption-adhd/ Pawlina, S. (2011, September 16) Developmental Theorists – Piaget, Vygotsky, Erikson, Gardner and Dewey [Overview handouts] The Premier Tutors (2012, April) Are You Right-brained or Left-brained? That Is the Question. Retrieved October 22, 2012 from http://thepremiertutors.org/ Rogers, Cosby S. & Sawyers, Janet K. (1988) Play in the lives of children. Washington, DC: National Association for the Education of Young Children. Stone, L. Joseph and Church, Joseph. (1984) Childhood and adolescence: a psychology of the growing person (5th Edition). New York, NY: Random-House. Zeiger, S. (2012). Multiple Intelligence Test for Children. Retrieved October 21, 2012, from http://kids.lovetoknow.com/