12 years - 12 years 11 months

1. Describe any physical or behavioral signs of incipient puberty.
Peyton has definitely started in on the mood swings and doesn’t want to be around me very much. In the summer after her 7th grade year she would get bored and then I would make suggestions; which of course she would turn down right away. However, as the weeks went on she would use my suggestions, but act like it was her idea to begin with. She definitely has those attitudes of being a smart-alec and talking back sometimes. I’m trying to handle this as best as I can, but I know that when she’s in her not-so-good moods I just let her spend time in her room and give her her space. I know that when I was her age I did the same thing and it was best for my parents just to leave me alone until I got over my bad mood.

2. How would you characterize your child at this point in terms of the under-controlled, over-controlled or resilient categories? Have there been any changes since the preschool period and why might they have occurred?
So far I would say that Peyton is still pretty resilient. Even though Peyton had a huge accident 2 years ago, and she has been doing very well with that. She’s made a huge effort to do everything that she needs to to get back on track and be back where she needs to be with school and everything. The definition of resilience is “the ability to adapt effectively in the face of threats to development.” I believe that’s exactly what Peyton had to do with her development. However, Peyton has always had this determination since she was in preschool and I knew that she would be able to overcome this threat to her development. Peyton use to be really bad with anything that had to do with music, now she’s in the average bracket in that area.

3. Using the 7th grade report card and your own observations, summarize your child’s academic skills at this point. What specific activities might promote some of these skills?
Peyton’s report card says that her reading, spelling, and writing skills are still very strong. She got an A in English, Spanish, Social Studies, and Art. She got a B in Math and in Science. The thing that probably has helped her get an A in English is that she absolutely loves to read and write; I think those are her strongest skills so that would definitely reflect her getting great grades in that area. To be honest though, I’m a little surprised that she didn’t do better in science. I put her in science camps and everything; maybe she’s just burnt out on that subject. Peyton is doing very well in school and I’m proud of her.