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Running head: INDIVIDUAL DIFFERENCES STUDENT PROFILE

Individual Differences Student Profile

Kim Ball
Instructor: Dr. Tracey Meyerhoeffer
EDUC 205: Development / Individual Differences
Fall 2014

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Individual Differences Student Profile

I cant imagine being a little five year old who struggles to communicate with peers and
adults. Nicholas is the boy I have been observing for my profile. He has a severe speech
impairment and limited English proficiency (LEP). While visiting with his mom, she
mentioned several times how her little boy wants to be able to talk like the rest of his
kindergarten classmates and how important it is for him to be in speech therapy. I began
monitoring Nicholas at the beginning of the school year and for this profile, I will be discussing
his physical, cognitive, and socio-emotional development as well as provide a summary of my
findings as they relate to Nicholas and the classroom.
General Information
Nicholas is a Hispanic male who is five years and three months of age. Nicholass first
language in his home environment is Spanish, but he does speak English in the classroom
setting. His parents are married and he has a little sister, age unknown, to whom his mom says he
is a great big brother. Nicholas also has two very active grandparents in his life who he spends a
lot of time with when his mom and dad are working. They too live with Nicholas and his family.
The family is very consistent regarding his school routine.
Nicholas is in the full day kindergarten program at a private school. Twice a week, he is
pulled from the general classroom setting for half-hour speech therapy sessions. Nicholas is
always on time for school at 8:00 am and attends the aftercare program until 3:30 pm. When it is
over, his mom or one of the grandparents is there to pick him up and he always has a big smile
on his face when he sees one of them. Nicholas has a very kind and caring family.
Physical Development

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Nicholas has black hair, brown eyes and dark skin. Additionally, he has no visible scars
or birthmarks. He is right handed and able to use a pencil correctly and cut with scissors, but gets
frustrated easily when he is unable to write a letter correctly. Nicholas is considerably larger in
weight but average in height compared to his peers. His physical maturation when compared
with his classmates is normal. In the classroom setting, he does well in small group interactions
and does his best to verbally communicate his needs. His speech impairment doesnt seem to
affect his ability to play with his classmates. At recess, Nicholas uses his fine and gross motor
skills well; he is very active and engaged in the games being played.
Nicholass overall health seems to be good. His mom did not indicate that he has any
serious health problems. She only mentioned her and Nicholass concerns about his speech and
not being able to communicate effectively at times. He also passed both the vision and hearing
tests that were administered at the beginning of the school year. Nicholas seems to eat well at
lunch time, but it takes him a little longer to finish than some of the kids in his class. Last, he
always looks well rested when he comes to school.
Cognitive Development
Nicholas is a kindergartner and attends St. Nicholas Catholic School. He is in a regular
classroom setting and attends full-day kindergarten. The speech therapist comes to the school
twice a week to work with him and he is always eager to go with her. Nicholas has a hard time
communicating his wants and needs to his teachers and classmates due to his speech impairment.
Additionally, he has a difficult time expressing ideas clearly and struggles with rhyming. I feel
that his speech impairment is holding him back in some of his academic learning. However, in
his work habits, Nicholas is performing at or above grade level. He pays attention in class, raises

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his hand, and waits quietly to be called on. Nicholas always does what is asked of him and
doesnt give up if something is hard; instead, he keeps at it until he accomplishes the task.
Nicholas shows confidence in his learning and tries his hardest to do his very best. In addition,
his teacher gives him extra opportunities for reinforcement to ensure he continues to make
academic progress.
According to Piagets stages of cognitive development, Nicholas is operating in the
preoperational stage. He can now start to apply mental symbols to re-create or represent past or
current experiences. At times, Nicholas has difficulty with symbolic function though. Nicholas
understands the concept of pretend play but his language skills are limited due to his speech
impairment. He seems able to use his imagination, but to communicate what he is imagining to
others is challenging for him.
Socio-emotional Development
Nicholas seems to enjoy kindergarten and interacts well with his classmates. In fact, the
kids help him communicate at times when the teachers are having a hard time understanding
him. Nicholas is very respectful to his teachers and the other staff in the school. He always does
what is asked of him and tries really hard to learn and comprehend what is being taught to him.
However, one can tell that his speech impairment upsets him when he isnt understood the first
time. He tends to shy away if he is asked more than once to repeat a word or explain something.
Overall, he has a good self-esteem and is working really hard to be able to communicate better
with his classmates and teachers.
The theorist, Lev Vygotsky, believed that children learn in a zone of proximal
development. Nicholas operates in Vygotskys zone of proximal development. He understands

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and follows teacher directions and completes simple worksheets at his level. In the kindergarten
classroom, scaffolding is used to aid in the learning process. Nicholas does well when certain
things are broken down into simple steps. My one concern is he doesnt raise his hand if the
teacher is going too fast for him to understand the concept being learned. Instead, he has the
tendency to look at his neighbors paper to make sure he is doing the paper right.
Summary, Conclusions, and Implications
Nicholas seems to be a very happy boy with a positive family environment. Early in the
year, his mom made sure Nicholas was placed on an individual education plan (IEP) for his
speech impairment and so he is receiving his speech therapy sessions regularly. Although
Nicholas is considered a limited English proficiency (LEP) student who could benefit from
English as a Second Language (ESL) program, St. Nicholas School is unable to provide this
service due to funding issues. However, his LEP does not seem to be hindering him in the
classroom setting. Nicholass progress report shows he is making good academic growth.
Nicholas is helpful and kind to everyone. When observing him in the classroom
environment, Nicholas shows many strengths. He listens attentively, shows readiness to work,
follows the rules and accepts responsibility. His one weakness is his inability to communicate
effectively with his peers and teachers. This is upsetting to him because he wants to be able to
communicate like his peers do. If Nicholas is able to continue to receive speech therapy on a
regular basis, he should excel academically in upcoming years. The classroom teachers also
make sure he is receiving one-on-one tutoring with a peer tutor five days a week. The tutor helps
him with letter recognition and phonics to better his fluency. Nicholas should also continue to

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practice sight word recognition on a regular basis by writing and saying the words repeatedly.
This will help him with his reading skills as the year progresses.
In conclusion, Nicholas is a very bright child who can excel in the years to come if he
continues his IEP and speech therapy sessions. He is not a trouble maker and strives to do his
very best in whatever task he is given. Nicholas has a good support system at home and in
school. His class size is small, consisting only of sixteen children, so he is able to get the extra
help he needs. Nicholas has gained confidence in himself since the beginning of the school year.
In all, he has the personality and the ability to be successful because that is something very
important to him.

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References
Parsons, R.D., Hinson, S.L., & Sardo-Brown, D. (2008). Educational psychology. Mason, OH:
Cengage Learning.