Observation Four

Observation #4: Better Off Dead

Context/Background:

Boy in blue shirt: (Lane) adolescent age. Brown hair.

Father in suit.

Both are inside what looks to be their home.

Running Record/ Intensive Observation:

Dad is working on some paperwork in the dining room. Lane walks by as his dad calls him by name to come speak with him. Lane enters the room and sits down and apologizes about the garage. His dad immediately starts talking about something else, using a large vocabulary and mentioning that he should see other women. His father continues to look at a sheet of paper and pauses several times during their talk. Lane responds saying he only wants Beth. His dad convinces him to take his law partner’s daughter on a date and after some complaining Lane agrees, giving his dad a high five on the way out. His dad says “right off” and Lane corrects “right on”.

Lane is in his room in front of the mirror talking to himself and getting ready. He sniffs his armpits and sprays deodorant under them.

Next he is pulling up to a house with Christmas lights in a squeaky, rattling car. He approaches the house, rings the doorbell and hears dogs barking.  A girl with some sort of antennae/headset answers the door and immediately gives him the lowdown on her plan. She says that she too doesn’t want to go out with him, and after performing calculations on her electronic device, she says that instead of taking her out on a date, he can pay thirteen or so dollars. He then asks her if she will take a check.

A small freckled boy is reading “How to pick up Trashy Women” with a grin and wide eyes.

A female singer dressed in tight, short metallic skirt is performing on a stage with several others. There are lots of kids dancing. Lane and a friend are seated down blowing party kazoos. Another boy, a blonde with a blonde girl in tow, approach the boys and remarks that they are a cute couple, among other things. Lane’s friend bursts out laughing and laughing and the blondes walk quickly away. Some doors open and the air is foggy. A fat boy appears and then disappears then walks back in to the dance floor with a brown haired girl. They begin dancing as Lane watches the two blondes. The laughing friend comes back to the blondes again and drives them away again. Some boy, perhaps the fat one from before, is passed out on the floor.

Outside the gym, Lane is walking away. As he is walking outside a girl, the one with the fat boy, chases after him. She trips him on the stairs and he falls down. She starts apologizes in French. He recognizes her and says they are neighbors. She just smiles and nods. He realizes that she doesn’t understand. He introduces himself as, “Me Lane”. She replies saying her name is Monique. He asks if she speaks English and she shakes her head. They are shaking hands as the fat boy, who is named Ricky, says he needs Monique to come out front to wait for his mom. Lane and Monique are still shaking hands. Ricky finally walks away and then the blondes return, again cracking a joke at Lane. The mom drives up and Ricky yells to Monique. Lane mutters something about “parlez-vous” and says bye. She waves and gets in the car, as the mom is asking “Don’t you understand English?!”

Reflection & Comments:

Link what you know about development for that age/stage to what you observed. Note what seems typical and atypical about behavior, physical development, social interaction, etc. and what details lead you to those conclusions.

Lane seems like a very typical teenager. His physical development is right on target for his age. He seems to have a fairly deep voice, somewhat filled out and quite tall. His cognitive development is also about where I would expect. He listens to his dad, although hesitant and also does a lot of thinking and looking at girls, which is also a teenage boy agenda item. The girl who he meets at the house, seems atypical: dressed in a suit, wearing an antennae and seems very smart. She is probably not a well-liked girl by Lane’s reaction to his dad’s speech.

Cliques are present as well in the short clip. The two blondes appear popular, the boy jock-like and the girl preppy. They have behind them in several scenes a group of followers as well. The blonde boy seems to enjoy making jokes and putting others down: the two boys as friends, the foreign girl, etc. I also am lead to believe that the blonde girl is Beth because Lane continues to look at her and the boy as they dance.