User talk:Skye-Dawn55

Wikipedia Assignment Skyler Gluskoter According to the textbook Understanding Human Development “It turns out that the Arts music, the visual arts, writing, as well as dance, all have documented benefits on mental health and wellbeing and we review these as part of the wider map of pathways to the summit of full mental wellness.” (Dunn & Craig, 2018) Development is a process that we all go through, and being in the early adulthood phase of life, Skyler Gluskoter, realizes the  importance of  dance which has been a huge aspect  through each phase of development because it was the only release available when times got tough and anxiety was taking over. Dance played a big role in the psychological and social health of Skyler through the early childhood development and to the point in Skye’s life of early adulthood. Dance has shaped Skye into the person she is today and has been the only thing to rely on for confidence, shaping Skyler into the dancer she has become. Table of Contents 1.	Heredity and Environment

2.	Prenatal Development

3.	Infancy and Toddlerhood

4.	Early Childhood

5.	Middle Childhood

6.	Adolescence & Emerging Adulthood

7.	Older Adulthood

8.	Death & Dying

9.	References

Heredity & Environment Born in Sacramento California, Skyler’s parents were divorced one year after she was born. Her mother moved to Springville California to live close to her parents since she was a single mother. Skyler spent a lot of time at her grandparent’s house as an infant and as she developed, it was her “happy place” and the only stability she had. Skyler’s mother worked long hours trying to make ends meet as a single parent and moving periodically due to financial struggles. Skyler was surrounded with love and support at her grandparent’s house from her aunts and uncles as well as her grandparents due to the fact that she was the first baby born in the family for over 15 years. Skyler’s mother was involved in unhealthy relationships with several men through the years which made an unstable and unhappy home environment when she was with her mother. Skyler had a sister born when she was two years old in which the relationship between the siblings father, and Skyler’s mother ended in a very unhealthy struggle when the girls were ages 2 and 4. Skyler left with her mother and the sibling left with her father and the two never saw each other again until recently reuniting at the ages of 16 and 18. A few years after being separated from her sister, Skyler had a brother born in a very unhealthy marriage between her mother and her brother’s father. Drugs, and infidelity ended the marriage and Skyler’s mother was once again a single parent raising two children. Due to the instability of her mother, verbal abuse was an issue in the home. Skye moved in with her grandparents during her adolescent years after she began feeling unloved and isolated. The one thing in Skyler’s life that she always relied on to release her anger and emotions was “dance.” Skyler’s grandmother saw how much happiness dance brought to her life and vowed to always support Skyler in the area of dance, and has paid for her to be involved in dance since the age of three. Research shows that as well as supporting physical health, dance has communicative therapy that supports trauma victims. (Hanna, 2006) Prenatal Development While Skyler’s mom was the tender age of nineteen when she became pregnant with Skyler, she was conscientious of her weight and did not have a balanced diet during her pregnancy. According to the textbook “Understanding Development” during the embryonic and fetal period, proper nutrition is important for development of the fetus brain during week 20-36. (Dunn & Craig, 2018) Due to the young age and lack of knowledge, Skyler’s mother was not gaining the weight needed to prepare for a healthy infant at birth. Infancy and Toddlerhood Skyler was born 7 weeks premature. During labor, the pediatrician explained to Skyler’s mother that the baby was very small in weight and may not survive. Skyler was born weighing 4 pounds and 2 ounces. Infants begin to give an actual social smile at the age of 2-3 months and actually spontaneously laugh at the age of 4 months. In addition, between the age of 2-6 months infants express anger, and other feelings of emotion. Skyler smiled for her first time at the age of 4 months. Her development was a little delayed due to her premature birth. Skyler began walking at an early age due to her small size. She started walking at the age of 9 months. Skyler’s personality began to emerge and she was bossy and vocal at the age of 8-12 months. Early Childhood As a young girl, Skyler loved music and was dancing around the house performing for anyone that had the time to watch her. Skyler loved to spend time at the beach on vacation and loved to play in the water. She started swimming at the age of three and loved all water activities. Skyler also loved pets and had a pet cat that slept with her. Skyler spent most of her time with adults because there were not any other children in her household until her brother was born when she was six years old. Skyler was mature at an early age and had an amazing vocabulary. Skyler loved helping her mother take care of her baby brother and she was a very patient and loving sister. Middle Childhood From the age of 9-12, Skyler changed from a child that was surrounded with adults, to a child that had many cousins and a brother to play with. Skyler also began to change from a preoperational to concrete operational which was helpful in building relationships with other children instead of adults helping her solve problems. Skyler enjoyed helping with her younger brother and cousins and also loved being the older child and telling the others what to do. She spent a lot of time preparing skits and dances that involved all the cousins and her brother and also loved to teach others to dance. Skyler began to gain more confidence in dance during this time in her life and became more independent. Skyler did not enjoy the subject of math and struggled with all math concepts. Skyler’s grandmother was a teacher at the school she attended and suggested that Skyler should be tested for a disability with numbers. After testing with a resources specialist, she was diagnosed with a number sense deficiency. Skyler was pulled out of class during math daily to work with the resource specialist. The lack of knowledge in the subject of math began to cause Skyler to have anxiety due to other students realizing she had to go to a different room to work on her math with a specialist. Skyler realized the only time she had confidence was when she was dancing or performing in dance. Dance was her only release for the anxiety that was building up in her life. Adolescence and Emerging Adulthood Skyler struggled a little during adolescence due to her anxiety caused from feeling inadequate in the area of math and felt different than others. She was beautiful and had girls that bullied her because they tried tom pressure her to date their friend and Skyler was not interested in him. Before a dance performance at a talent contest at school, she heard the group of students mention that they would like to see Skyler break her neck during her dance performance. The negativity she received from other students had an effect on Skyler and she became to suffer from depression. Some of the girls at her school were jealous of her dance ability and was also jealous of the interest other boys had in Skyler. Between her academic struggles with math, and the bullying she was receiving from other girls on social network, she became suicidal and felt inadequate. Skyler made the cheerleading squad in high school which caused more attention to her and caused the bullies to have more reason to bully. Skyler’s mother realized she was struggling emotionally and took her out of school for 6 months in order to regroup and realize she wasn’t the problem and spent time teaching Skyler to focus on strengths in life not weaknesses. Skyler’s senior year of high school was cut short due to the quarantine which may have been best due to the needed time at home with family. Skyler met a respectful gentleman that she began dating and he is very supportive of her in every aspect of life. Skyler is still dating him and she no longer struggles with childish bullying from others because she spends most of her time with family, her boyfriend, working on college courses, and dances with a competitive team as well as the dance team at COS virtually. Older Adulthood Skyler is 18 and an adult in her first year of college. She is well rounded and seldom struggles with depression or anxiety anymore. Skyler still depends on dance for happiness and uses dance to express her emotions. Skyler enjoys being an adult and making her own decisions in life. She plans to obtain a degree in dance and hopes to own and manage a dance studio in the near future. Another area of interest is the medical field. Skyler is still dependent on her grandparents for financial support, but plans to become financially independent after graduating from COS. She hopes to graduate from COS after the summer session of 2021. Skyler has been taking college courses full time since summer 2020. According to National Research Council (2015), currently, the nation is experiencing economic restructuring, widening inequality, a rapidly rising ratio of older adults, and an increasingly diverse population. A systematic approach to understanding and responding to the unique circumstances and needs of today's young adults can help to pave the way to a more productive and equitable tomorrow for young adults in particular and our society at large. Death and Dying The idea of death has always caused anxiety for Skyler. She has always suffered from separation anxiety from her mother and grandmother and dreads the day that they are not around any longer. Skyler suffered from the loss of her great grandmother in 2016, which she was very close to. Skyler relies on her faith to understand death and after life. Although she realizes there is eternal life through Jesus Christ, it doesn’t make losing those that she loves much easier. Skyler has been raised to rely on her faith and she knows where her loved ones will go when they die but she does not like to think about the fact that they will not be near her when she needs to spend time with them. Skyler Dawn Gluskoter Born: Sacramento, California December 28th, 2001 Nationality: Jewish/American Education: Enrolled C.O.S. Occupation: None Known for: Dance WIKIPEDIA: Reference Page Relying on Dance to Survive DUNN, WENDY. C., et al. Understanding Human Development. 2018. National Research Council, et al. Investing in the Health and Well-Being of Young Adults. National Academies P, 2015.