research

[jade_sabre_301]

All right, anyone who's spent time with ten-to-eleven-year-old boys and girls,

what are they like?

I have some ideas but it's been a while since I've spent a lot of time with that age group, so, you know, any observations you have about the age group would be welcome.

Comments

[idiosyncreant]

Um, they're not generally that into the other gender yet, but they do get rowdy. The girls are already pretty able to bully with subtlety but sometimes also intelligently funny. The guys are not really into talking to people outside their own age/gender, but also starting to have their own sense of humor.

However, they can still be really, really goofy. That's one of those pendulum ages where they can go from being a kid to being a little adult and back in a flash.

Not a great attention span? Mainly? Boys may still need to move around more.

I mean, this is also one of the ages where the maturity gap with guys/girls is a little more obvious.

I think.

[jade_sabre_301]

Okay! This is all kind of what I was thinking, based on my own memories/some observations/talking to my husband. But as one of a family of all girls, I'm a bit wary about writing about boys, or at least from their perspective. So thanks! :D

[tiegirl]

Hahahaha it's been awhile since I was coaching age group so I don't remember, but I DO remember my Mom saying she absolutely hated 9 year old boys! I don't recall that I did when I was coaching, but man, she had an opinion on them!

[jade_sabre_301]

hahahahaha. Were they really squirmy?

[tiegirl]

That sounds right! Although I was teaching physical stuff (diving) so I probably didn't get the full squirmy effect. Good luck!

[willow_41z]

Fart. Jokes.

[jade_sabre_301]

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA.

[crisium]

I've got a ten-year-old boy with a BFF (also a ten-year-old boy) who spends so much time at my place he practically lives here, so observations:

This has been an age of wanting to look cool in front of friends and becoming fully aware of how they appear to their social crowd. To that end, there's a lot of straining limits to appear more grown up and independent--in front of friends, anyway. In private, that eases about 90%.

It's a time of big transitions, too. Kids this age are getting into more serious academic work at school, and frequently wax nostalgic for the simpler times of previous grades (and snacktime, and in-class games). They seem to feel like they're being asked to do grown-up stuff (long division is a particular torture) without any of the freedoms they see grown-ups enjoying, or even any of the perks that teenagers get. The younger kids get naptimes and cuddles without embarrassment, the older kids get cars and can hold a job, but what's in it for a ten-year-old?

[clightenbulb]

Ten is the same type of age as two - they are growing independent and so don't want help, yet are a bit clingy because they are simultaneously afraid of their independence. The smart ones feel more anxious at this age (about everything) because their bodies and maturity haven't caught up to their brain. And, last but definitely not least, this is the age where they get mouthy.

Good luck!