Boys

It takes longer to grow a boy

Boys are wired differently to girls. They think differently and about different things than girls.

They mature more slowly, particularly when it comes to language development, social skills and their fine motor skills.

They are organisationally-challenged as well.  They are more boisterous, more self-conscious and more awkward than girls…particularly as they move into adolescence.

Loyalty is a high driver for most boys. Many will get in to fights at school to back up their mates, or because someone said something nasty about their little sister.

The abiding wish of all boys from school-age through to adolescence is to fit in and be part of a group. They are group-oriented by nature.

Approval is at the heart of working successfully with boys. They will walk over broken glass or hot coals if they sense you like them…which is an important message for teachers too.

Boys need specific parenting. Here are some examples:

• They like limits and boundaries. They help them learn. They also like to push against them too so you had better have a backbone if you are raising boys.
• Boys also respond to think language. If you want to know how a boy feels, just ask him how he thinks... and he’ll probably tell you how he feels.
• Boys generally are more impulsive than girls so strategies that help boys think and reflect on their behaviour are really beneficial.
• Boys embarrass easily and they generally respond better when they are praised in private, rather than publicly.

When you understand the differences between genders your discipline, confidence-building and communication strategies have greater impact, particularly when parenting boys.
 

You can learn all you need to know to effectively raise boys in these practical, ready-to-go resources: