Physical:
- Have increased coordination and strength.
- Are developing body proportions similar to those of an adult.
- May begin puberty—evident sexual development, voice changes, and increased body odour are common.
Emotional/Social:
- Increased ability to interact with peers.
- Increased ability to engage in competition.
- Developing and testing values and beliefs that will guide present and future behaviours.
- Has a strong group identity; increasingly defines self through peers.
- Acquiring a sense of accomplishment based upon the achievement of greater physical strength and self-control.
- Defines self-concept in part by success in school.
Intellectual/Cognitive
- Early adolescents have an increased ability to learn and apply skills.
- The early adolescent years mark the beginning of abstract thinking but revert to concrete thought under stress.
- Even though abstract thinking generally starts during this age period, preteens are still developing this method of reasoning and are not able to make all intellectual leaps, such as inferring a motive or reasoning hypothetically.
- Youth in this age range learn to extend their way of thinking beyond their personal experiences and knowledge and start to view the world outside of an absolute black-white/right-wrong perspective.
- Interpretative ability develops during the years of early adolescence, as does the ability to recognize cause and affect sequences.
If you would like some help with some of these strategies, the help of a counsellor who specialises in parenting could be something to consider. Get in Touch
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