Academically gifted girls often see unrealized and unfulfilled potential as a result of societal pressures to make the choice between being smart and fitting in. Gifted girls face many social issues in their lives that impact their education and interests from a young age. Gender stereotypes may be perpetuated by teachers, who have been shown to…

This article is intended to provide coaches, parents/guardians and school administrators with specific guidelines that identify coaching practices that are in the best interests of the adolescent female athlete (appropriate) and those that are counterproductive or even harmful (inappropriate). These guidelines can be used as a self-assessment for…

Many people think it is taboo to talk about sex with children. Adults reinforce this belief when, for example, they use substitute words rather than "vagina" or "penis". They may be embarrassed to learn about children's sexual development or ask others for assistance. Although most people in US society are open about sexuality now, the topic of…

This article argues that sex education should include sexual ideals. Sexual ideals are divided into sexual ideals in the strict sense and sexual ideals in the broad sense. It is argued that ideals that refer to the context that is deemed to be most ideal for the gratification of sexual ideals in the strict sense are rightfully called sexual…

Discusses differences between girls and boys, focusing on pitfalls and perils specific to each gender, offering research on differences in their development and educational experiences, explaining how the different sexes self-blame, and noting good news for girls related to equal educational opportunities. The paper concludes that the problems of…

Sex stereotyping (raising boys and girls to be different because of their sex) begins at birth. The article reviews studies detailing sex stereotyping practices and offers suggestions on what parents can do to avoid them. A list of suggestions for raising children in a nonsexist way is included. (SM)

This article examines gender bias in the school, describing the role of parents and teachers in fostering the bias, often unintentionally. The effects of the inequity are discussed and solutions for combatting gender bias are presented. (SM)

Outcomes from sex education are shaped not only by the knowledge and attitudes of youth but also by groups influential in young people's lives. American youth bear one of the highest rates of sexually transmitted infections (STIs) in the industrialized world. Four constituencies with important roles in communicating about STIs are youth, parents,…

The father of a boy with Down's syndrome describes his early efforts to cope with his emotions by being strong and hiding his feelings, due to his social conditioning, and subsequent recognition of the importance of expressing his emotions. Problems men face in expressing grief and sharing feelings are discussed in this personal narrative. (PB)

Suggests ways mothers can strengthen communications with their daughters during puberty to remain a positive influence and describes how to communicate the realities of living and working to reinforce the idea that girls can be anything they want to be. (SM)

This study examined mothers' and fathers' reports of their time spent in their school-age children's care and academic work and the relationships between socioeconomic status and social support variables with fathers' time spent in children's care and academic work within two-parent Mexican immigrant families. Mother and father dyads from 79…

This article presents practical guidelines for parents dealing with the issue of sex education for hearing-impaired children. Promoting positive parental attitudes, these guidelines provide information on children's sexual growth and development, suggest ways to initiate and respond to sexual issues, and identify sex education resources.…

Parents of preteens need to be aware of the rapidly increasing incidence of sexually transmitted diseases among teenagers and to begin talking to their preteens to help prevent or modify risky sexual experimentation during middle adolescence. (MT)

The author describes her experiences in teaching her mentally retarded daughter about sex and the changes happening to her body. She suggests the needs of disabled young people extend beyond preventing unplanned pregnancy and preparing them for their menstrual period. (CL)

Little information exists on communication about sexuality between parents and preadolescent children. This study collected qualitative data on family sexuality communication from 3 focus groups conducted with African American mothers of 6-10 year old children. Two broad themes emerged from the data: "Beyond the Birds and the Bees" and "Let's Talk…