The Fervent Fourteens

At fourteen, the hardest thing to do is to sit and listen to any adult for extended periods of time. Fourteens are convinced that they know what to do or what is expected as soon as an adult begins to speak. They are not, therefore, always good at following directions, but they are great at inventing new ones.
Fourteen-year-olds love their peer cultures. Bonding with a small social group or clique, often to the exclusion of others, is how they get their first apprenticeship experience with the adult values of loyalty and fidelity. Loyalty to the band, a sports team, a service club, or even to a beloved family member usually can provide the kind of positive modeling that helps to build the capacity for fidelity and commitment in later life. The opportunity to practice this positive attribute is key at this age.
In this series based on Yardsticks: Children in the Classroom Ages 4–14, Chip Wood focuses on the positive developmental attributes generally present in children at different ages.
Tags: 8th Grade, Adolescent Development, Yardsticks SeriesOne Reply to “The Fervent Fourteens”
Comments are closed.
This is a great article to highlight the positives of this age group, where most teachers aren’t as appreciative and see this as a struggling time in the classroom. I think it is great to note that these students feel like they know what to do and thrive through conversation. I believe involving the students in deciding the classroom expectations and getting the to cooperated on how to solve Health Problem based learning questions is the way to highlight their strengths at this age. A freshmen health class should not consist of lecturing, it should consist of building relationships and solidifying their beliefs by having others appropriately challenge them in the classroom.