Steps and Stages: The Preteen Years from 9 to 12

Elizabeth Levin is a professor of psychology at Laurentian University.

“Steps & Stages” is a regular feature in Today’s Parent, a
Canadian parenting magazine. The best of that column has been expanded
and published in book form. In these two reader-friendly books, parents
share (with refreshing candor) their strategies for navigating the
issues associated with each stage of a child’s development. A variety
of professionals, mainly from the Toronto area, are consulted as well.

The Early School Years explores such topics as fostering communication
and responsibility, sibling rivalry, aggression and boredom, the growing
need for privacy, making the transition to school, and the influence of
peers. The Preteen Years addresses such topics as the social life of the
preteen, peer pressure, and the approach of puberty. The coverage of the
issues is fairly general, so those seeking an in-depth treatment will
have to look elsewhere.