Bold New Girls is pleased to announce the introduction of Bold New Boys – a new and essential component of Bold New Girls – one-on-one teaching and coaching, integrating learning and social development exclusively for boys. Bold New Boys has been created to respond to the growing demands for learning and personal development programs specifically for boys – a necessary niche! Bold New Boys explores and supports academic, social and emotional growth and development for boys – with an emphasis on the following:
- Executive functioning skills
- Motivation
- Stress and self-regulation
- Self-esteem and self-confidence
- Personal best
- Life balance
- Emotional literacy
- Social skills
- Communication skills
- Giftedness
- Gifted/LD
Research has found that boys’ brains develop at different speeds and sequences than girls’ brains and, therefore, teaching boys is about timing and being sensitive to where they are at developmentally.
Gender differences in cognitive, social, and personal characteristics have been investigated since the early 1900s. Research has identified differences in several specific cognitive skills as well as in a range of social and personal characteristics.
In cognitive skills, the largest and most consistent gender differences are found in verbal, language, and certain spatial skills. Socially, boys are much more likely than girls to engage in outdoor play, rough play, and activities that cover a large area of physical space. And, beginning at an early age, boys show more physical aggression, such as hitting or kicking, than girls; this difference continues throughout childhood and into adulthood (Coie & Dodge, 1998; Hyde, 2005).
Boys also show higher levels of assertiveness than girls, though the difference is not as great as for physical aggression (Feingold, 1994). Culture socializes boys to express less emotion, as they get older (with the possible exception of anger). So, as a result, boys become less skilled at understanding both their own and others’ emotions.
Research has also found that some boys today are unmotivated, lazy, laid-back, unconcerned about their future, inactive, and addicted to video games. Boys seem to have no real-passion for real-world activities and nothing excites them. This “don’t care about anything” attitude is becoming “true guydom”. (Boys Adrift, Leonard Sax, 2007)
However, Bold New Boys is committed to addressing these concerns and to fully supporting and nurturing the academic, social, and emotional development of boys as they navigate their worlds and learn what true “guydom” could really mean. Bold New Boys is devoted to exploring the reasons why boys are failing and often disengaged as they are faced with increasing environmental toxins, medication, technology, and school pressures – and to provide the tools and strategies to help boys achieve their full potential!