Early Adolescence: Why It's Tough Puberty, mood swings and
social tensions will play major roles in an adolescent's life.
Take an informal poll of one hundred adults about what years of
their lives they would never want to repeat, and you will
probably hear "junior high" or "middle school" most often. All
too frequently, a relatively well-adjusted, good-natured child
enters the sixth or seventh grade and two or three years later
emerges emotionally (if not physically) battered and bruised.
What turns these years into such a war zone? First, the tides of
puberty are likely to be flowing at full speed. Among other
things, these generate much concern and self-consciousness about
physical changes that are (or aren't yet) under way. Such
worries are intensified by the marked variations in development
at this age. Within the same class will be skinny thirteen-year-
old boys with squeaky voices and hairy hulks who appear
qualified for the defensive line of the high school football
team. Similarly, flat-chested girls