Boys, Kicking That Ball Now Could Cost You In The Classroom later

Sex role stereotypes may direct our success in some instances but they come at a cost in other areas.  Here’s what I mean - little girls like to have tea parties while little boys like to run around playing sports. That sounds about right, right?  But what comes of that?  Or better still, what is missed because of that?

Some new research out of England reveals that young girls have better literacy skills before they start school because their mothers are more likely to sing nursery rhymes to them while they play while their brothers are outside, away and playing sports.

The scientists found moms are also more likely to teach daughters to draw and paint, and to learn rhymes and poems.

Interestingly it’s a numbers game in language but not in the game of numbers.  Scientists say that mothers teach boys letters & the alphabet significantly less often than girls but there is no gender difference in teaching numbers & counting.

The results, experts claim, are that two-thirds of the learning gender gap at age 11 is due to boys falling behind at home at age five or earlier before their formal education even begins (Daily Mail)