Wyatt Haleema Declan Joshua Shine Jara'na Daniel Anastasia Benjamin Sofia Loulou

The Science

Life at 7

Finding Your Tribe


Gender is not just about biology, it’s also about expectations and opportunities and how they play out across the life course for boys and girls, men and women.

From the time a child is born, the process of gender socialisation begins. The first question anybody asks is "is it a boy or is it a girl?"

Gender socialisation continues on through life, but at age seven it’s quite distinct, and dominant gender differences in roles, in attitudes, expectations and performances of children can be clearly seen. At seven years of age, there's a tendency for groups to be forming and the playground becomes split along gender lines, with cross-gendered friendships being less frequent. Sticking with your gender is the easiest way of becoming a member of a group.

Gender differences come to the fore in how boys and girls play, with boys typically going for the rough and tumble games with a competitive edge, emphasising their advantage in spatial skills, while girls tend to opt for smaller groups, engaging in more co-operative, communicative play which emphasises their edge in language and literacy.

Gender stereotyping is all around a child’s life - from the clothes they wear, to the toys they play with, to the activities they engage in - but if a child adheres too rigidly to their gender stereotype, it might mean missing out on experiences they might really enjoy. Breaking gender stereotypes often requires a lot of self-confidence, but can be very rewarding.