ABSTRACT
This chapter looks at the changes in the child's communication. Schools try their hardest to make this change as easy as possible, but most of this support is based on the assumption that the child has good non-verbal communication skills. Some big steps in non-verbal communication skill development are necessary in the period between 11 and 16 years, without which the child may become extremely vulnerable. All children need to be able to depend on their communication to help them make the right choices. In the teenage years this is especially important. Becoming a young woman will affect all teenagers' relationships – with other girls and boys, with family, with adults. The complications of relationships, mainly between teenage girls and male teachers, are also thrown into the mix during this phase of development. The chapter discusses the pressures of this early situation and how the teachers' expectations could put a hidden pressure on the child to behave in a particular manner.
