Boy Crazy at 7 ??? - Morton,IL

I didn't read the other responses, but I think the teacher was being a little bit extreme. I was boy crazy from kindergarten. In fact, I had a boyfriend every year of school starting at 5! What did that mean? He was my boyfriend at school and we told people that but that was the extent of it! I didn't kiss a boy until 4th or 5th grade and didn't talk on the phone or hold hands until 7th. That being said, I do agree that it's probably the group metality she gets when she's around the other girls. Just because she chases 1 boy around and wants to sit by him does not make her 'boy crazy'.

Don't let her watch any of those "kid" shows like iCarly, Victoria Victorious or whatever - nothing that's not a cartoon. My daughter is a 6yr old 1st grader and started showing some of these symptoms. The girls portrayed on those shows act too Old!!!!

Instead of asking her about these behaviors, just every once in a while speak about appropriate behaviors. She may be embarrassed that you know this secret.. You can never underestimate what your child really knows and understands.. Step back and take a look at who your child really is and that she is far more mature than you may have given her credit. This is not bad, it means you can begin speaking to her about more subjects

Begin speaking with her about these subjects.. in the car.. at a meal.. while folding clothes, while washing her hair..

Do not expect her to participate or answer, sometimes, she may just need to contemplate them.. You also do not have to direct them to her, I used to say, "I had a friend in second grade that was in love with a boy". And then tell how the boy did not even like girls. He did not want to sit or stand next to my friend. SO she had to learn to leave him alone.

I also was honest with our daughter about how I behaved and it did not always end well.. I would also ask my husband to tell our daughter from a boys perspective what they think of girls at certain ages..

Here are some subjects to bring up with her.
We do not tease or chase people that do not want to be chased.. How would you feel if (name of child she does not care for) was always chasing you? We do not talk about other people in whispers when they are around. It can make them feel uncomfortable. We never want to make others feel uncomfortable.

Personal space. We do not touch, hug or kiss, people without their permission. We can even get in trouble for doing this at school.

And that school is her job right now, just like you and dad have jobs. You all work hard to do a good job, so she needs to also do a good job at school.

She needs to respect her teachers, who work very hard every day to teach every child in class. When we do not pay attention, do not participate or cause distractions, or do not complete our work, we are not showing respect for the all of the teachers hard work and planning.

Also if we do not do our best, our teacher will begin to think we are not learning and will not be able to move along to more interesting subjects. It is not fair to the class either, that some kids, do not work on class work and homework as others. They are there because they want to learn. That is what the most intelligent students always will do.

I am on the opposite side...I have a 7 yr old son and at his open house the teacher explained to his father and I that all the girls go crazy for my son, chase him, write him love notes, draw hearts and his name on their papers, fight to see who gets to sit by him...and yes, try to kiss him?! She said it has become such a distraction she was gonna have to "shut them down"...whatever that means? I haven't seen any change yet...my son still comes home complaining about the girls trying to grab him and stuff...

So, I am not sure about how your daughters teacher has said she has never seen this behavior before? Not sure I buy that?

~I am kind of concerned about how this is going to effect my son's ego...I have already overheard him tell his older brothers that "all the girls love me"....ugh! I am so NOT ready for this stage...

I was boy crazy at that age but shy at the same time. I wouldn't worry so much about that as the whole ignoring studies for social thing. You want her to be able to stand up to peer pressure and think for herself. Definitely "hang out" with your daughter more and try to get in her head to see where she's at and to gently guide her right.

Oh boy! I was chasing boys around at age 6! First grade. Especially one Adam Guess. Lol. I was also shy and quiet, but I never cared about how I looked. I just thought it was fun to chase boys. I think it's pretty normal.

she sounds like me when I was her age; I was "in love" with Eduardo until he said I had to share with him a bar of chocolate since we were boyfriend/girlfriend, we broke up right then and there LOL.
I got a degree, got married with my best friend from high school and have two wonderful kids; I was never in a relationship that wasn't serious. So don't worry about when she is older, this is no indication that she will be "boy crazy" (hate that term) when she is older.
I think she is imitating what girls are supposed to do since everyone else is doing it, just part of trying to fit in. I agree with the mom that said don't let her watch all those shows that protray girls in this manner, I love iCarly but I don't allow my daughter to watch it, the jokes and themes are way too mature in comparison to the ages of the characters.
I think and honest talk with her will work, just tell her it's not right to chase people around and to stop doing it. by the way the teacher must be exagerating, in 26 years she hasn't seen this before, really???

dont' feel bad, my daughter (7) worries about boys and who the "right one for her is, who would except a girl like her" etc...it's happening younger and younger these days. When she brings this up to me, i tell her she is too young to even be thinking about that and right now she needs to focus on making the right choices in friends and doing good in school, and worrying about boys is not even in the formula right now. i told her that she is under NO circumstances allowed to touch a boy in any way except for a hand shake (not even a hug). i also explain that "puppy crushes-i like you but we're just friends" is ok, but no physical contact.

i also show her mean mom when i tell her this (it works for her) because i know it'll scare her not to, and she knows that her teacher this year and last year will let me know if they see any appropriate behaviour...so she's definatley got the fear to not do it because "i'll find out"

So many boys that age think girls have cooties. Although there's a social aspect at school, the main focus should be education. Turn off the TV and/or severely limit what she can watch. Do what you can to bust up the clique. Get her involved in Girl Scouts or taekwando (if she's going to be boy crazy she might as well learn how to land a good kick or punch. And after running laps and doing push-ups they all smell.). I might wonder how the boy of her focus feels about this - if her advances are unwelcome it's harassment and his parents and the school would have to minimize contact between her and the boy because she's bullying him. She needs to learn boundaries. If worse comes to worse and her grades continue to suffer you can threaten to send her to an all girls school or home school her if it's possible.

I have a 7 year old daughter too, i think i have heard justin beibers cd 329 times already., and she has a crush this year as well as last year. It was a little shocking to me too. I think its just happening earlier now.

I know its innocent with my daughter, It sounds innocent with yours, SEt up a reward system with your daughter concerning her conduct and grades in school and then stick to it.

My daughter gets 3 dollars for good progress reports, 5 for report cards, and a dollar per good test. (this is how she bought that beiber cd in the first place)

If her grades are good and her conduct changes, then her crushes and silly girl flirting arent really harming anyone. But i would have a long talk about appropriate behavior.

I clearly remember chasing boys at school at age 5 and have never thought of myself as being boy-crazy. I'm a little surprised that her teacher has never seen this before in her classroom. My 4 year old already has been "married" twice-- once at the park and once at pre-school on the playground.

If anything I would pay the most attention to the fact that your DD is more concerned about appearences than school. Keep teaching her that real beauty begins from within and keep building her self confidence. Sports are always a great way to achieve this.

I too have a "Boy Crazy" 7yr old. It is just one particular boy, but he is all she can think about. She did give him a peck on the cheek and I drew the line right there. My DD is not obsessed with her looks, clothes or even friends, but she is crazy over this boy. My DD does talk to me all about this boy and we discussed what is acceptable behavior with, near and around this boy for being 7yrs old. She is very aware now of what is acceptable and what is not. If your daughter will not volunteer information about her situation, then just talk to her in general about your rules. Not accusing her of the things the teacher talked about but let her know how you feel about those things and what your expectations are, as well as what consequences there would be. Stay in contact with the teacher to keep yourself involved with the situation. Also keep trying to talk to your daughter about her life at school, don't be pushy about it, just let her know that you are interested in what goes on at school.

I think the answer is in the 'clique' of the 5 girls. The group mentality and fitting in and dressing right and now boys is just all so new and exciting and the group keeps it going day after day. It probably would have died down after the kiss...so in addition to all the great advise, especially Laurie's below, encourage her to make other girlfriends. Have her invite another girl over for playtime, a girl not in that group and see if that doesn't break things up a bit.

WELL, you didn't mention being divorced from Dad until after the post. I believe that not having a dad around at this particular age is difficult for girls. They really need attention from their fathers especially at this age and if it's not available or limited, then there is going to be acting out and inappropriate behavior towards boys.

Take her for counseling, if she can't talk to you she needs to talk to someone and if you get her counseling then you have some control over it being the proper individual. Maybe even a big sister or get her involved in a sport, horse back riding swimming etc. that can redirect her and give her some self confidence. It seems like her self confidence is lacking.
They have an article in parents magazine this month on teaching self discipline confidence etc. through various forms of karate classes. I really like the idea of getting my daughter involved because of the info on how it really helped confidence, and respect etc.

It's probably just silly little girl stuff but it does sound a bit early for that. I have a 13 year old daughter and we haven't gone through that. She's boy crazy but doesn't act on it yet. I do think 7 is a bit young to be acting on it but it sounds like the "mob mentality" is what's causing it. I think I would try to not make a big deal out of it. Maybe try talking to her at bedtime when they're more sleepy and more likely to talk, or in the car where she doesn't have to make eye contact. That makes it easier for them. Spend some time just lying with her at night before bed without talking about anything serious. She's too young for too many serious conversations. BUT, you are her parent and don't get the guilty feeling that you are divorced. Yes, it may affect her but don't let it stop you from parenting her because you feel guilty about the family situation. That's done, nothing can be changed about that. Move on and continue to let her know that you are the parent and she will not get away with anything just because you are divorced. Kids as young as 7 can definitely manipulate. All that said, try to spend some more time chilling out with her so she's not always expecting a lecture and then when you do have to lecture, it will be easier for both of you. Good luck!

I am kind of having the same issue but opposite. My 7 year old son seems a little girl crazy! I also have a daughter in middle school and she had a little group of friends that would act like that from time to time when they were little. I think it was because one of the girls had an older sister that she saw acting this way and so she thought it was the cool thing to do. Eventually, the girls got bored of it....unfortunately they are at the age now where they really are getting interested in boys...yikes!