Defining Tweens

American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry (AACAP) Facts for Families (No. 57,June 2001)
Anderson, S. (2006). Serving Young Teens and Tweens. Westport, CT: Libraries Unlimited.
Lesesne, T (2006). Naked Reading. Portland, ME: Stenhouse Publishers


Lesesne (p.9) in Naked Reading (2006) indicates the age range of tweens is fourth through eighth grade, ages ten through fourteen. Given individuals’ life experience, I think the age range could drop to eight. Many students I’ve worked with have had experiences that expose them to more adult and teen experiences, thus attributing to their interests beyond children’s activities. This is further confirmed in Serving Young Teens and ‘Tweens,(2007), where Anderson indicates (page 2), that “since ‘tweens and young teens reach different cognitive, physical, emotional and social milestones at various times, it is difficult to pinpoint a specific range for this age group.”

Lesene (2006) indicates that tweens experience a variety of developmental transitions: physical, sexual, emotional, psychological and social. Physically, their bodies grow taller, and hands and feet bigger. Hormones begin to be released, signally the onset of puberty. Emotions fluctuate and there’s range of emotional development and maturity during this time. Intellectual development occurs, moving from concrete to abstract, better able to understand themes and concepts. Psychologically and attitudinally, students move from viewing situations as “not fair” to a social justice viewpoint. Socially, tweens are viewed more as emerging participants in society and finding ways to be heard.

The AACAP in Facts for Families (No. 57,June 2001) summarized that tweens are moving towards independence, struggling with a sense of identity, feeling awkward about their selves and bodies, display moodiness, have interests and clothing styles influenced by peers, and show improved ability to use speech to express their selves; sexually they display shyness and modesty, have increased interest in sex, worry about being normal, and frequently change relationships; and regarding morals and values, they test rules and limits, have a capacity for abstract thought, develop ideals and role models, and show more consistent evidence of conscience.

Tweens are emerging from childhood. Teens, for the most part, have experienced a majority of the physical, social, emotional and cognitive changes that occur during the tween transition time. Tweens are developing their sense of identity, while teens want to differentiate from their parents. Online searches to further define the differences between teens and tweens point to their online behavior and advertising. The website About Kids Health (January 8, 2006) (http://www.aboutkidshealth.ca/News/Target-market-Children-as-consumers.aspx?articleID= 8143&categoryID=news-type) indicates that “aspirational” marketing is used to tap “their desire be slightly older and seem more sophisticated than they are.” Marketing to teens “focuses on their insecurities, … or on their activism and desire to challenge conformity”. eMarketer.com in their article Tweens and Teens Online: From Mario to MySpace (2010) indicates that “young teens between the ages of 12 and 14 spend more time online than tweens ages 8 to 11, and their interests broaden and deepen correspondingly. But they also use the Internet to stay in touch with things – and people – they already know.” (http://www.emarketer.com/Reports/All/Em_tweens_oct06.aspx). I’ve notice the difference in my 6th – 12th grade public school library. The middle schoolers are online playing games and the high school students are using Twitter, Tumblr, MySpace and Facebook.