I teach 11-13 year olds and this is a perpetual problem. There are lots of good role models,but the problem is there are even more bad ones. I see the confident, athletic sixth graders come in and within months their egos are deflated and they are giggling idiots, even if they are very smart girls. Some of this is normal developmental behavior, but when i have to talk to 11 year old girls about "dating" problems it seems weird. I was no perfect girl at that age and most of my friends think I was pretty wild compared to their experiences. But, it seems like these girls are about 2 years ahead of where I was, back in the sixties. I also notice that really smart girls tend to want to hang out with immature, not very bright boys and other girls who get in a considerable amount of trouble... I would have never even looked at people like that for friends. I think my mom sort of always told me that I could do whatever I wanted and that I should be able to take care of myself. Even though she was a stay at home mom of the fifties era, she was very athletic and independent. Too bad I inherited my dad's lack of coordination as a kid. Of course, the only sports open to girls then were ballet and ice skating. So, I skated and rode my bike!