rpanons | [MERGE] And then there was one

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The 10-12 range, in particular. Looking for advice on mannerisms, thought processes, voice, and whatever else.

It depends on the character. No two kids are going to act the same obviously. Every kid has a different maturity level and the class bully isn't going to react to things the same way the class clown is.

I guess in general though... don't play them too young. You are playing a preteen, not a toddler. I have seen far too many people play 10-12 year olds like they're in the 4-6 year range. A preteen is usually not going to be doing baby talk or overly cutesy shit unless their doing it on purpose. Maybe they mispronounce or misuse words they are unfamiliar with, but that's only on occasion.

This is also a time when kids start noticing the opposite sex and exploring sexuality. I'm not talking about makeout or other more intense stuff. But you know, like schoolyard crushes or an eleven year old girl putting up pictures of Justin Bieber because she thinks he's cute and she wants to marry him.

My best advice, watch some shows with kids in them and see how they're portrayed. I'm not talking about a show made for kids, I'm talking about an actual adult show, like a drama or even a sitcom that isn't too wacky. Find a few episodes that feature kids prominently and see how they're portrayed.

Please forgive me if this is kind of a mishmash of topics.

Thought Processes:

This is the age when social interactions and self-image start to come into play a lot more. Children get stronger opinions about what they like and what they don't like, and their opinions become stronger than just 'I like trains' or 'I don't like this movie'; they're more likely to fall out about it and it's likely to take more than a day to reconcile, if it's a big deal.

This age is more sensitive in a lot of ways and they are prone to taking criticism personally. This is also the age at which bullying (defined as persistent, repeated harassment) starts to emerge, because as children build more stable and meaningful social bonds, they also start distancing themselves from difference and things they don't like or understand. You see a lot of -isms crop up at this point, although that also depends strongly on the parents and what principles they consider important.

This age group is also starting to get competitive as they measure themselves against their peers. They can become easily frustrated by their failure and impatient with themselves and others, which is especially evident when they're working in groups.

By this age a child who's developing normally will also have a clear understanding of the permanence of death. They probably will have some clearly defined spiritual beliefs but, just speaking from my own experience, it's often informed heavily by what is cool socially.

Knowledge:

Reading and mathematical ability in this age group has huge, huge variance; a particularly adept child will be able to take their experience with phonics and tricky words and apply it to very difficult unfamiliar words - something we take for granted as adults that gets honed over many years. If the child is following the Curriculum, at the higher end of the 12 years they will be working with large numbers and problem solving. They'll understand decimals, division, and know their multiplication table by heart, as a starting point. They'll be able to read pie charts and bar graphs and answer questions about them, able to solve logical problems and work systematically, work in sequences, mentally reverse the order of their actions, and group objects by their likeness to each other and other generalised facts. They'll also know how to multitask and have better time management than younger children. However, there's a huge spectrum of ability at this age, and some kids never have a problem and some of them take many years more to grasp these things.

Their concentration greatly improves in general. This is when they're able to become absorbed in work and thrive off their accomplishments. They may get very eager and proud about things they know they're good at, which is a positive thing.

Voice:

At this age they have a pretty clear understanding of speaking in past and present tense, so there's less 'runned' instead of 'ran' but they may still be self-correcting and struggle to make their feelings clear if it's a complex issue. Their vocabulary is still somewhat simple, but they will probably recognise some complex words they aren't likely to use themselves. They tend to fall back on argument clichés and don't recognise contradiction until it's pointed out to them. This is the age when they also start to understand sarcasm, although it's probably not a good idea to be sarcastic with a kid of this age since they're generally pretty sensitive when they hear that shit from adults.

They will probably also really enjoy sharing their thoughts in general, talking about things they've learned, things they've memorised, or asking questions. At this age sometimes the questions can get quite personal, as well. You also get a few blossoming trolls who'll try to give you sass, especially when they're headed towards the 12/13 bracket.

However, this is all really, really general, broad stuff. I didn't touch on mannerisms or personality because that's really personal to the kid, from what I've seen, and it can be hard to generalise. Some of them are yammer-mouth clowns who thrive on any kind of attention, some of them take themselves incredibly seriously and are very easily wounded, some of them are what sometimes get called "ghost children" who tend to be very background in classrooms and just quietly get on with things, aaaand some of them are obnoxious little punks who like to grief their peers, teaching assistants, and sometimes even teachers. They sound like stereotypes, but you do encounter them.

Also, some kids won't demonstrate any of this or care much about socialising or how they're perceived, but if they go to school or otherwise socialise with peers, this could reflect their growing environment if nothing else.

Sorry it's kind of a mess of stuff, and it's just one person's experience, but I hope at least some of it's useful!

seconding to remember that you're playing a preteen, not a preschooler. your character should already know stuff like their colors, shapes, basic communication skills, etc. if you pay attention to children's media, especially aimed at 10-12s, you'll see a LOT of emphasis at this point in forming social groups and maintaining relationships (like what to do after a fight with a friend or if you're being bullied and whatnot). basically (and very generally), this is the age when kids start looking for a place in society and seeking to conform to (or defy) social and/or group norms.

this is kind of tricky to talk about because a lot of it depends on so many factors, but very VERY generally: your character will probably have some interest in dressing and acting to look 'cool' or 'pretty' (and even if they don't, they'll at least be aware that other kids are holding them to a standard). they may seek out someone to look up to and use as a role model, probably someone who is slightly older and (usually) of the same gender, and they may try to emulate them and seek validation from them. they may form crushes; idk if you want to deal with puberty, but some kids hit it around this age so that's another thing to think about. more value tends to be placed on gender-specific activities, dress, and friends (and again, even if your character is defying that, it's probably going to be deliberate rather than actually not understanding that this is the social norm).

specific hobbies and interests may be coming into the foreground. they may not know yet what they want to be when they grow up, but by this point they would probably know roughly what areas they're into and what they're
talented at.

an interest in appearing mature and "grown-up" may be emerging. they will most likely know common swear words, unless they're incredibly sheltered; they will probably be aware that sex exists, although they may not know the particulars (this is very, very dependent on parents, area, education, etc). they will probably not be hitting parental rebellion yet, but they might be embarrassed by or angry at their parents or family members if they feel they don't fulfill a social standard.

this is all more on the older end of things; a 10-year-old might not care as much as a 12-year-old, or your character may be advanced or a late bloomer or something. idk if you're thinking about a canon character or an oc, but remember that so much of this is dependent on so many different things, so don't worry TOO much, and don't be afraid to exercise some artistic license (since we are after all talking about pretending to be a fictional character in a game, not actual child-rearing).

and i know an above anon and i already said this but again, please, do not write them like a two-year-old who tawks wike dis, tee-hee. i don't know you but i know you're better than that, anon.

I think something that helps is looking up what grade that child would be in, in your country. 10-12 is 5th or 6th grade aged, in the USA - just as a reminder for how you might have been there. People tend to play kids that age as too young, almost - more in the 6 or 7 range than the 10 and 12 range.

thanks so much everyone, this has been amazingly helpful! :)

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