Pubertal Timing of Latinas and School Connectedness During the Transition to Middle School

During the middle school transition, adolescents are often faced with physical and school contextual changes that may impact how they perceive that first transitional year. The present study examined how pubertal timing (onset of menarche) was associated with Latinas' school connectedness during the first year in middle school and whether that relationship was moderated by perceived school ethnic composition and body mass index (BMI) (i.e., a reliable indicator of body fat calculated from participants' age, height, and weight). Sixth-grade Latinas (N = 609) at the beginning and end of the first year of middle school indicated whether menarche had begun. From this question, girls were classified as early maturers (started menarche before 6th grade), changers (started during 6th grade) or later maturers (had not started by the end of 6th grade). Changers who attended schools where they perceived fewer same-ethnic peers and they deviated from the Latina BMI mean of that school in the direction of lower BMI (i.e., toward being underweight), reported more school connectedness than early and later-maturing Latinas. These findings underscored the importance of finding one's niche and fitting in for girls who are maturing during a period of both rapid physical change and a school transition.