Forget about sugar and spice and everything nice. Girls can be quite vicious - and possibly more than boys.

• They can gang up on other girls
• They can form cliques to exclude other girls
• They can beat up other children, including boys
• They can sulk, and hold a grudge endlessly
• They can be vindictive

Girls get offended much more readily than boys. They can also fall in love with the teacher, and then take steps to get the teacher's attention.

They can also be difficult to a teacher. If they want to cause a teacher grief, then they can bring him to tears. They can create devious situations that will cause the administration to reject a teacher.

Boys will be helpful in class. They may pick up something that the teacher drops, without trying to be a teacher's pet. Girls usually will not offer any assistance unless they are asked.

Girls have mastered the art of facial contortions, grimaces, special motions, and body language. They may develop a secret body language to be used only with other girls in the class.

Girls with a boyfriend may be dreamy, wild, uncontrollable, undisciplined, spaced-out, or tearful. They may eat too much or they may starve themselves.

These factors and others may make it more difficult to teach girls than boys. Tell a boy something once, and he may remember. The girl will not try to learn things on her own. She just wants to know what key to push in the computer class, and what formula to use in arithmetic.

If a class queen does not like the teacher or what is taught, then she can roll her eyes in a way that will set the entire class against the teacher.

Some girls in a mixed-gender class may be very difficult, especially if they are actively trying to get the attention of a particular boy or a group of boys.

However, an experienced teacher who realizes these issues can take the necessary steps in order to reduce the amount of damage that a girl can do in the class.