As the children get older the effects the divorce has on them is different but no less traumatizing. School aged children between the ages of six to eight seem to have an especially difficult time dealing with their parents splitting up. Generally, the boys in this age group tend to be more bothered than the girls. Sadness is the primary reaction of the children in this age group. There will be more out bursts of crying, and these children are prone to feeling that the departing parent is rejecting them. Many children of this age group try to reconcile the marriage and spend more time worrying about the family than anything else. Often their performance in school drops considerably due to the worrying and the lowered self-esteem, which is caused by the feelings of rejection. Younger children have strong feelings of sadness where as, older school-aged children aging from nine to twelve tend to channel their feelings through anger. Many boys in this age group become rebellious and uncontrollable. Also, it is not uncommon for them to reject visits from the out-of-home parent. Many times during divorce these children will takes sides and be put in the middle of destructive battles. In addition to feeling angry, many of the children appear sad and even lonely. Feeling helpless is another factor that effects these children, often times they feel like they have no control over their own lives. Fueled by anger and feelings of powerlessness, about half of the students in this age group show some type of decline in their schoolwork (Teyber 12). Often, these children will also experience physical effects as well as the emotional effects. Headaches and stomachaches will be common occurrences and, many of these children will begin having a hard time getting along with their friends. There are considerably stronger gender differences in the school age children than the preschool and younger children.