Q: Girls are "too dumb" to come to his birthday party, my son tells me. I don't want him to grow up to be sexist-should I insist?

A: Don't insist, and don't worry. "When an 8-year-old says that girls are 'dumb,' it means only that he's reached that normal, predictable stage when he doesn't want to have anything to do with the opposite sex," explains Jerry Brodlie, Ph.D., a child psychologist in private practice in Greenwich, CT. "It has no predictive value in terms of your child's eventual attitude toward women."

"If you do force your son to invite children he doesn't want to his birthday party, you'll only dampen the excitement," adds Dr. Brodlie. "It's better to accept his invitation list and look for other opportunities for him to interact positively with girls."