A cohort of children was followed across the first 2 years of their middle school experience. Utilising a multi‐method, longitudinal research design, children's school peer networks were described as they moved from sixth to seventh grades. Next, predictive relations between these school peer network variables in sixth grade and seventh grade adjustment was determined. Results indicated that social groupings became more gender integrated from sixth to seventh grades. Further, adjustment can be explained in terms of children adjusting to gender roles.