Key Messages
- Puberty is the time in a young person’s life when their sexual and reproductive organs mature.
- Puberty brings about many changes and challenges including periods, erections and making sperm.
- All bodies are different. People will experience puberty at different times and will have different experiences of puberty.
- It’s good to be able to ask trusted adults at home for information about puberty.
Learning Intention
Students will:
- Understand that each person develops at a different rate during puberty.
- Discuss issues related to puberty with peers and adults.
- Engage in conversations about puberty with adults at home.
Time
15 minutes (at home)
Class presentation time (20 minutes)
Required Resources
- Options of one or all of the following for each student’s:
- ‘Interview with a puberty graduate’ worksheet
- ‘Investigating A New Baby' worksheet
- ‘Ultimate Puberty Kit' worksheet
- ‘Now and Then’ worksheet.
Teaching Notes
- Puberty Graduate:
Students will conduct an interview with an older person (18 year plus) asking them questions about their personal experiences of puberty. This activity works very well when conducted with a parent or a grandparent as it provides an opportunity for future conversations. - Investigating a new baby
Students are provided with opportunity to ask an adult at home about their experience of having a baby. They could investigate their own birth or someone else’s as not all students are able to find out their own birth story. - Ultimate Puberty Kit
This great resource provides students with the opportunity to identify the changes and challenges associated with puberty. It allows students form strategies to alleviate any problems that may arise during this stage. It also provides an opportunity to share their knowledge and to have further conversations with their trusted adults at home. - Now and Then
Students will be provided with the opportunity to ask an adult at home about their experiences when they were in primary school. This can lead to reflection on what things are similar or different between generations.
Please note: The homework tasks provided discuss topics including physical similarities and differences in bodies. Often these are separated into two categories – male and female. There are however many variations to bodies, sex, and gender, including intersex, transgender, or non-binary. Because of this, where possible, the word ‘typically’ is used when referring to specific sexes or genders and students should be encouraged to listen to the information that is fitting for them and their individual body.
Remind students to not share personal information about their interviewee, e.g., names. Encourage students to speak in the 3rd person, for example “My interviewee said…..” Practice protective
interrupting if a student is about to disclose any information of a personal nature.
Some students may feel that they will get in trouble at home if they show their adults these homework sheets. Homework should be encouraged, but not compulsory.
Procedure
- Distribute homework worksheet to students.
- Read through each question ensuring that students understand the questions.
- A class discussion is valuable before conducting the interview to assist students to write additional questions that reflect their personal interests and concerns.
- Allow sufficient time for students to complete homework task.
- Students could present their findings in a number of ways including a short biography, an oral report to the class or contribute to class discussion.
Questioning
- What was the common age for people to go through puberty?
- What were some common changes that people experienced that signified puberty had begun?
- What were some common pieces of advice trusted adults provided students with in regard to experiencing puberty?
- What people or sources of information can an individual access if they have any further questions?