Talking with your children about puberty is never a simple thing to do, and it’s often a very stressful conversation for parents and kids alike. The most important thing you can do for your son or daughter during this kind of talk is to relax. If you explain puberty in terms that can be easily understood and you are open to answering questions, the whole conversation will be less awkward for everyone involved. It’s also important to talk to your kids about puberty at an early age. Because boys and girls can start experiencing puberty as early as 9 years old, you should start talking to your child about the changes that his body will go through as he grows up by 4th grade. Read through these 18 blog posts regarding puberty before sitting down to talk with your child about the changes he’s about to experience.
Boys
Discussions of puberty are often less embarrassing for boys when they are hearing the information from their father or another male authority figure. Dads have already been through these changes, and can explain how puberty was for them and answer any questions there might be. However, if Mom has to have the puberty talk, she needs to be well-equipped to answer any questions that may come up. These six blog articles will help you get started.
- How to Have the Puberty Talk Learn what puberty is exactly and how you can talk to your child about it.
- Talking to Your Child about Puberty Find out when is the right time to discuss puberty with your son.
- How Should children be Taught about Puberty and Sex? This blog post has a list of books that are suggested for you to use during your ‘talk.’
- Having the Puberty Talk This blog article explains the changes that boys will go through during puberty, and may be important to read before you have the talk.
- Puberty Changes in Boys: What to Expect An explanation of what happens physically to boys during puberty is covered on this blog post.
- Boys and Puberty Find an overview of what boys should expect during the coming years during puberty.
Girls
Puberty for girls is a scary time, but it can be less overwhelming for girls who are prepared for the changes that are coming. Again, these talks are never comfortable to have, however, they are necessary. These six blog entries will help make having this discussion easier by guiding you through what you should talk about.
- Talking to Your Daughter about Puberty This article discusses how to explain puberty and discusses when it’s appropriate for a girl to start shaving her legs and wearing a bra.
- Talk with Your Girl about Puberty Now (So She Doesn’t Ask Google) Read about this blogger’s Christian views on talking to your daughter about puberty.
- Talking Puberty: A Tool to Help Learn about a book from the American Girl company that discusses puberty and taking care of your body.
- Talking to Your Kids about Growing Up This blog post discusses when the right time is to talk to your daughter about puberty.
- Changes in Girls During Puberty Find a thorough description of what girls will go through during puberty so you know what to discuss with your daughter.
- How to Talk to Your Daughter about Puberty Advice about how and when you should talk to your daughter about puberty is covered in this blog article.
Early Puberty
Children seem to be starting puberty earlier and earlier, and there are many speculations as to what’s causing it to be triggered sooner, such as the BPA in shampoo or the hormones in meat. To learn more about this topic, take a look at these six blog posts.
- When it Comes to Puberty, Boys are Catching Up to Girls (and That’s Not Necessarily Good News) Learn why boys are starting puberty earlier now than in previous generations.
- Boys are Going Through Puberty Earlier—Dads, We Need Your Help! This blog post explains why some boys are going through puberty sooner and asks dads to help prepare boys.
- Precocious Puberty: Not Just for Girls, Anymore Statistics are given in this blog entry explaining how the ages of puberty have changed over the past decades.
- Are Girls Reaching Puberty at a Younger Age? According to Dr. Burton, MD, Children’s Medical Center of Dallas, she indicates that the average age for puberty hasn’t really changed in 30 years.
- Why are Kids Reaching Puberty One Year Earlier? Read all about why experts think that girls are maturing earlier these days.
- Early Puberty in Girls Linked to BPA, Dangerous Chemicals Explore the recent discovery as to why scientists think girls may be going through puberty earlier than their parents and how BPA is linked.
