Objectives:
Students will:
- Accept normal differences in growth among girls.
- Recognize that all girls grow taller, gain weight and experience in- creased width and roundness of hips and development of breasts during puberty.
Vocabulary: puberty, hips, breasts
Materials: Picture Cards 2 and 3 yardstick or tape measure, chalkboard, chalk
Procedure:
- Read Picture Cards 2 and 3 and go over discussion questions.
- Measure each student's height now and in 6 months. Or if records are available find out the height of each student last year and compare it to the present measurement. Mark both heights of each student on the chalkboard to show her growth. Explain that growth is always taking place before, during, and until the end of puberty. (Include students who are non-ambulatory in this activity in a sensitive way acknowledging that growth in their height is taking place although it is not as noticeable from a wheelchair.)
- Have girls ask their mothers (or other adult females in their life) how old they were when they finished growing in height. Draw this simple chart on the chalkboard. As each student names someone and what age they finished growing put a checkmark next to that number. If it is a small group the teacher should have a list of other examples to help fill in the chart. Talk about how all these people look now. Emphasize that girls grow at different ages and that this is normal. All girls are special regardless of what age they go through puberty. Developmentally this is the time that girls really want to be just like one another, yet it is the time in their lives when they are actually the most different from one another physically. That's why it is so important to emphasize normal variations in growth and development.
Teacher Note: If a student's disability or prescribed medication will have any impact on her development, she should be informed.

- Additional Information. Have students guess which body parts grow first. (feet and hands) Ask them how they will know when this growth is taking place. (They will grow out of their shoes more quickly than usual and they will probably bump into things with their feet and hands more often because they are not used to the new size of their hands and feet.)
Teacher Note: There are situations where a girl's growth and development may not be 'normal'. If a teacher becomes aware of a girl who begins development prior to age 8 or has not started to develop by age 13, the teacher should encourage the parents to talk to their pediatrician or family physician.