Changes during puberty
Lesson details
Learning outcome
I can describe changes in humans as they develop through adolescence.
Key learning points
- Adolescence is the stage of growth and development between childhood and adulthood
- Puberty is when a child's body begins to develop and change as they become an adult and are able to reproduce
- Puberty usually happens between ages 10 and 14 for girls, and ages 12 and 16 for boys
- Signs of puberty for girls include changing body shape, additional body hair and starting periods
- Signs of puberty for boys include changing body shape, additional body hair and a deeper voice
Keywords
Human - People are a type of animal called humans.
Adolescence - Adolescence is the stage of the human life cycle that occurs between childhood and adulthood.
Adolescent - An adolescent is a human in the process of developing from a child into an adult.
Puberty - Puberty is a time when human bodies go through changes to become adults that are able to reproduce.
Reproduce - When living things reproduce they create their offspring.
Common misconception
Pupils may think that everyone goes through, or should go through puberty, at the same time.
Using the lesson resources to support, explain that everybody is different and will go through puberty at different times.
Teacher tip
Try and get hold of photos of familiar staff members during childhood and adolescence so children can enjoy seeing how these familiar people have changed over time and during the period of adolescence.
Equipment
None required
Content guidance
Depiction or discussion of sensitive content
Supervision
Adult supervision recommended
Licence
Lesson video
Loading...
Prior knowledge starter quiz
6 Questions
Q1.Which of these animals is a mammal?
Q2.Humans become toddlers when they are around ...
Q3.At what stage in their development do humans usually stop growing?
Q4.What can human adults do that human children cannot?
Q5.Between what ages are young humans considered to be children?
Q6.Match the approximate age with the stage of development in young humans.
Start eating solid food
Start learning to walk
Start speaking in short sentences
Start learning to recognise letters and numbers
Assessment exit quiz
6 Questions
Q1.Starting with the earliest, order the stages of human development.
Q2.What is puberty?
Q3.Match the stage of human development to the body change.
Able to digest foods other than milk
Start learning to walk
Baby teeth fall out
Body hair grows in new places, such as under the arms
Q4.Which of these changes happen to both boys and girls during puberty?
Q5.When does puberty usually start for girls?
Q6.When does puberty usually begin for boys?
To help you plan your 5 science lesson on: Changes during puberty, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs...
To help you plan your 5 science lesson on: Changes during puberty, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs.
The starter quiz will activate and check your pupils' prior knowledge, with versions available both with and without answers in PDF format.
We use learning cycles to break down learning into key concepts or ideas linked to the learning outcome. Each learning cycle features explanations with checks for understanding and practice tasks with feedback. All of this is found in our slide decks, ready for you to download and edit. The practice tasks are also available as printable worksheets and some lessons have additional materials with extra material you might need for teaching the lesson.
The assessment exit quiz will test your pupils' understanding of the key learning points.
Our video is a tool for planning, showing how other teachers might teach the lesson, offering helpful tips, modelled explanations and inspiration for your own delivery in the classroom. Plus, you can set it as homework or revision for pupils and keep their learning on track by sharing an online pupil version of this lesson.
Explore more key stage 2 science lessons from the Human development unit, dive into the full primary science curriculum, or learn more about lesson planning.