Adolescence and Puberty

Overview

This lesson focuses on the social, emotional, mental, and physical changes that happen during adolescence. During these challenging times it is important to have social support. Social support may be by friends, family, significant adults, and social media.

Learning Targets

  • Identify social, emotional, mental, and physical changes that occur during adolescence.
  • Explain how support from peers, family, schools, and significant adults can improve a person’s experience during adolescence.
  • Analyze how social media can influence a person’s expectations about the changes they are experiencing.

Preparation

For the Warm-Up Activity: Write the journal question on the board or identify (and copy as needed) the worksheets you plan to use.

For the Content Focus: Make copies of the Adolescence and Puberty Note-Taking Guide. Open the Adolescence and Puberty PowerPoint slides.

For the Lesson Focus: Copy the Analyzing Influences Skill-Building Challenge Worksheet.

Warm-Up Activity

Select a warm-up activity to help get your class focused and on task.

  • Journal Question: What changes have you started noticing in yourself during adolescence? How do you feel about those changes?
    • Option: Write or project the question and have students respond in their journals as they enter class.
    • Option: Have students discuss the question with a partner or in a small group.
  • Vocabulary Review: Have students work individually, in pairs, or in small groups to complete the Adolescence and Puberty Vocabulary Review Worksheet.
  • Quiz: Have students complete the Adolescence and Puberty Quiz to assess their prior knowledge.
    • Option: Collect the quiz and use it alongside a posttest to demonstrate student learning.
    • Option: Have students share their answers with a partner and then go over the answers together as a class.

Lesson Content

Review the content from the textbook lesson.

Lesson Focus: Analyzing Influences

  1. Provide each student with a copy of the Analyzing Influences Skill-Building Challenge Worksheet.
  2. Students will think about their own expectations or those on social media of what they think is normal during adolescence as to how they should feel or look.
  3. Students will answer the analyzing influence questions individually.
    1. Who or what has influenced you to feel or look a certain way concerning your appearance or body?
    2. Do you think the influence has been positive or negative? Explain why.
    3. If the influence has been negative, what changes can you make to be more positive concerning your appearance or body?

Challenge Activity

Have students needing additional challenge work on the following critical thinking task:

Changes during adolescence can cause many different emotions, including positive and negative feelings about yourself, friends, and family. What are some feelings or thoughts you have about how you look, who your friends are, what you are good at, where you live, and about your family members? Are they positive or negative thoughts or feelings? Why do you think they are positive or negative?

Reflection and Summary

Review the critical content from today’s lesson. Review the learning targets and ask students to answer each question posed.

Can you...

  • Identify social, emotional, mental, and physical changes that occur during adolescence?

    Social changes in adolescence may include friends having more influence and importance over your decisions and becoming more independent. Emotional changes in adolescence can lead to understanding the importance of your self-esteem and knowing there will be times you have to work on being confident and liking yourself because it isn’t always easy with so many emotions happening. Spend time focusing on you and how great you are rather than on social comparisons, which can lead to low self-esteem and anxiety. Mental changes in adolescence are often the beginning to having a more comprehensive view of your world as well as how poor choices can lead to problems and how positive choices can lead to affirmative consequences now and into your future. Physical changes in adolescence are the most noticeable to you and others, which can also be stressful when you aren’t sure if the changes happening are normal or not.

  • Explain how support from peers, family, schools, and significant adults can improve a person’s experience during adolescence?

    Having people to talk with and who care for you and support you, such as peers, family, and significant adults in your life can help make the difficult times more manageable.

  • Analyze how social media can influence a person’s expectations about the changes they are experiencing?

    Social media can be a resource where teens can share their feelings and experiences with other teens or find helpful resources. Teens can find comfort in knowing that what is happening during adolescence is normal. Social media can also influence how teens view themselves compared to others, which can result in unattainable expectations.

Assessment

Complete one or more of the following assessment tasks for this lesson.

Take It Home

Ask a significant adult in your life if they remember how they felt about their appearance, about where they lived or about certain family members when they were an adolescent. Do you have any of the same feelings or are yours different?