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Preteens

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Original poster

Age appropriate puberty books!

13 replies

MamaD2 · 26/02/2018 19:33

Hello, new to all of this!
I have 2 daughters, 7 and nearly 9. They are reasonably well informed about periods, body hair etc and we’ve had a very basic ‘how the baby gets there’ chat. 7yr old not too interested at the minute, but 9yr old is definitely more aware. I’ve been looking at books, so that she can read through and ask any questions after. However, I’m finding it difficult to find one that seems age appropriate for her? They all seem to mention sex, drugs etc and I just don’t think we’re quite there yet. The Usborne one seems to be quite popular, but having read through a sample- it’s talks about masturbating??!! Am I being silly to think that this is all a bit much too young?
So I’m looking for recommendations for books that are more focused on periods, hormones, breasts and so forth, can anyone help? Thanks!

OP posts:
greensnail · 26/02/2018 19:36

Not a book but my 9 year old enjoyed the operation ouch puberty special. Not sure if it is still on iplayer but worth a look if it is.

titchy · 26/02/2018 19:40

What's wrong with your dd being aware of masturbating? Confused She's probably perfectly aware it feels nice...

Original poster
MamaD2 · 26/02/2018 19:45

Thank you, have downloaded it!

I think she’s too young. It’s not something I’d feel comfortable her reading about yet.

OP posts:
titchy · 26/02/2018 20:23

She's 9 - she's probably doing it and feeling guilty/uncomfortable. Books reassure that it's normal and healthy.

ColoExpat · 26/02/2018 20:45

"The Care and Keeping of You: the body book for girls" is pretty good. There are two of them. The first is geared towards younger girls and is just right for my 9 year old and girls getting ready to enter puberty (or have friends who already are in it.) We have the second book for older girls, too, but my daughter is not really ready for it yet. They are published through the American Girl company but easy to buy online here in the UK. Side note: did you watch Inside Out, the Disney film? It's a good conversation opener, too!

MamaD20 · 26/02/2018 21:24

I seem to have locked myself out of my account! Hence new username!
ColoExpat-
Thank you, will have a look in to those. I don’t think my daughter is ready for the more grown up stuff just yet either, reassuring that I’m
Not the only one Smile
We have watched Inside Out- great film! I prefer approaching the subject as it arises with things like films, books etc rather than make a big deal out it like having ‘The Talk’ !
Thanks for your help Smile

Hera2018 · 19/03/2018 14:34

I second the Care and Keeping of You books. I got them for my DD and the first one is geared towards body changes including things like spots, pubic hair, changes in emotions, etc. (rather than sex, boyfriends etc like some books)

JiltedJohnsJulie · 19/03/2018 22:18

There are some good recommendation on a might girl OP. Agree with the others though, you might not be comfortable but she’s probably exploring what feels nice already.

8mileeminem · 19/03/2018 22:23

Another one here for care and keeping of you, it just got delivered last week for my 8.5 year old. We've sat together and gone through a few pages. Seems age appropriate unlike other books.

upsideup · 19/03/2018 22:25

I dont think a nine year old can ever be too well informed about puberty, as long as she is taught about it factually and supportively then it will do no harm, finding out about it at school or from the internet later on may do though.

Milan05 · 29/08/2018 10:48

I am a boy aged 12 but I only got informed more about puberty and puberty changes this year, when it actually started (despite I got the first pubic hairs at 11). At 9 years old I did know about puberty, mostly from books, but it was only sparse information. I als found about how are babies made and other related things such as periods at 8, when I got a little brother. But these years I was not too aware about the fact that puberty is coming, and I was still quite childish. This year though, I thinked: "It seems that I hit puberty. Time to read about it. And it seems to be time to change." I was not upset at the fact of not being a little kid anymore, like some early-starting kids are, and I started to read about puberty. I found a website called KidsHealth, a health website aimed at parents, kids and teens alike. There I found a lots of information about puberty. I did not have a "The Talk", but rather bits and pieces of one, including a chat on a roadtrip about B.O. and hair.

About masturbation, I did certainly not know about it when I was nine.

NaomiS1 · 19/12/2018 16:51

Another recommendation for 'the care and keeping of you' - my 10 year old DD loves it.

applespearsbears · 19/12/2018 16:55

I've also been thinking about this, are there any recommendations for a 7 year old?

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