6 Helpful Resources for Girls Going Through Puberty

If your tween daughter is headed towards puberty and has questions about puberty, body changes, and everything else that goes with this physical and developmental milestone, consider these resources. A good resource will not only help your daughter understand puberty, but will help you know how to answer questions, and make sure your tween is comfortable with puberty and prepared for the changes ahead.

These guides are ideal for tweens and parents, and will help educate your tween about puberty, and serve as a resource to you, too.

The Best Resource Ever Is You, the Parent

Mother talking to tween daughter on the couch

Tetra Images / Getty Images

Your daughter is about to face major life and physical changes and she'll need your help and advice to get through it as well as make the most of those changes. Don't push, just offer. 

Be sure your daughter knows that you are there for support and to help her find the answers to her questions and anxieties.

What's Happening to My Body: Book for Girls

What's Happening to My Body?

Amazon

What's Happening to My Body? is one of the most comprehensive resources available to tween and teens about puberty.

The writers, Lynda Madaras and Area Madaras, go into great detail on a number of subjects including puberty changes, how to buy a bra, hygiene, periods, falling in love and more. There's even a detailed guide that explains the changes boys go through when entering puberty, which can answer a lot of questions a girl might wonder about.

If your daughter is just looking for the basic information she has to know, ​What's Happening to My Body might offer more than she's looking for. On the other hand, it's probably better to have too much information, rather than not enough.

The Period Book

The Period Book

Amazon

Breezy, contemporary, and fun, The Period Book is fast becoming a classic for every girl on her way to puberty. The book delves into all the issues girls wonder about, and even has a section to help get them through the dreaded parent/child sex talk. Another section answers "what if" questions, helping ease girls' anxieties about a number of potentially embarrassing situations, without having to ask.

Humor is scattered throughout, but make no mistake, The Period Book is a solid resource and doesn't shy away from tough topics. If your daughter has questions about menstruation, puberty, or is shy about asking them, this book can break the ice.

About Puberty and Sex: The Talk

The Talk book

Amazon

OK, this book really isn't for your daughter as much as it is for you. If you haven't talked with your tween about sex yet, don't wait any longer. That's the premise of Sharon Maxwell's book, The Talk: What Your Kids Need to Hear from YOU About Sex.

Maxwell, a clinical psychologist, helps parents figure out what they want their children to know about sex, and helps them contradict the messages children receive from the media and our culture about sex and sexual promiscuity.

If you don't know what to say to your children regarding this important topic, you will after you read Maxwell's book.

Period, A Girl's Guide to Menstruation

Period, A Girl's Guide book cover

Book Peddlers

The writers of this book focus on the topic of menstruation. If you're looking for a resource that covers puberty in its entirety, Period, A Girl's Guide to Menstruation, might not be enough. But this book does a very good job of explaining a girl's changing body, her monthly cycles, PMS. mood swings, and more.

You may need additional information to cover other subjects, such as sex education, boys and puberty, and body image issues, but this book will cover you when it comes time to explain menstruation. A handy parent's guide is also part of the package and can help you focus on what you'd like to explain to your child when it comes time to talk about puberty.

The Changes Kit for Girls

The Changes Kit for Girls is a fun resource designed to teach your tween about puberty, and celebrate her maturing body.

Amazon

The Changes Kit for Girls is a unique package that offers information about puberty, as well as a few extras. A small guide book, which is beautifully designed, explains a girl's changing body. But the fun of the kit comes from an assortment of fragrances, which are meant to help a girl celebrate her new experiences in a totally feminine way.

A journal and pen help tweens keep track of their thoughts as they mature, and a calendar wheel teaches them how to track their periods and prepare for their cycles.

The kit comes in two styles, depending on your daughter's personality.

By Jennifer O'Donnell
Jennifer O'Donnell holds a BA in English and has training in specific areas regarding tweens, covering parenting for over 8 years.