Emotional Changes in Puberty

The 12 depicted situations relate to emotional changes young people go through during puberty:

1. Feeling pressure of social media and beauty ideals
2. Feeling peer pressure, wanting to belong
3. Having a need for privacy, a need to be alone
4. Dealing with physical changes, body insecurities,...
5. Having (a) best friend(s)
6. Feeling insecure about the future (work, studies, travels,...)
7. Getting sexual feelings (falling in love, feeling attracted to girls/boys or both, having a relationship,...)
8. Rebelling, resisting authority (of parents, teacher,...)
9. Having frequent mood changes
10. Looking for an identity
11. Feeling insecure, feeling/being excluded, being bullied,....
12. Thinking about global problems (e.g. climate change) and your place in the world

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

This activity is a part of the StreetSmart sexuality package. The package aims to give youth workers the tools they need to address the topic of sexuality in a playful way with the children and young people they work with, so they can learn to make conscious, healthy and respectful decisions.

Sexuality is a very broad term, encompassing various subtopics. Here, you can find a list of all activities included in our sexuality package to address these different topics:

1. Sexuality in general: The Sex Alphabet, The Sexuality Goose Game, Yes or No Circle, Sexuality Statement Game
2. Body (development): Anatomy fundamentals, Who has what?, Physical changes in puberty, Emotional changes in puberty, Life Cycle
3. Boundaries: Stop!, People to People, Kiss the Teddy Bear, Body Carrousel, (Not) Okay?, Body Twister 
4. Relationships: Choose Your Relationship, My Ideal Partner, In The Worst Way Possible
5. Gender & sexual orientation: Labels, Sex Change, Who does what?
6. Safe sex: The Synonym Game, Condom Smugglers, Goodie Bag, STD-Roulette, Can I get pregnant?
7. Sex & media: Who is responsible?

• Give each situation a number from 1 to 12 and ask the players to rate them from "most recognisable" to "least recognisable". You can ask all players to do this individually or come to a consensus as a group.
• Top 3: Ask the players to choose the 3 situations that are most important / positive / challenging / ... for them.
• Draw a timeline with "past", "present" and "future" on the blackboard or on a piece of paper. Ask the players which of the emotional changes they already experienced, are experiencing now and haven't experienced yet. The players can do this individually as well. You can ask them to compare their timelines and open up a discussion.
• One of the players draws or enacts something he/she associates with one of the 12 situations. The player that can guess which situation the drawing is associated with, gets a point. You can also ask the drawer why they thought of drawing what they drew.
• Role-play: Ask the players to enact one or all of the situations on the panel in more detail.
• Storytelling: Ask the players to invent a story based on one or more of the depicted situations.