Primary Education
the real period project
Primary Education
UK research by Plan International (1) found that 1 in 4 girls they spoke to felt unprepared for their first period, and 1 in 7 didn’t know what was happening when they started. The average age of menarche (first period) in the UK is just under 13 years old (2), which means primary school teachers are in an important position of helping prepare girls (and kids of other genders with female organs) for this major transition.
We always believed that more could be taught in primary school about the menstrual cycle and managing periods, so no one has to feel unprepared or confused when they start their periods.
Real Period Project
primary school lesson plans
Supported by the School for Social Entrepreneurs, in 2018 we trialled our primary school sessions in Bristol with some wonderful year 5 (aged 9/10) children. These sessions work well as standalone sessions to introduce periods and the menstrual cycle in years 5 or 6, or alongside existing Jigsaw puberty sessions if you’d like to go into more detail with your class.
Training for menstrual educators
We are excited to recommend the Foundations of Menstrual Education program from The Chalice Foundation, an Australian-based international charity delivering positive menstrual education. Foundations of Menstrual Education is for anyone teaching about periods and the menstrual cycle in any setting & is ideally suited to primary school staff.
This course is a comprehensive deep dive into delivering effective, empowering and engaging menstrual education for all.
Emily is a Celebration Day for Girls facilitator and these workshops can be held in your school, as a full or half day session. This programme was created by Jane Bennett in Australia over 15 years ago and now has many facilitators worldwide, offering fun sessions that prepare young people for puberty and periods in an empowering and positive way. The sessions adapt well for the school setting and work well both in girls’ schools, or alongside a session run for the boys in mixed gender classes. We recommend JourneyManUK for this.