Male Puberty
What is the best thing about being a boy?
I received many different responses to this answer:
Boys are cool
Boys play sports
Boys don’t have to worry about how they look
Boys can have short hair
Boys don’t have to have babies
In this list you can see signs of stereotypical “boys versus girls” issues that we will discuss more in a later post.
NOTE BEFORE WE JUMP IN: As I have said, I taught my lessons to co-ed classes. If you are home-schooling your daughter, I encourage you to share this lesson. Girls and boys need to know about each other- no more mystery!!
How will I change?
Let’s review some of the changes that boys will experience.
Outward changes
Boys may expect to experience the following changes, visible to the outside world:
Grow taller and heavier. As the school nurse, and the person responsible for heights and weights, I can attest to the fact that this is a very big deal. This is the time for reassurance that these changes happen differently for everyone.
Shoulders broaden
Nose and jaw get bigger and face gets longer
Muscles begin to develop. Based on my experience, this change ranks high among the boys. When we discuss the fact that boys are more naturally muscular than girls (due to testosterone) the boys are thrilled.
Facial hair begins as a very soft layer. Shaving is usually not required until several years into the process. However, the thought of shaving is met with groans, not quite the same enthusiasm as the anticipated muscular growth!
Voices drop- I loved to play a tape of the Vienna Boys Choir followed by a man singing bass.
Acne may begin. For some reason, the boys often think this is a girl problem.
Perspiration increases
Inside changes
Let’s get right to it: The release of this anatomically correct drawing was always quite a moment in class, but there it is.
Penis
Male external sex organ.
Urine and semen leave through the penis.
Testicles
Testicles manufacture sperm cells.
Testicles produce testosterone.
Prostate Gland
Secretes a white fluid that mixes with sperm and forms semen.
The semen leaves the penis through the urethra. Urine also leaves through the urethra but these two things cannot happen at the same time! (Sigh of relief!)
Scrotum
The scrotum contains two oval shaped testicles.
The testicles manufacture sperm cells.
One testicle may be larger than the other and one might hang lower. This is OK…and was always met with lots of laughter.
Sperm Production
Levels of testosterone begin to rise.
Penis and testicles enlarge and begin to produce sperm.
Testicles make 1,000 sperm per second.
The scrotum and the penis are outside of the body. This keeps the sperm cool.
Erection and Ejaculation
When the penis becomes hard, this is called an erection. Erections may happen because of sexual thoughts or they may happen for no reason at all. The penis may release sperm mixed with fluid (semen). This is called ejaculation.
Release of semen from the penis during the night is called a nocturnal emission or a wet dream (there it is- the term that stumped them all when we played Boy, Girl, Both, Neither). This is very common and totally normal: It DOES NOT mean that you wet the bed.
For those of you who may not have read my earlier posts, this story bears repeating. Every year, as I explained the definition of the word erection, I was met with the usual response- a lot of noise. Once though, in the midst of the cacophony, one little boy raised his desk off of the floor because he was sure this is what would happen if he had an erection in school. It fell to me to go over and gently inform him, “It’s not that big”.
What can you do if you have erections in school?
When I posed this question, there was almost one boy who would say something to this effect- “Just sit there, it will go away!”
I also advised the children that they could wear loose pants. My other piece of advice- do a math problem in your head!
This has been a very basic lesson on the male reproductive system and the changes of puberty. This knowledge will be expanded when we take up the study of fertilization and reproduction.
Oh boy!