Today is the last day of school for the largest system of public schools in the United States, serving about 1.1 million students in over 1700 schools.
Green Queen RA talking menstruation with Bronx Park Middle School’s Green Tweens (students faces have been blurred to protect their identity).
Last week Maxim Hygiene Products’ VP and Co-Founder, Green Queen RA, was invited to speak about periods with ten budding Green Tweens at one of these 1700 schools, which happens to be former Green Queen SA’s Bronx Park Middle School classroom! Given many parents’ fears about how to talk to teenage girls about their periods and the past week’s highly publicized two Bronx middle school stabbings, you might be thinking which is scarier – talking to a group of teens about their periods or being in the vicinity of these tragic incidents?
We’re happy to report that neither scenario was intimidating for our Fierce Woman, Green Queen RA. In fact, she’s excited to share with you in the following guest blog post, her amazingly positive experience of spending the day with the Fierce Green Tweens of Bronx Park Middle School:
If you’ve read my story, you would know that teaching was my first love, which is probably why I take any excuse to share Maxim product information and educational tools in helping women and girls understand the benefits of using organic and natural chlorine free 100% cotton tampons and sanitary pads.
When Green Queen SA invited me in to her classroom to speak with her 11 – 13 year old Middle School teen girls, I was excited to tap in to my previous experiences in teaching to work with a different audience then the usual adult aged females I encounter as VP of Maxim Hygiene Products. I was gearing up for a group of shy and awkward teens who I thought had menstruation as the last thing on their list of things they wanted to learn about during their second to last week of school! Instead, I was welcomed with attentive, knowledgeable and enthusiastic girls eager to hear and share what they knew and experienced with periods. One student even had her favorite book on puberty handy to share with me!
Bronx Park Middle School student testing at the absorbent core test.
You can see the student’s book pictured above, alongside my company’s favorite educational demonstration called the Absorbent Core Test. This is one of our interactive, fun and tactile ways to help show the difference between cotton fibers (used to make Maxim natural sanitary pads hypoallergenic, breathable and sustainable) vs. wood pulp fibers (the main ingredient of most ordinary sanitary pads that not only leads to deforestation, but irritation for many women). You can check out some of the other demos we shared by clicking here.
Not only were the girls so intrigued by the product education, but our discussions about puberty and all the trials, tribulations and rewards that come with this great right of passage were so thoughtful, engaging and meaningful beyond what I remember experiencing as a tween in the early 90s.
What impressed me the most about these students was their sensitivity towards each others’ and their own personal experiences with menstruation that they were so open to sharing. We of course took a vow of privacy that whatever we talked about in regards to this very personal matter would not be repeated beyond classroom doors so that everyone would feel safe about sharing; they proved their maturity in doing so when we left the school for a field trip together and nobody made mention or teased anyone about the somewhat sensitive conversations and open discussions we had.
Entrance to the New York Botanical Gardens Greenhouse.
Interestingly and ironically enough, my lesson on menstruation was integrated in to what the school calls “flow week,” a week long curriculum focused on expeditionary learning done in smaller advisory groups. So after we talked about Aunt Flow, I accompanied the group to The New York Botanical Gardens for their “Flow Week” expedition of the day.”
This beautiful pristine and popular NYC tourist site is located walking distance from the school and is home to one of the most extensive and diverse living plant collections and some of the world’s most distinguished garden designs. To be out in nature amongst the glory of all the gardens was just fantastic!
We found Rose Hip at the New York Botanical Gardens!
We were even more delighted when we got to extend the lesson on menstruation beyond the classroom and to the gardens by finding real live samples of rose hip (pictured below), the fruit of a rose plant that is commonly used in teas made specifically for women on their period. Rose hip is rich in iron, a mineral our body can use to help replenish all the blood we lose during our periods. We’re all about the natural and herbal PMS remedies!
It was such a treat to spend my day with these impressive Green Tweens and even moreso a reminder of my great value for hard working teachers like those I got to meet at Bronx Park Middle School. These girls were already so equipped and knowledgeable about their changing bodies and the importance of protecting the environment that it was clear to me that this school was meeting it’s mission of “provide our students with a safe, personalized, and inspirational space so that they can bring their best self to work, think deeply about themselves and their challenges, think creatively about their choices and solutions, learn about each other as individuals, and never give up.”
On this last week of school for many teachers in the U.S., I’d like to take the opportunity to thank you for all the hard work you do to keep our youth informed and educated for the overall benefit of our larger society. Happy Summer Break!
And thank you Green Queen RA for taking the time to visit these young girls as they cross through the stage becoming women. If you’d like more information about how you can approach a lesson on menstruation with your tweens or students, email us at info@maximhy.com and we’ll be happy to help!