Guiding Star Cycle Show FAQ
How Do I Know if My Daughter is Ready for the Cycle Show?
We believe that every young woman deserves to understand how her body was made so that she can learn to value and respect the beautiful design that is HER! We know that when girls value themselves, they make decisions that protect their dignity and worth.
That being said, there is a huge variation with regards to readiness in terms of age and maturity, cultural beliefs, and family dynamics that determine when and how this information is most effectively shared with girls. We never want to introduce information about the beauty of female fertility and human reproduction to girls who are not ready for it. It is incredibly important that this information never scandalizes our girls, as that only further perpetuates the idea of shame and stigma about themselves.
Parents are rightfully children’s first educators, and it is incredibly important that parents be the first to relay an attitude of appreciation and comfort with the natural female body. We never want our Cycle Show instructors to be the first person to have a conversation with a girl about her body. We want parents to be involved and empowered to also talk with their girls and to prepare the way for us to share more in-depth information about how their body actually works.
Your daughter should not be pushed into attending a Cycle Show before she is ready to hear this information. Nor should she be held back from attending if she is asking questions and is indicating her readiness to know more. Children give us clues as to when they are ready to know more and we as parents should try to be attentive to giving them the information as they show readiness.
Signs that she is probably ready to learn more
- She’s asking questions about how babies get in mamas’ tummies
- She’s asking about developing breasts and when that will happen
- She’s is asking about the differences between boy and girl bodies
After you have introduced basic concepts and addressed these questions in a positive way and have satisfied her initial curiosity, she will need more in-depth information as she grows to put all the pieces together. Our children live in a world that is very confused and often gives inaccurate depictions of the female body. Cycle Show is a safe place for your daughter to truly get the “bigger picture” of how it all works and ask questions about ideas or things she has heard from less than trustworthy sources. Cycle Show will help her know the truth about the goodness and purpose of her body.
Signs she is probably ready for a Cycle Show
- She’s in school and/or around other children who are talking about these things
- Her body is beginning to show signs of puberty
- She has been exposed to some sort of sexual material (magazine, movie, website)
- She has heard the anatomical terms for reproductive organs
What is the Cycle Show?
Cycle Show is…
A source of correct biological terminology, always coupled with positive images, comparisons and a language with which girls are familiar and can easily relate to.
Cycle Show is not…
- A religious teaching on the morality of sexual activity
- A replacement for parent/child conversations about sex
Do moms attend the Cycle Show workshop with the girls?
The parents have a 90-minute Parent Presentation with a Guiding Star Cycle Show Instructor before the Girls Cycle Show workshop or via LIVE Webinar given once a month. The Parent Presentation is designed just for the parents, hosts or sponsors. The Presentation is a summary given for adults. The 5-hour Cycle Show workshop is just for the girls. The workshop is created for a group of 10-16 girls in the 9-13 year old age group. The workshop and story line is designed for this age group. We use all of the senses in our learning throughout the narrative of the Cycle Show that happens in the woman’s body and what to expect leading up to and during the time of puberty.
Can my daughter’s school host a Cycle Show for her class?
Schools are a great host for the Cycle Show! A school may host a 5-hour Cycle Show workshop for 5th or 6th grade classes during school or on a Saturday/school holiday. Schools may need to have a sponsor to cover the hosting fees. We hope to have sponsorships and/or grants to cover the hosting fees in the future as well.
