How do Hogwarts students learn about puberty?

Question

This question regarding Hogwarts students "doing it" got me thinking about the age of Hogwarts students and the important changes their bodies are going through during such a period in their lives.

My question is, how do Hogwarts students learn to care for their changing bodies?

• How do they not just learn about puberty, but who teaches them proper bodily care?
• What about girls in particular (puberty is a bit more involved for them)?
• When do they get haircuts? Hogsmead field trips?

The faulty and staff of Hogwarts seem to take a generally hands-off approach to the personal lives of students (excepting Hagrid and the trio), so it seems unlikely they would take that sort of intimate/parental role in the lives of their students.

Out-of-universe speculation regarding real boarding schools would be informative too (the entire concept of boarding school has always baffled me).

Clearly we never hear much about Harry and co. taking poops, and Harry only takes one bath over the course of seven years, but that's par for the course with most fiction. This particular issue seems to have a real world equivalent though.

Answer 1

As you said, there's no mention of this in the books. But we can speculate.

Let's look at each of your questions:

1. How do they learn about puberty?

In all likelihood, they learn from their parents. Most Muggles also learn from "The Talk;" kids at Hogwarts can do this just like kids at Muggle boarding schools. What really happens, though, is that they learn from older kids. Ron, for example, probably knew all about this from his brothers, and Ginny from her mother (and to a lesser extent her brothers) but kids probably learn most of it from other kids. This is why Harry knows like nothing about it--his parents are dead and his uncle and aunt would never do this service to him. It's also possible that Madam Pomfrey teaches a health class that we never see, like Madam Hooch's quid ditch class that we see only once.

2. How do they learn proper bodily care, especially girls?

It's possible, as I said, that there's some kind of class from Madam Pomfrey which goes into detail about proper care of the body. In addition, asking a professor (although way up on the awkward levels) is possible. Parents probably include this in the Talk, and older siblings and/or housemates might provide advice. For girls--some of them will begin their periods at home, but the rest probably just have to go to Madam Pomfrey and get something for their needs (sorry if I don't know much about this, since I don't have them).

3. When do they get haircuts?

This is hard. Obviously they do get haircuts, but it's unclear how this could happen at Hogwarts. The only mention of haircuts in the series I can think of is this:

It provided a distraction, watching Mrs. Weasley force Charlie into a chair, raise her wand threateningly, and announce that he was about to get a proper haircut.

A short time later he has "brutally short hair." Obviously haircuts are easily done and given with wands. I can thing of a few ways they can happen at Hogwarts:

• Madam Pomfrey cuts students' hair. This would be easy for her and would take like no time
• Other teachers run some kind of service every few weeks or so for money. This explains why the Weaslys have so short hair
• Other students cut hair for money.
• Students cut their own hair. Easy and short
• Runs into town. When I went to a camp--not a boarding school, but 6 weeks long--kids would take walks into the nearby town to get their haircut. Unfortunately, this would not be available to students in 1st or 2nd years.

Answer 2

There are two possibilities:

1. Parents from wizarding families are required to give "the talk" before students start at Hogwarts, or (more likely)

2. There are special lessons timetabled during the first year which cover the relevant material. In a Muggle school (in the UK anyway) these lessons would take place in the last year of primary school (ie immediately before starting at Hogwarts).

Answer 3

I think JK Rowling made a choice for all public to do not speak about it.

But in practice in this sort of college, older student help and advise new one. If someone have a source could be great but maybe prefect have this sort of job as they teach rules and have power for punishment

(But i agree Harry looks like he have a mentality of a 12 year old all the saga on this subject)