#EdenU - #SexIs - My Inner Bitch’s Bout with Sex Negative Education

Contributor: So Long Ya Doofuses! So Long Ya Doofuses!
I believe using honest and correct language from the get-go is vital to a child's understanding of what's going on. Ever since my brothers and I were very young, my mother always referred to the vagina and penis by their proper names when she would explain things to us in the comfort of our own home. I never saw it as inherently sexual until I learned exactly how babies were made in my seventh grade class. (Before then, around age eight, my mother bought me this adorable book from Time Life called "How Babies are Made" that showed the reproductive and birth cycles of a plant, a chicken, and a human. I want to find it again so I can show it to my younger cousins!) Hiding these things and making them taboo simply makes a child want to learn about it more, and sometimes they could end up turning to less-than-reliable sources.
09/20/2012
Contributor: Alyxx Alyxx
I think that director completely overreacted. If the kid was going into detail about anatomy and how you have sex, or using vulgar terms, I could see him getting in trouble.
09/20/2012
Contributor: kbtoys kbtoys
I think the important thing to remember here is that we're talking about facts. Sex makes babies. No one is telling an eight year old boy that he should be having sex. It's insulting to children's intelligence and development not to tell them information about how babies are made. Especially in this case, the information clearly wasn't in-depth, just super basic. We should be encouraging kids to come to us with their questions about sex, not shaming them or purposefully keeping them in the dark. You can try to keep their innocence all you want, but eventually the bubble's going to pop, and wouldn't you rather them have the correct factual information? Baby-making isn't a fairytale; it's life. Getting worked up about it is silly.
09/20/2012
Contributor: Ansley Ansley
Quote:
Originally posted by kbtoys
I think the important thing to remember here is that we're talking about facts. Sex makes babies. No one is telling an eight year old boy that he should be having sex. It's insulting to children's intelligence and development not to tell ... more
"Getting worked up about it is silly."

I agree with this so much for so many different reasons.
09/20/2012
Contributor: Terri69 Terri69
I think ultimately it is the responsibility of the parents to educate about sex, but when things come up when a parent is not around, they should be addressed but leaving details to be explained by the childs parent
09/20/2012
Contributor: NarcissisticLust NarcissisticLust
Quote:
Originally posted by Kindred
I think the manner in which the counselor handled the situation was wrong, but I'm not convinced that his concerns were wrong. As the camp counselor, he has responsibilities to all of the children. It's great that the author's child was ... more
I completely agree with Kindred. I've been a camp counselor and put in similar situations like this. It isn't something a person expects to happen and some people don't know how to handle life moments.
09/20/2012
Contributor: Kitka Kitka
Quote:
Originally posted by Airen Wolf
I believe that sexually explicit full frontal images of aroused adults should be shielded from children and the acts adults perform when having sex should be left for the children to learn about or "invent" as they become adults. Other than ... more
I totally agree with you! Some things should be left for them to figure out on their own as long as they know about the facts and how protect themselves.
09/20/2012
Contributor: MidnightStorm MidnightStorm
I definitely think kids need sex education... It's so much harder when a child gets misinformation from their peers or doesn't get the whole story or doesn't feel comfortable talking to their parents. I don't think there's anything wrong with it!
09/22/2012
Contributor: Lynx Lynx
My younger sister and I were both raised with an open honesty from our mom. If we had any questions, we went to her, and asked. She was the same way with my friends once I hit high school, and probably will be for my sister's friends too. I'm glad that's how it was, because the "sex ed" in school taught you nothing. It teaches that sex is bad, and will make you get pregnant no matter what, then you'll die because you'll, of course, have an STD. I hate that that's how they teach it, and my children aren't going to be raised in the dark about sex and human anatomy in general.
09/22/2012