Sex ed for Six Year Olds

That's right, folks. Where I live, come September, there will be sex-education classes for children in grade one. What do I think about it? Well, I'll tell you, of course.

This Monday I went to a Moms group at my church. We have children of all different ages, so while some of the subject matter didn't pertain to
my son, it was still helpful to hear what parents of older children are experiencing. The facilitator told us how important it is to talk to our children about sexuality, etc, because she was experimenting with boys by the age of SEVEN and lost her virginity at the age of fourteen.

So do I think that age 6 is too early? Not really. Sex-ed is not a how-to manual. Even when I was in high school it wasn't a how-to manual. Sex-ed in the first grade would consist of teaching children the proper names for body parts. Some people think that this is highly inappropriate, but I don't.

There is nothing sexy about the word "penis" or "vagina." And those parts are really nothing to be ashamed of. I honestly think that having this in school might take some of the mystique out of the form of the opposite sex, so kids no longer feel the need to play "Doctor" or "I'll show you mine if you show me yours." Works for me.

People who are against this are saying that parents should be the ones to teach their kids these things. But do they? Or are they so uncomfortable that they are dropping the ball? I know I wasn't taught jack. My sex-ed talk came in the form of being spanked at age 12 and called a whore for sneaking out to see my much older boyfriend. Perhaps if my parents had had that talk with me, that wouldn't have happened. Perhaps if I knew that raging hormones were normal but that they did NOT necessarily have to be obeyed and that I would NOT go insane from ignoring them, that whole scenario could have been avoided.

And having sex-ed in schools does not mean, in any way, that parents aren't able to instill in their own children values and beliefs about sex. In fact, I think having it in schools paves the way for open communication. Parents can look at the curriculum, ask if their kids have any questions about what they learned in school today, and voila--instant "the talk."

Expecting schools to wait until kids are already teenagers for sex-education just doesn't make sense anymore. Kids are getting involved with sex much earlier than high school these days, and I think its important to address that and not live with our heads in the sand.

Its also helpful to talk to kids about sex BEFORE their hormones start raging, so that the common sense we're trying to impart, the telling them to wait, and explaining the emotional and physical consequences of having sex before they should has a chance to seep in before their libidos get kick-started.

And no, I am not comfortable thinking about my precious 9 month old with any sort of libido. But you know what? I need to get comfortable. This is the world we live in, and hiding from it isn't going to do him any favours. Parents need to address these concerns head-on.

More information:
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/politics/muslims-christians-challenge-ontarios-more-explicit-sex-ed/article1542657/