babble » blogs » Strollerderby
Strollerderby
Yesterday Jezebel had a righteous go at a British MP who has expressed horror at the BBC’s sex ed program, which she says is like a “blue movie” a.k.a. “porn”.
Jezebel’s take-down of the MPs objections is hilarious and spot on. Of course a sex ed film should include pictures of naked bodies. This one also includes computer-generated characters getting it on, in a bit about how babies are conceived.
The film is part of the curriculum for 9-year-olds, though, which caused a bit of a stir among Jezebel’s commenters, some of whom seemed surprised that you’d need to talk to a pre-pubescent child about sex.
Hot tip: yes, you do. Waiting until your kid is old enough to procreate is way too late to begin talking about human sexuality.
So when should those discussions start?
What, when, and how should kids learn about sex? There may be as many opinions on this subject as there are parents. Seriously, even people with seamlessly aligned child-rearing philosophies can find themselves at odds on this highly emotional — and anxiety-producing — issue. The root of the problem seems to be the fear that teaching kids about sex will put ideas about sex into their heads. This theory has basically been disproven, at least anecdotally. But that doesn’t stop people from worrying about it.
Mostly, I think people are just not comfortable with the idea of their kids even thinking about sex, never mind doing it. Teaching sex ed in school forces parents to accept that their kids know about it, and maybe even to feel somehow responsible for this knowledge. For most of America, the question is whether or not teenagers should be learning about having sex at all. But at one school in Philadelphia, teens are learning things that would probably make most of America completely freak. Things I can’t write here, because they’d attract the wrong element in Google searches.
If your kids don't get the 411 on sex in here, are you going to fill them in on all the dirty details? Really?
My daughters are little. Like, toddler little and newborn little. The very thought of them having sex is beyond disgusting. Perish the thought of them ever being sexual beings. Yuck!
But here’s the thing: some day they will grow to be women. Women who have sex (again, yuck!). As such, at some point they’ll need to learn about it (growing up and having sex). If I didn’t ensure they learned about both, I’d be a pretty bad mom, nay, a bad person.
I get the parents in New York City who are in an uproar over the sex education classes in which kids are learning firsthand about lubricants, oral sex and vibrators. But the truth is, I don’t really get the uproar.
The New York City Department of Education is about to start requiring one semester of sex ed in sixth or seventh grade, and then again in ninth or tenth grade. The information they get in there will be lots of practical stuff, like facts about abstinence, birth control, and STD and pregnancy prevention. But they’re also throwing a curve ball by way of teaching some other real stuff, like the safety of “intercourse using a condom and an oil-based lubricant,” mutual masturbation, French kissing, and anal sex, according to Jezebel. They’ll also learn about oral sex with braces, “doggie-style sex” and S&M fetishes.
Continue reading »
A new study shows that parents talk to their kids about sex, but not about birth control. Hot tip: if you don’t want to be a grandparent too soon, that’s a conversation you shouldn’t skimp on.
While most parents are having The Talk with their children, the study, commissioned by Planned Parenthood and the Center for Latino Adolescent and Family Health, found that talk covers the mechanics of making babies and stops short of explaining how not to make little ones until you’re ready.
Why are parents keeping their kids in the dark about birth control? In some cases, that may stem from a belief in abstinence-only sex ed. Some people really think kids shouldn’t know about contraception.
A lot of us, though, are just squeamish about getting into too much detail with our kids. Or we think they’re too young to know. I am not one of those parents.
Ain't nothin' natural 'bout gay people makin' babies, says TN lawmaker.
Uh oh, bad news bears! Towleroad reports that “Tennessee’s Senate has approved Stacey Campfield’s hideous ‘Don’t Say Gay’ bill which would forbid discussion of homosexuality in classrooms.” The bill was approved 19-11 today, in the hopes that from now on instruction materials at public elementary or middle schools in Tennessee will pretend gay people don’t exist. What’s that you say, Billy? You have two moms? Not anymore you don’t. Continue reading »
Are kindergarteners too young to learn about the birds and the bees and the baby chickadees?
I consider myself a pretty liberal person when it comes to most things. I believe in gay marriage, taxing the rich, ending the war (any war). I’ve talked to my 5-year-old daughter about the fact that boys can love boys and girls can love girls. I teach her about donating to those in need. She knows what a tampon is, and that it’s something grown-up girls use when they get their periods (ewww!). I haven’t been shy about much when it comes to raising my daughter; I even explained to her that the hole part of her pee-pee is called a vagina.
But when my daughter started yelling, “Penis, penis, penis!” down the sidewalk as we were walking home from school one day last week, all bets were suddenly off. In that instant, I immediately switched camps and joined the 59% of parents “who do not think sex education should be taught to children in school from a young age.”
What's the Big Secret is a big deal to at least one Washington mom
A mom in Oak Harbor, Wash., is up in arms over a book about the birds and the bees.
What’s the Big Secret isn’t a book exclusive to her fifth grade daughter’s school, but as far as Jennifer Swedeoson is concerned, it should be banned from them all. She had planned to talk to 10-year-old Kaleigh about sex when she reached middle school, but she was beat to the punch by the book.
It offers lessons in reproduction and different types of touching, including masturbation. However, Swedeoson doesn’t blame the book, but the school for not alerting parents to its presence in the library.
Joslyn Gray 
Amber Doty 
Julianna Miner 
Monica Bielanko 
Sierra Black 
Meredith Carroll 
Carolyn Castiglia 
Sunny Chanel 
Madeline Holler 
Wendy Michaels 
Rebecca Odes 
Danielle Smith 
Danielle Sullivan 
Katherine Stone 
The Walt Disney Company supports Babble as a platform dedicated to honest, engaged, informed, intelligent and open conversation about parenting. However, the opinions expressed on this site are those of individual parents/writers and do not reflect the views of Disney. In addition, content provided on this site is for entertainment or informational purposes only and should not be construed as medical advice, diagnosis, treatment, or safety advice.
4