Knowing about your own genitalia and having teachers talk about them before grade 5 (when I remember the awkward sex ed section of health class) are two different things.
Knowing about your own genitalia and having teachers talk about them before grade 5 (when I remember the awkward sex ed section of health class) are two different things.
Are they? I don’t think so. Once a kid is aware and capable of asking questions we, as adults (and especially teachers), should be capable of answering them at their level of understanding without it getting weird.
We’re talking about basic anatomy at that age.
By 1st grade, rumors were spreading at our school that the way girls get pregnant is by by boys peeing in their vaginas.
And that’s what happens when adults aren’t willing to have frank, clear, and biologically correct discussions.
I used to think a vagina was called a fur china (because it had hair in it) and thought babies came out of women’s butts. And that was okay because I wasn’t going to impregnate someone in grade school. It’s okay not to know some stuff at certain ages.
I also thought it was related to Mongolia somehow because they had furry hats in a movie I saw and I knew Mongolia was close to China but I could never quite figure it out.
I agree teachers should be able to answer these questions, even from kindergarteners. I disagree that teachers should initiate these discussions. Further, there are many ways to tell the truth:
Teacher, what is a penis?
a) It is an organ on boys. They urinate through it. Also, it is involved in reproduction, or making babies. It is the passageway through which sperms travels from the boy to the girl. Now let's go back to addition and subtraction.
b) It is an organ that exists on the bodies of approximately 50% of the human race. It has nothing to do with whether someone is a boy or a girl--both boys and girls can have penises. If you think you might be a boy today, but think later that you might be a girl, that's awesome, and we can find a doctor to remove that penis from you, if you want. If you change your mind later, you can still go back to being a boy, because simply having your penis lopped off does not mean you cannot be a boy, because they don't have anything to do with that. Also, you might decide you are not a boy OR a girl, in which case you can basically do whatever you want with that penis. Does that make sense? Good, now let's go back to learning addition and subtraction.
Knowing about your own genitalia and having teachers talk about them before grade 5 (when I remember the awkward sex ed section of health class) are two different things.
Are they? I don’t think so. Once a kid is aware and capable of asking questions we, as adults (and especially teachers), should be capable of answering them at their level of understanding without it getting weird.
We’re talking about basic anatomy at that age.
By 1st grade, rumors were spreading at our school that the way girls get pregnant is by by boys peeing in their vaginas.
And that’s what happens when adults aren’t willing to have frank, clear, and biologically correct discussions.
I used to think a vagina was called a fur china (because it had hair in it) and thought babies came out of women’s butts. And that was okay because I wasn’t going to impregnate someone in grade school. It’s okay not to know some stuff at certain ages.
Fur China, stealing that. New band name? MAYbe, maybe NOT.
I also thought it was related to Mongolia somehow because they had furry hats in a movie I saw and I knew Mongolia was close to China but I could never quite figure it out.
Yeah, I think fur china has to go into the lexicon now.
Aaaaack
And especially teachers? More so than parents?
I agree teachers should be able to answer these questions, even from kindergarteners. I disagree that teachers should initiate these discussions. Further, there are many ways to tell the truth:
Teacher, what is a penis?
a) It is an organ on boys. They urinate through it. Also, it is involved in reproduction, or making babies. It is the passageway through which sperms travels from the boy to the girl. Now let's go back to addition and subtraction.
b) It is an organ that exists on the bodies of approximately 50% of the human race. It has nothing to do with whether someone is a boy or a girl--both boys and girls can have penises. If you think you might be a boy today, but think later that you might be a girl, that's awesome, and we can find a doctor to remove that penis from you, if you want. If you change your mind later, you can still go back to being a boy, because simply having your penis lopped off does not mean you cannot be a boy, because they don't have anything to do with that. Also, you might decide you are not a boy OR a girl, in which case you can basically do whatever you want with that penis. Does that make sense? Good, now let's go back to learning addition and subtraction.