Children these days.

[Eviecorn]

Kids should definitely be educated about sex by sixth grade.   Many kids will have their hormones revving up by that point.

As far as knowing about sex, I knew about it in general terms by first grade, just from "playground talk".  The irony is that it was a private religious school that didn't have very extensive / good sex education, so a loooot of misconceptions persisted.  Two of my classmates got pregnant in eighth grade, and it was not even a very large class.

Agreed.  My sister had a classmate in her 7th grade class who was pregnant.  7th grade.  Not to mention the skyrocketing rates of STDs among teens and young adults.  A lot of teens are going to have sex - they're human. Might as well show them how to have it responsibly and safely instead of treating it as a taboo and then ending up with an unplanned pregnancy - or worse.

Post Merge: December 08, 2012, 05:23:35 AM

Fight the power! Be a nudist!

I just want to add that when I was breastfeeding, I would just... whip it out in public, no cover (it's Florida, after all), and nobody ever even said anything to me. I got some looks but hey, that's their baggage lol

I did too.  Where I'm from if you try and stop a woman breastfeeding, even if she takes her shirt off to do it, you're violating her human rights, and can be prosecuted.

Also agreed!  I breastfed my son until he was 13 months old and I've whipped 'em out in many places.  I'd get some stares but that's their problem, not mine. 

A woman did once say to me "why are you doing that?  Children are around!"  And I responded "and a lot of them were probably fed this way.  Your point is?"

[Sarahlacewing]

I don't think there is any way to set a specific age.  I think that maturity varies too much.  There could be some 10 year olds out there who are ready and need sexual education early because they are curious.  Learning from us is much better than what they will pick up or guess on their own.  Some kids aren't ready until 15-16-17, dare I say older than that?  It's not so much about the age for me.  But I see where you are coming from because even a child who is not quite ready might face pressure from others in their age group who are ready.  It's a delicate balance and I think it's important to look at each child on an individual basis.

Breast feeding is another one of those completely non sexual things that gets stigmatized because people feel like nudity is inherently obscene.  But I have to say I find breastfeeding to be natural.  We are kind of made for it.  We have boobs, they make milk, babies eat the milk.  I am all for protecting people from seeing ludeness, but to me breastfeeding is in no way lude.

[ashes]

I had sex ed in 5th AND 6th grade (which would be 1989/1990/1991).  Granted the discussion about intercourse wasn't in the curriculum until sixth grade, but in the fifth grade curriculum it was about what happens during puberty and the changes to your body and reproductive system.  And I got my period in sixth grade (which was earlier than the majority of my friends by a few years), so it was nice having that information in school.  I also had sex ed again in 7th grade and 9th grade (where in 9th grade we were given condoms and shown how to put them on using a banana - that sent nervous laughter through the room!).  But even before 5th grade my parents had talked to me about sex - and although I was raised in a conservative, religious household, sex was never presented as something evil or vile.  Just something to wait to do until marriage, and with someone you love.  (which actually, I did, and glad for it).

I admit though I was waiting for my oldest daughter to have questions last year when I was pregnant with my fourth child.  She was in first grade at the time, and knew we were having a baby, and she was always full of questions, yet she never once asked how the baby got there or how she was going to come out.  My daughter was more concerned with how the baby got food, lol.

[ZennaBug]

Oh man, Ashes.  I remember asking my mom where babies came from when she was pregnant with my sister.  I was four, but it was one of those bizarre memories that is frozen in your brain forever.  Somehow, I had the impression that my dad had put a seen in a hole in her neck (???) and that it traveled down to her tummy.  I actually asked if I could watch next time they did it!    Oh gawd, if only I had understood how it really worked!

I never had sex ed in school.  When I was in 5th grade, sex ed was taught to 6th graders.  Then, when I went to middle school, it was switched to 5th grade.  So it was always one year off for me.  I did get "the talk" when I was in 3rd grade, but I didn't understand much of it.  I pretty much learned everything I knew from friends and then when I was older, the internet (thank you Google, saving me from asking my parents the embarrassing questions!).  But I did have a few holes in my knowledge that could have ended really badly for me... but I lucked out.  So yeah, I think it's important to teach kids about this kind of thing so they can be smart about it and not just rely on luck.

[ashes]

Oh man, Ashes.  I remember asking my mom where babies came from when she was pregnant with my sister.  I was four, but it was one of those bizarre memories that is frozen in your brain forever.  Somehow, I had the impression that my dad had put a seen in a hole in her neck (???) and that it traveled down to her tummy.  I actually asked if I could watch next time they did it!    Oh gawd, if only I had understood how it really worked!

  It is funny how little kids think of how things work.

[Spike]

A year before I had sex education I remember I didn't know what sex was or where babies came from *rolls eyes*

[June]

I'm 18 and I must say I agree that children are becoming more and more disrespectful and are growing up more quickly by every generation. For example: I was looking at my school photos from 2nd grade at primary school and everyone was wearing simple clothes, mainly tracksuits and not much brands (except maybe nike or all star trainers) so we could play carefree. Today kids at same age wear same clothes as adults but smaller size and most of it is branded! And their gadgets: everyone has iphone or ipod touch, their own laptop etc. So by looking like miniture adults they are also often trying to act like them: someone earlier mentioned how it is embarrassing to play with dolls at age of 10! I was playing with pokemon and mlp until 6th grade, and that wasn't so long ago!
And another thing that surprised me when I was in 8th grade was when a 1st grader cursed my mom (in my language there is very extensive list of swear words and phrases most of which include mothers lol) because I was in her way! My friends and I were really shocked because when we were her age we were afraid even to talk to someone a year or two older than us, let alone someone double of our age!

And now to my generation: Most of the teens go clubbing on weekends (you don't have to be 18 to go) and get drunk, have sex etc. I personally don't like clubbing, but I sometimes go to concerts with my friends or we go to the cinema or just hang out at someone's place. When I'm not with my friends and not doing anything for school I'm drawing, playing the guitar and video games, reading books and manga, watching anime and "normal" cartoons and series, learning Japanese and programming... I'm saying all this because I've noticed that most of the clubbing/getting drunk/having sex teens don't have any hobbies or anything else in their life except for that and school. I have a really close friend who is one of them and she is depressed most of the time because she can't find the right One. She goes out every other weekend, gets drunk and hopes she will hook up with someone who will be her true love (and that's what her other friends do, and friends of friends and on and on... some of them do it just for fun, though), but when she finds out they just used her she gets her heart broken. When I ask her why is she doing it she says she doesn't want to be alone (alone and single are, sadly, synonyms to most people). I tell her I'm her friend and I'm with her, she says "yeah, I know, I love you and all, but you don't have a ****." First time I thought she was just joking, but later I realised that she was serious. And when I suggest her a good read she just laughs at me: "Why would I be reading a book on Saturday's night when there will be so many guys out there?"
I sometimes feel out of place because I don't understand my own generation: why is their meaning of life to get drunk just for sake of getting drunk while not remembering having a "good time" or to be with special somepony (oh, I just love the term lol) just to not be single and to have sex a couple of times?

[edit for language - kaoskat]

[Sprinkles]

Kids these days around me are pretty awful. I know one girl that had a cell phone when she was in kindergarden because her mom wanted the girl to be able to talk to her whenever the girl was with someone else (sleepover, with grandparents, etc). Starting in middle school (6th grade), the girls dress too maturely. Many are wearing too short skirts, heels, and makeup. Many middle schoolers have relationships. My sister's friend (8th grade at the time) almost had sex with her boyfriend (who was a 9th grader) but a friend of mine talked her out of it. She has contacts and both her and my sister dye their hair. I'm 18 and I've NEVER dyed my hair! My 7th grade cousin dresses like an 18 year old and wears a lot more makeup than I do and has her own laptop. She looks like she is 21! I see middle-schoolers with "nicer"/more expensive (touch screen, internet access) cellphones than me. It's sad seeing all these kids rushing to grow up and waste their childhoods. I would give anything to be 5 again. I miss being a kid

[Heliodor]

"Your body is inappropriate and needs to be covered up at all times" is the message, essentially.

It's no wonder that when some girls are growing up, awash in their own personal insecurities and feelings of inadequacy, they turn to low-cut cleavage-baring shirts and "JUICY" shorts. It's flirty, it's teasing, it's giving others a glimpse of something "taboo", and it's unfortunately a very easy way to make them sexy and interesting to the troglodytian male population that they've been led to believe is superior to them for... some reason.

If we were all allowed to just walk about town topless without people making us feel like crap, this topic wouldn't even exist ;3

Wow I thought I was the only person who thought this. This is like a revelation.  I wish I could "Like" this five million times. Omgs. I feel so much rage at the chest-covering thing. SO MANY PEOPLE IN THIS THREAD = AWESOME.

[Galactica]

I don't know that kids these days are any different than they were when I was a kid- probably depends more on where you live.  Kids grow up faster in bigger cities I think.

The issue of whether young girls should wear revealing clothing or not is a disturbing topic.  I find it sad that society would sooner have us blame the 8 year old (or her mom) for looking "sexy" rather than the man looking at that 8 year old as a sex object.  Something wrong with that...   

[alkevin]

I noticed that kids are trying to appear more older, but  their minds and attitude isn´t. They are rude, cruel and bad behavior. Even parents are afraid of them. They do effort to pass school, teacher has to pass them. They reward their lazyness.

[Heliodor]

The issue of whether young girls should wear revealing clothing or not is a disturbing topic.  I find it sad that society would sooner have us blame the 8 year old (or her mom) for looking "sexy" rather than the man looking at that 8 year old as a sex object.  Something wrong with that...   

This!

[Shenanigans]

I have a friend who is a nurse and she works in the maternity ward. She said there was a 9 year old girl giving birth Her mother refused to let her have an epidrural (can they have epidurals at that age?) because she said, "you deserve all this pain for having sex". The girl screamed so loud everyone in the hospital heard it

I can't believe 9 year olds are having sex. I was playing with ponies and Barbies at that age! Wasn't thinking about boys and sex and stuff. It's insane

[Heliodor]

I have a friend who is a nurse and she works in the maternity ward. She said there was a 9 year old girl giving birth Her mother refused to let her have an epidrural (can they have epidurals at that age?) because she said, "you deserve all this pain for having sex". The girl screamed so loud everyone in the hospital heard it

Oh my gods...what the hell?!?!  That poor girl!! How could her mother do that?! 

[Skylar]

I have a friend who is a nurse and she works in the maternity ward. She said there was a 9 year old girl giving birth Her mother refused to let her have an epidrural (can they have epidurals at that age?) because she said, "you deserve all this pain for having sex". The girl screamed so loud everyone in the hospital heard it

I can't believe 9 year olds are having sex. I was playing with ponies and Barbies at that age! Wasn't thinking about boys and sex and stuff. It's insane

As mean as that sounds it may not be a bad thing. The girl may think alot about getting knocked up again!