Are Children Forced To Grow Up Too Fast These Days?

[renegadefm]

I'm certain children are forced to grow up too fast and too soon these days.

 

My 9 year old daughter is in her last week of her summer holidays, but she just blurted something out to me today when we went out for a walk. 

 

She said Dad do you know our teacher has been recently telling us all about sex education, and wet dreams, and even had women and mens private parts on a big tv screen?  Frankly I was speechless, I said how did you feel about it, she said well I felt it was inappropriate, as me and my friends was embarrassed to say the least.

 

Deep down I was fuming because as parents I didn't realise this was going on in children as young as 8 to 9.

 

My God when I was a child in the 70's, 80's,  sex was never mentioned at least until big school, certainly not primary school. 

 

Why are they forcing that onto children so young these days?

If my daughter feels its inappropriate surely it is. 

 

Isn't it? 

[nailedit]

//My son is 33, but I never mentioned anything sex related to him whatsoever, there just wasn't any emphasis to do so//

WOW just WOW!!

How cruel!

My parents were the same. And I suffered for it.

No mention of sex abuse, the terror of having a wet dream, not understanding how my body was changing etc.

So glad to be from a different generation from you. A generation that could talk openly to my son about what to expect as he aged without embarressment.

To NOT talk to your children about periods or wet dreams is cruelity.

[naomi24]

We seem to live in any anything goes world as far as sex is concerned - and woe betide anyone who doesn't embrace it all - but standards differ.  Children don't need to be bombarded with stuff they're too young to comprehend but they are.  I've seen kids traumatised by their sex education sessions at school and that to my mind is child abuse.

[DDIL]

Barry, my mother wasn't there when I started! Thankfully I was confident with my father and approached him for help

[nailedit]

//I've seen kids traumatised by their sex education sessions at school and that to my mind is child abuse//

 

I learnt more at school through basic human biology lessons than actual sex education.

Sex education consisted of showing us films of child birth and pictures of warts on genatalia etc, while the class just laughed and joked.

 

[naomi24]

It's a bit different now, Nailedit.

[barry1010]

nailedit, I'm a good bit older than Renegade but we've always been open and honest with the children - so were my parents.

My sister told our parents very loudly when a man flashed at her when she was about 8.  The second time she was flashed at she was old enough to smack him over the head with her bag.  I don't know what affect it would have had on her had she not been able to tell anyone.

[renegadefm]

But we tend to underestimate children even 50, 60 years ago. 

I don't think a child of any era was stupid enough to realise when inappropriate things were going on. 

Society today seems to think by bombarding children with sex is going to put a safety net around them, but how nieve is that?

Why does a child of 8 need to have sex on the brain? I know I certainly wouldn't have wanted that, and I don't want it for my children. 

[barry1010]

Knowing about the body is different to 'having sex on the brain'

[renegadefm]

barry1010, 

I'm not so sure barry, knowledge can be a dangerous thing. 

By law we need to be 17 to drive a car. Would we teach an 8 year old child to drive a car?

Sex under 16 is not permitted, so why fill a childs head with it? 

 

I just think we need to let children be just that, children. 

 

At aged 8 or 9 I didn't even think about anything like that. My first girlfriend was at 18, or I was 18 I mean. I just wasn't interested until I reached a certain age and was working etc. What could I offer a girl if I had no money? Its just the way things were.

 

[renegadefm]

I'm actually starting to wonder does it mean if you grow up in a city compared to a rural area where I was brought up. 

They say city folk grow up early, I think from experience that is true. 

I live in very rural Cornwall, so I think our mentality is perhaps different, and affects how we look at things. 

 

I'm just guessing, not wishing to upset anyone. 

I even notice a difference in a towny to a country bumpkin. But city folf are on another level. 

I was once at a cash machine in London, and because the machine was behaving slowly, the person behind me was tutting, as if it was my fault. The in patience was shocking to me. 

[Peter Pedant]

My sister told our parents very loudly when a man flashed at her when she was about 8.

the lifetime flash  rate is 50% apparently ( half of women say someone flashed them at some time)

At primary school, remember the game 'hangman' - we were using Christine keeler and Rice Davies as answers. aged 10 (1962)

who said no sex under 16 ?

erm sorry - children younger than that are  delivered of babies. My record was 14.5 y (1978). Someone said oh that is nothing I have delivered a 13.5 y old. that means that someone had kissed her at age 12.5 y

carry on discussing !

[barry1010]

Renegade, you must have been aware of the birds and bees growing up in a rural area. My children watched lambs and calves being born and suckling, boars mounting sows. 

Country children take it all in their stride

[DDIL]

Oh my! I grew up in the country and knew what the bull was doing to the cows or the stallion to the mares!

I don't think growing up in the country shelters you at all from sex

[nailedit]

//Knowing about the body is different to 'having sex on the brain'//

Well said.

My human biology lessons were fascinating, but we did have a really good (and VERY strict teacher) who made the subject interesting. There was no 'sex on the brain' when she was teaching about sex and reproduction.

 

On the other hand there were plenty of porn mags been swapped on the playground 😂

[DDIL]

@Nailedit, I can remeber my father finding my brothers collection and him telling them to be respectfull to the women in the house and the women in the magazines.

For years I didn't know what he was talking about, it was an important lesson for my brothers.

[nailedit]

//it was an important lesson for my brothers.//

I bet it was...find a better hiding place next time 😂

[DDIL]

😂🤣

[renegadefm]

I actually grew up on a farm, so I knew how animals breed. 

 

That's not my point. It was more about how teaching children as young as 8 sex, when they don't or shouldn't have that forced into their minds, when their still playing with dolls, or toy cars. 

 

I was probably the only child in my class that lived on a farm, the rest lived in a town. 

[Old_Geezer]

Learning the skill of how to drive a car is very different to understanding how sexual biology works. An 8 year old is unlikely to get a car and try to drive it until they are old enough; whereas folk will experience sexual incidents, situations, and opportunities, and are more likely to find themselves in trouble or experience worry, through ignorance than they would through knowledge.

[bednobs]

lol im not sure they teach you how to do sex (just think of the exam!)