An Amazing Resource

In the fourth grade my daughter and her some of her friends began asking a lot of questions related to human anatomy and reproduction. It was clear that the information they were garnering from classmates at school was confusing and incomplete. I began talking with some of the other moms about having ‘the talk’ with their kids, and many of them seemed very uncomfortable with the subject. I suggested we have a mom and daughter group talk, and several of the moms joked that they’d send their daughters and I could host the talk; they were serious, too.

So, another mom and I hosted a small group of girls and had a nuts and bolts human anatomy and sex ed class in her living room. I put out a jar and passed out slips of paper so that the girls could write down anonymous questions, which ran the gamut from basic to detailed and complex questions. At one point the other mom ran from the room because her daughter had asked a question that threw her for a loop.

The book It’s So Amazing! A Book about Eggs, Sperm, Birth, Babies, and Families by Robie H. Harris is a great educational resource, but it’s not for the faint of heart. The detailed information is well described and scientifically oriented, and the drawings are very well done. The tone of the material provided lends a sense of loving warmth to any conversation about a subject that can make parents and kids uncomfortable (to say the least). Information is presented from simple to complex, so parents can ease into the material and just use what they are comfortable with.

The public library in Waco had several copies, so if you’d like to preview the book or just borrow it instead of buying check your local library first. Having an open relationship with children provides a foundation of trust that will hopefully provide meaningful connection through adolescence. My daughter (and the moms) thanked me when our sex ed social was all over, and since then my daughter and I have enjoyed many more conversations about intensely personal topics. I’m thankful that she feels comfortable turning to me for information, and starting with this book has had a lot to do with that.

'Sex education, including its spiritual aspects, should be part of a broad health and moral education from kindergarten through grade twelve, ideally carried out harmoniously by parents and teachers.'
- Dr. Benjamin Spock, Dr. Spock's Baby and Child Care