Put simply, it’s easier to talk to kids about their bodies when they are young. Talking to a twelve-year-old about their body and talking to a five-year-old is a very different experience, especially if you want to teach them about their boy anatomy or girl anatomy. We all enjoy being around five-year-olds because they naturally ask questions about what they see and feel. This is a great age to introduce the correct terms and functions of relevant body parts. For example, when children ask where the baby is inside the mom, rather than saying the baby is inside of the mom’s stomach, you could say the baby is inside the mom’s uterus. Otherwise, children may be confused about how a baby got inside the stomach when they thought only food goes to the stomach.

When kids are young, you can have a “play date” with friends to teach basic anatomy concepts. I have led many of these small group discussions with young kids and they are fun and informative. Usually I have one topic and I provide interactive activities for everyone to do while I am teaching them. We always end with a little party. Because I have been doing these for years, young adults who participated as children tell me later that they have great memories of learning about their reproductive system in contrast to many of their friends. The information they learned empowered them to make informed decisions as they reached sexual maturity. It made very a very big difference in their choices.

Many kids learn everything about puberty and sexuality over the course of one week in fourth or fifth grade while at school. I applaud the schools for their amazing efforts to teach this difficult topic, but it’s better for children if they learn from the time they are young and if their parents have the resources to follow through and answer questions as their children mature.

Jump in and be confident. Your kids will have a great time with you and you are going to feel like the best parent ever!

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