Oh yeah, now I'm feeling indignant and want her to write it. IMO a lot of kids are too sheltered about this stuff. I'd be so proud of my kid for picking a REAL issue and not like, minecraft.
I remember my mom and my 6th grade social studies teacher having a similar back-and-forth when I started my big report/presentation on Schindler's List. A few angry parents called and didn't want their kids seeing holocaust pictures. I think my teacher ended up pulling those kids out to do a separate activity when I didg my presentation.
I wasn't even sure about the mechanics of sex or baby making in 5th grade. There is so much behind abortion that I don't know if a 5th grader would have the basic understanding of science and relationships, nor the emotional maturity, to handle the topic with the attention it deserves.
I started my period in 5th grade. My mom had introduced simple concepts behind sex and pregnancy to me several years before. I think it's good to expose kids to the basics of science, sex and our bodies in an age-appropriate way beginning in elementary school.
Post by cupcake0214 on Oct 26, 2016 17:17:42 GMT -5
The topic is too mature for 5th graders. I am a school counselor and some 5th graders are very mature and some are not. This can open a lot of questions from students that would be difficult for teachers to answer. I think this topic would be appropriate for high school .
I wasn't even sure about the mechanics of sex or baby making in 5th grade. There is so much behind abortion that I don't know if a 5th grader would have the basic understanding of science and relationships, nor the emotional maturity, to handle the topic with the attention it deserves.
I started my period in 5th grade. My mom had introduced simple concepts behind sex and pregnancy to me several years before. I think it's good to expose kids to the basics of science, sex and our bodies in an age-appropriate way beginning in elementary school.
I am not saying she shouldn't know, just that I did not. I'm old, we didn't have full sex ed until end of 5th grade . My parents were not helpful.
I wasn't even sure about the mechanics of sex or baby making in 5th grade. There is so much behind abortion that I don't know if a 5th grader would have the basic understanding of science and relationships, nor the emotional maturity, to handle the topic with the attention it deserves.
Wait, really? What age did you have sex ed?
I think we had preliminary sex ed around 3rd grade and full sex ed in 4th.
End of 5th grade. This was like 1990. I am not saying that is right.
Post by RoxMonster on Oct 26, 2016 18:35:55 GMT -5
I am just reading this now, after the update, but even before the update, I would have said to let her do it, since it is not getting shared with peers. Now after the angry phone calls and principal getting involved, I REALLY want her to do it.
In all seriousness though, if it's something a 10 year old is genuinely interested in, and there is an opportunity for the parent to supervise the research/info she is getting (as opposed to the kids doing it at school, in class, on their own), I would have no problem with it. My suggestion before the update would have been to include rape/incest when you talk to her about it, even if she is having to leave them out of the school project. Like I said, I think 5th grade is too young to share this with the entire class, but for an independent project, I would be OK with it.
If she is really not going to be allowed to pursue it, I would encourage her to pick a topic like censorship in schools because I'd want to be snarky like that.
I went to a small, Baptist grammar school, there was no sex ed. I thought the penis was covered in hair and that it just went in and stayed in until it was over. You're welcome!
In the same boat. I was homeschooled through Christian curriculum. I think my mom kinda skipped the sex ed part. I had no idea what "being a virgin" actually was. I just knew that if you weren`t a virgin, it meant you hadn`t slept with a guy. For a loooooong time, I thought it was LITERALLY just sleeping. LOL.
( in other words, I don`t recommend skipping sex ed...)
Although, I do think a 10 year old discussing abortion is a little young... juts because everyone can Google nowadays and it could be too informative for young kids. Explaining in a simplified manner is one thing... but kids have access to a whole lot of info nowadays
I think you've gotten some great advice in here. I leaned toward no, thinking it would be primarily school based research and peer editing sessions. However, if that isn't the case she should certainly be allowed to do this.
I would lean toward academic freedom, pledge of Allegiance require,meta, and national anthem requirements as good replacement topics
The only reason I would stay awa from the progression of women's rights is that I wouldn't want to expose her to people who think hose rights are wrong.
ETA: I really want to know what she picks, and how it goes. She sounds like a bright and curious kid.
Post by spankswife on Oct 26, 2016 20:34:02 GMT -5
Have her write a paper on the pros and cons of learning about abortion as a 10 year old, and have her present her case as to why/why not she should be allowed to choose that topic.
I know you've made your decision already, but I find the early responses baffling.
It was 5th grade when my school introduced the topic. We had multiple discussions and were encouraged to form our own opinions. How is that too young? There are kids who are sexually active at that age. There are kids getting abortions at that age. It's a reality that kids that age deal with it, whether you want it to be or not.
My biggest side-eye is the restriction of the topic. Rape and incest don't magically start once you reach whatever arbitrary age is mature enough to write about this topic.
Now Jesus Camp indoctrination at 5 with pictures of dead fetuses. Yeah, that's too young.
Ugh, I hate when angry mobs of parents start calling the school. I remember when I was in fifth or sixth grade, we were going to sing Michael Jackson's "Beat It" at a spring concert, but a couple parents called and whined about us singing a Michael Jackson song because "Thriller" scared their child. We weren't even going to sing "Thriller"!
I think it's awesome that your 10 year old is already wanting to form informed opinions about such an important topic already. She sounds very mature for her age. I'm sorry she's been denied the topic that she wants, but I like someone's earlier suggestion about her writing about female oppression -- I think that's a nice verge off of what she originally wanted to write.
(When I was in elementary school in the mid-to-late-90's, we learned about "our changing bodies" and the gender-specific bits in 5th grade. I think we got the general overview of sex ed the next year, but we didn't get the in-depth sex ed lessons until middle school. By then, most of us had already heard about it elsewhere.)
If this was a topic only to be between the teacher and the student, how did other classmates and their parents know what her writing plan was. I stick with my original answer, 10 is too young for this topic even if your daughter seems comfortable with it others may not be and other children may not be. I do not want to explain abortion to my 10 year at this time nor would I want another 10 year old explaining it to my child either, that's my job not another child's job. A pp stated that adults have a hard time discussing this and if they do how do you expect 10 yr olds to? I am still baffled as to why the whole class knew about this, enough for mobs of angry parents to call, when it was supposed to be between her and the teacher??
If this was a topic only to be between the teacher and the student, how did other classmates and their parents know what her writing plan was. I stick with my original answer, 10 is too young for this topic even if your daughter seems comfortable with it others may not be and other children may not be. I do not want to explain abortion to my 10 year at this time nor would I want another 10 year old explaining it to my child either, that's my job not another child's job. A pp stated that adults have a hard time discussing this and if they do how do you expect 10 yr olds to? I am still baffled as to why the whole class knew about this, enough for mobs of angry parents to call, when it was supposed to be between her and the teacher??
This update is so fucking ironic. She should get to write about the topic she wants. If she's mature enough to write about abortion, she should be allowed to choose abortion as her topic.
If this was a topic only to be between the teacher and the student, how did other classmates and their parents know what her writing plan was. I stick with my original answer, 10 is too young for this topic even if your daughter seems comfortable with it others may not be and other children may not be. I do not want to explain abortion to my 10 year at this time nor would I want another 10 year old explaining it to my child either, that's my job not another child's job. A pp stated that adults have a hard time discussing this and if they do how do you expect 10 yr olds to? I am still baffled as to why the whole class knew about this, enough for mobs of angry parents to call, when it was supposed to be between her and the teacher??
A random parent's discomfort with the topic has no bearing. Your (generic you) discomfort shouldn't stifle someone else's education and interests. It probably means that you need to learn more about the topic, actually.
Some things are easier talked about when kids are young. They're much more matter of fact about "taboo" topics and introducing those things earlier helps them understand that they're a normal part of society and shouldn't be stigmatized.
A pp stated that adults have a hard time discussing this and if they do how do you expect 10 yr olds to? I am still baffled as to why the whole class knew about this, enough for mobs of angry parents to call, when it was supposed to be between her and the teacher??
I'm on the fence. On the one hand, she should be able to research topics that interest her. On the other hand, you can't really write a position paper on abortion but not discuss rape, incest and other similar topics.
Also, as someone who has a student at the very young end of the spectrum (she'll be 9 in 5th grade) I don't love the idea of her learning about abortion that early. Most writing and research will be happening at school and the other students will be hearing about it and seeing the information. This really feels like a topic that would best be left to a child who is at least in middle school.
Would I want my child doing a paper on abortion in 5th grade? No. Would I complain to the teacher about another child writing one? Absolutely not.
If this was a topic only to be between the teacher and the student, how did other classmates and their parents know what her writing plan was. I stick with my original answer, 10 is too young for this topic even if your daughter seems comfortable with it others may not be and other children may not be. I do not want to explain abortion to my 10 year at this time nor would I want another 10 year old explaining it to my child either, that's my job not another child's job. A pp stated that adults have a hard time discussing this and if they do how do you expect 10 yr olds to? I am still baffled as to why the whole class knew about this, enough for mobs of angry parents to call, when it was supposed to be between her and the teacher??
A random parent's discomfort with the topic has no bearing. Your (generic you) discomfort shouldn't stifle someone else's education and interests. It probably means that you need to learn more about the topic, actually.
Some things are easier talked about when kids are young. They're much more matter of fact about "taboo" topics and introducing those things earlier helps them understand that they're a normal part of society and shouldn't be stigmatized.
What about the discomfort of the other children in the class, do they not get that respect?
You can't shield them from everything forever, they have to learn about these things eventually.
I agree with this but why does anyone have to rush it? I have a 10yo and he is NOT mature enough to handle abortion. Hell, he is still on the fence about Santa-lol. I think if the OP daughter is mature enough - that's up to her parents to decide. I can't see any of DS's friends mature enough to handle this topic.
That said, I would never call and complain about another child's reports as long as it wasn't exposing the whole class.
ETA: I also think 10yo girls ARE more mature than 10yo boys!
chchchia, It isn't being presented to the class. It's only between the student and the teacher.
But FWIW, how do you know the children would be uncomfortable? I wouldn't presume that, it seems like the parent would be projecting their own feelings and thinking that the children will feel the same way as them.
You can't shield them from everything forever, they have to learn about these things eventually.
I agree with this but why does anyone have to rush it? I have a 10yo and he is NOT mature enough to handle abortion. Hell, he is still on the fence about Santa-lol. I think if the OP daughter is mature enough - that's up to her parents to decide. I can't see any of DS's friends mature enough to handle this topic.
That said, I would never call and complain about another child's reports as long as it wasn't exposing the whole class.
That's exactly the point I was trying to make. It's none of my business what some other child reports on and it's no other parents' business what MY child reports on.
chchchia , It isn't being presented to the class. It's only between the student and the teacher.
But FWIW, how do you know the children would be uncomfortable? I wouldn't presume that, it seems like the parent would be projecting their own feelings and thinking that the children will feel the same way as them.
No, my question was, if it was only between the teacher and that student, how did the other kids find out?
I don't know one time ever discussing abortion that every single person is comfortable with it and that's me as an adult, how are 10 year olds going to feel comfy?