Teresa Goodman

Teresa Goodman

Friday, June 12, 2015

The Sexualization of Early Childhood


I am not alarmed by what I have learned about the topic of sexualization, However I am very opposed to exposing young children to it to early. Children have always been curios about sexuality, but no to the extent it has gone in recent years. Parents, family members, professionals, and care givers should protect children from any and all encounters that are not appropriate for their development. There are so many things in the media, on tv, and video games that promote sexual intent. The internet is loaded with negative stuff that young children are gaining access to.

In my personal experience with one of my own children, I have been in a situation that my child was being exposed to this. Some of the boys in his class would bring x-rated videos from home and share them with other classmates including my child. My first question was how was this happening because this was a special education class that should have been staffed enough to a close eye on what was going on. This past week I witnessed a situation where a young child became very upset about witnessing her sister kiss a boy. Another experience I have encountered was we had a young child who would touch the girls in the class inappropriately. When he was questioned about the behavior his response was he dad taught him that. The child was eventually dismissed from the program because of the behavior.

Children react or respond to situations in different ways, which is why it is important not to introduce anything to them that’s not age appropriate. They struggle to understand what is happening in the world around them and are confused and scared by the lessons they have learned. The lessons will cause serious harm to their ability to grow up and maintain a healthy attitude about their body and themselves. By studying this I have become more aware of the issues of sexualization.  Although I have always been aware of this problem, the resources sheded new light on everything that exposes children to this issue.

 

References

Derman-Sparks, L., & Edwards, J. (2010). Anti-bias education for young children and ourselves. Washington, DC: NAEYC.

Levin, D. E., & Kilbourne, J. (2009). [Introduction] So sexy so soonThe new sexualized childhood and what parents can do to protect their kids (pp. 1-8). New York: Ballantine Books. Retrieved from: http://dianeelevin.com/sosexysosoon/introduction.pdf

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