Re: sex education for kids
you are right. Kids at 10 aren't mature enough. We should also keep in mind that these developed countries have a lot of ethical issues as well. Noone in my family got this education in school and we all turned out fine. And my family has been living in Europe & US for years now. Most of us are the 3rd or 4th generation here.
Re: sex education for kids
10 i can still understand but at the age 6? mahru 
Well no one bothered teaching us.. since my 8th grade was done in Saudi Arabia.
Sex word was a curse if it came out accidently from your mouth you did get stares 
But i do agree its a must for kids to learn by the age of 13 i would say 
Re: sex education for kids
For our 10-yr old daughter, they actually invited all the parents to view the movie two months before they had planned to show it to the kids. We saw it and thought while it was nicely made and covered basic physiological changes in boys and girls, there was way too much information about boys (masturbation and stuff). It probably made sense to show it to boys, but it was way over the top to show it to girls. The movie was supposed to be shown to both boys and girls in separate class rooms. After we and several other parents commented about this, they decided to edit the movie to only show girl's portion to girls and boy's portion to boys. However, they did cover basic issues for both genders so both girls and boys are aware of changes taking place in their classmates (its a co-ed school, ofcourse).
We did debate whether 10 is too young, or should our daughter even see the movie at all. We ultimately decided that stopping our daughter from watching it will serve no positive purpose, as all the kids will talk about this stuff anyway, and we'd rather get good and constructive information first-hand to our children rather they learn second- or third-hand from other kids. Secondly a lot of the stuff covered is basic physiology which all children should know, as it covers changes occuring in their bodies, including rapid growth and body odors etc.
Although I do strongly suggest to have a private session with your child at home after s/he has seen the movie to re-cap what they understood and explain our religious and cultural perspective on some of the issues. Children are very smart, and if you treat them as intelligent individuals, they do tend to understand at least the essence of what you are trying to explain.
Re: sex education for kids
I had to take sex ed at ten. I don't think it "ruined" me. Just made me more aware of concerns. If you don't let your kids learn the facts, they will be far more curious and likely to experiment, and they will be more susceptible to rumor. Along with the clinical explanation they will receive in school, you should educate your children about sex as something to occur between husband and wife in a respectful and loving relationship. It is not shameful in that context.
I think it's interesting that Muslims today are so hesitant to discuss sex, when the Hadith reveal people asking some very personal questions of the Prophet (SAW). There is nothing wrong with discussing it openly and honestly, as long as it is discussed in a mature way.
Re: sex education for kids
Man, its a tough issue. The word sex has never been mentioned in my house; its so taboo (maybe an understatement). I learned about it in grade 6, I guess I was 11-12.
This type of education maybe a bit easier on guys than girls. (I remember making silly jokes about these things with my friends and laughing during lunch time.) For girls, it may be a little more embaressing.
Its a tough call, really.
Re: sex education for kids
^there is nothing embarrasing about talking about these issues with ur friends infact, it is the norm nowadays
yeah i had my sex education when i was 10 aswell. and then again thruught highschool. it made me aware of the changes in my body and what to do when they happened.
you should let ur kids ahve the class, cos they teach more anatomy and stuff.. and about body changes, pubery isnt far away so they should know wht is happening to them.
unfortunately u get the immature kids who joke and mess around after all this has beentaught, i remember one girl going around asking all the girl in the year above if tey had started their period yet (this was when we were 10)
after the talk you need to talkto your kids aswell yourself a dnexplain that this is natural but it not sumthing to be made a joke out of.
Re: sex education for kids
Nia…Ankhain tau itni barri barri kholi hui hain tum ne laikin parhna nahi aata…i said 6th grade not 6 years old 
Re: sex education for kids
Our science teacher decided there was no need to separate the boys and girls, so when they were talking about "girl stuff" all of us would sort of sink uncomfortably in our chairs, and when they were talking about "boy stuff" the boys would do the same. After the initial embarrassment tho, things were okay. I was pretty naive so I was like, "People do WHAT??? There's more to it than kissing?" Ami/Abu didn't really talk to us about it in detail. Ami just made sure I knew what menstruation was about around the same time.
Also, sex ed was the beginning of the PMS jokes whenever some girl got mad at a boy in fifth grade.
Re: sex education for kids
just let the kids go through it... even if their body isnt ready at 10 but the minds of the surrounding kids might be ready..and your kid might feel left out if he doesnt learn about it at this age.... just let them go ahead with it
Re: sex education for kids
My oldest two have gone throught this course when they were around that age. I asked to view the material in advance, as did several other non-muslim parents, so they had a parent evening where we discussed what would be covered, and watched the film.
Boys and girls were taken to different rooms to cover the information, and I would say that overall about 90% of the lesson was about the physiological changes that children's bodies go through. Contraceptives were not covered, and reproduction was only briefly touched on.
I don't think that this is too early to cover the physical implications of changing bodies, as many girls begin menstruation at about this age, and many parents just aren't comfortable covering this information.
By the way, my mother went to school with me when I was that age, and watched the movie with me. She wasn't the only parent in the classroom, and there were several parents in the classroom when my son's school covered it recently. Never be afraid to discuss your concerns directly with the school, and go to class when you feel it is neccessary. Most schools appreciate proactive parents far more than those who don't get involved at all.
Re: sex education for kids
Having said that, we need to bear in mind that sex ed classes are not the same everywhere or at all times.
When I was 13, as I mentioned, we started sex ed classes, one a week for a couple of weeks. It was taught by the school's biology department and personally I think it was handled in a very mature and educational way, covering the physiology involved and also convering all forms of contraception. There was nothing vulgar about it.
Fast forward 3 years. My school was mixed gender for years 16-18 and for some reason they saw fit to rerun sex ed classes. This time they outsourced it to a sexual health charity.
That course was absolutely vulgar, and yet taught us nothing that we had not covered before. It was much much worse because it was taught in a mixed environment.
To give you an example, when we were 13 we were taught by the school's own teachers from photocopied handouts what a condom was and where it is used. In the mixed class at age 16 run by the charity group.... they gave life sized plastic male genitalia to groups of 3-4 boys and girls and told them to put condoms on them.
THAT was completely unneccessary and just wrong. Even if I had a 16 year year child i would NOT want him or her to undergo that kind of sex ed class. Being taught from handouts and cartoons is one thing, this quite another!
Re: sex education for kids
With pedophilia attacks under media coverage, schools and pedophsychologists are trying to inform boys and girls earlier about their private parts, so that kids can stear clear from adults abuse.
sex education is also needed to inform children of the body changes that will occur later on, it's best to tell them before changes occur, so they are a little more ready to handle this difficult lifetime.
information is the best way to prevent sick behaviors, and avoid problems.
i remeber an american girl doing med school telling me she was so digusted by all STDs that she did not want any sex before marriage
Re: sex education for kids
^ Paris - I agree. My high school teacher focused so much on pregnancy, AIDs and STDs that it was downright scary!
Re: sex education for kids
im lucky i had sex ed in an all girls school.. they showed the “Miracle of Life” video where in the end they showed a woman giving birth and tehy showed EVERYTHING.. that day I had forgotten my glasses at home.. it seems all imp events i forget to wear my glasses 
Re: sex education for kids
^I saw that in 9th grade Bio (by then I was in an all-girls school as well). Traumatized ever since
Re: sex education for kids
I still never really saw it..
Re: sex education for kids
nice topic
Re: sex education for kids
It was an uncomfortable class to take at first for me and my female friends in 5th grade but I think it was definitely necessary and I knew my parents could never talk to me about these things. It would have been embarrassing for all of us.
I think sex education is necessary for countries like Pakistan or India that don't normally have it in schools. In my opinion, not as early as 5th grade but with a rise in STDs in both countries, complete knowledge on these subjects is very important.
Re: sex education for kids
I had sex-ed classes when I was in grades 7, 8 and 9. My parents didn't have a problem with it. They made sure that me and my siblings read what Islam says about sex. There are good books that talk about sex in Islam. Check out the soundvision webste.
Re: sex education for kids
I never took a sex-ed class. I was in grade 9-10 when I discovered the mystery. Can't say how things would have been had I been educated about it earlier.
And now everyone knows I day dreamt during biology.