KidsThoughts

I sorta had the talk just not the full talk

be_sperm
So I had the talk. You know THE talk. Well, I sorta had the talk just not the full talk.

Tonight before bed, my 8 year old son asked me, “Daddy, what is sperm?”

Keep in mind, while I am shocked I was talking about this with my 8 year old not my 10 year old I was not shocked that he asked me. This kid is a voracious reader who is reading things well beyond his age level. This includes works of fiction as well as real scientific things that even I feel bored consuming.

I composed myself quickly, I think before he noticed any shock, and I was immediately hit with happiness that he asked me using the term “sperm” not any of the slang equivalents. This told me that he read the word instead of hearing it at school from a classmate.

So how did he read about this topic? Well, he was given this book:
why_dogs_eat_poop_book

“Why Dogs Eat Poop” seemed like a decent enough book for my son. After all, he and his brother are obsessed with potty humor and with his love for science the cover offered the promise of a great, entertaining book for him.

The problem is not in the book, however. It is in the fact that it contains an entire chapter called Sexy Species that concentrates on the topic of mammal sex. And that, mind you, is still not the fault of the book. It is the fault of me who didn’t take the time to read through it to make sure it was appropriate for him.

So the cat is out of the bag. I had the conversation. I used proper terminology. He went to bed feeling like he understands what sperm is now. And I feel pretty happy with how I handled it. That is except for the fact that i let him read that book without checking it first.

Gregory Ng

GOAL: Visit 100 National Parks as a family by 2020. Favorite Parks: Zion National Park, Mt Rainier National Park, Valley Forge National Historical Park

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