(Cleveland) Kindergartners get sex ed classes

[deadparrot]

CLEVELAND - City schools will expand sex education curriculum to include age-appropriate lessons that begin as early as kindergarten, officials said.

The initiative comes as Cleveland's teen birth rates are high but dropping - about 40 of every 1,000 girls ages 15-19 become pregnant every year, according to state data - and rates of some sexually transmitted diseases, including HIV, are rising.

Cases of chlamydia, the most common STD, rose 30 percent over the past five years while HIV, rarely diagnosed in adolescents, turned up in 19 Cuyahoga County teens.

"One-third of all the HIV/AIDS cases in Ohio are in Cleveland," said Lita Townsend, responsible sexual behavior coordinator for the district. "Really, the best weapon we have right now is education."

http://news.enquirer.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20061021/NEWS0102/610210352

[Rose Siding]

1. Age appropriate is key. Self esteem and inappropriate touching

seem to qualify and don't strike me as particularly "new" topics for young children.

[proud2BlibKansan]

2. Sounds like a good idea to me

Kids this age can be sexually molested. They need to understand this is wrong.

[bluestateguy]

3. Very misleading headline

The headline in the article makes it sound like Kindergartners will be taught how to put on condoms and order birth control pills. In fact, the only thing k-3 students will be learning is about viruses and how they work, as well as appropriate and inappropriate touching.

[davsand]

4. I'm surprised if the Fundies aren't stroking out as we speak...

You just have gotta know that with the dirty minds they have this is gonna turn into some accusation of Dora the Explorer doing some self discovery or Franklin having "special" feelings for Bear.

Gawd. I am just waiting for it...


Laura

[hlthe2b]

5. No doubt the RW will exploit this for their disinformation campaign

but, at this age, children are naturally curious, as well as "unnatural" targets for others... They do need to know what appropriate touching is, and what to do, if they are the target of an older child or adult... Ditto that they should not engage in certain (curiosity-driven) behaviors with other children...