[LifesGood]

The article in the SMH today

This is a subject I feel quite strongly about - I am concerned for my children and do all I can to hold back the tide of over-exposure to sexual images from them, while keeping them completely comfortable about their bodies.

I'm no prude, but I don't want my 7 y/o DD watching MTV 24/7 (which many people I know have on constantly in their homes). I don't want my DS imitating the hip-thrusting Gangnam Style dancing that one of my closest friends 4 y/o DS was doing recently, to much hilarity from the watching adults. I don't want DD feeling embarrassed or ashamed of her naked body at her young age, or worried about walking through the house with no clothes on. I certainly won't buy either of my children clothes that imitate sexy adult gear, or have suggestive messages or images printed on them.

What do you do to shield your child from over-sexualisation?

[aleithaki]

I care greatly about this issue, too. But my child is still a toddler so it's easy to shelter her at this age. We certainly don't ever have music videos on or anything sexually suggestive. I'm not sure how I'll manage pop culture when school starts.

[fairyflossfart]

See, I see the bellybutton piercing and the way most(not all) girls wear their short shirts or bikinis to show their belly piercing off, as a problem. Especially in girls as young as 12 and 13.
Some parents don't care about it.

[-*meh*-]

my son likes to dance to gangnam style, he also likes to run around the house naked...

one doesn't eliminate the other

[-*meh*-]

my son likes to dance to gangnam style, he also likes to run around the house naked...

one doesn't eliminate the other

[Tesseract]

It is such a hard line to walk. How do we celebrate sex and educate kids about sex, without sexualising them inappropriately?

For us the approach we will take (DD is still a toddler) is to have an open and honest ongoing dialogue about sex. You can't avoid talking about it, especially when it's a mainstay of advertising. So I won't be ignoring sexual things that come up, and I won't be tut-tutting about them or getting grossed out. But I will be clear that they are for adults and that they have certain cultural meanings. I will try to talk about the way sex is portrayed in our culture, and how real that is, and what that seems to tell us about men and women and gender and biology and sexual orientation etc. All in an age appropriate way!

I have also promised myself that I will never talk badly about my body or other people's bodies. I'm fairly comfortable with nudity in the home. Honestly I think seeing your parents in all their hairy, flabby glory gives one a decent first exposure to real human bodies that may help to disillusion kids against the air brushed imagery of advertising and porn.

As DD (and subsequent children) start exploring clothes, make-up etc then I hope to be very open with her about what those clothes and make-up signal. Not in a bad way, but just in a realistic way. I won't say she's not allowed to go out in that trampy dress, but I will talk with her about whether she's comfortable, at age 14 for example, giving off those sexual signals.

Also, much against my non-authoritarian tenancies, there will be no internet access in the bedrooms. Some things you just can't un-see.

[Orange Underpant...]

So far my kids are pretty innocent when it comes to sexualisation, fortunately. We are open about questions regarding sex, they know anything they want to know (age appropriate of course). But they run through the house naked, DD who is 9.5yo still likes to go about topless inside the house on hot days.

We don't watch MTV at all, they pretty much just watch ABC and kids' DVDs. On the occasion that they happen to see MTV elsewhere, we always have a bit of a giggle over the ladies dancing around in their underwear... they are too innocent to see anything else in it.

I often make comments regarding the persuasive nature of advertising and marketing, and this I hope will set them up to look at sexualisation more objectively as well.

[pinkelephant]

I'm such a prude and feel often like I'm going against the grain here, but I don't like the idea of children seeing their parents naked. I don't think we should teach kids to be embarassed or ashamed of their bodies but that the naked body is a very private thing.

I have always found it kind of odd hearing that parents still bath/shower with their kids after say 5 years of age. That's just me though-- but its no wonder the girls are wearing mini shorts above their backsides as it almost seems a lot of parents are too liberal about their bodies in the home so perhaps the kids don't see the problem?

[~Supernova~]

I'm such a prude and feel often like I'm going against the grain here, but I don't like the idea of children seeing their parents naked. I don't think we should teach kids to be embarassed or ashamed of their bodies but that the naked body is a very private thing.

I have always found it kind of odd hearing that parents still bath/shower with their kids after say 5 years of age. That's just me though-- but its no wonder the girls are wearing mini shorts above their backsides as it almost seems a lot of parents are too liberal about their bodies in the home so perhaps the kids don't see the problem?

Kids are being pressured by the media and their peers to be sexual and trampy. I still shower on occasion with my 8yr old, and I am 100% comfortable with my kids seeing me nude on a regular basis. I am totally against the idea that this particular scenario encourages inappropriate sexuality in children.

We are very open about sex with DD too. I answer all questions with complete honesty. But she isn't allowed to wander around in skimpy clothing, no matter how much she wants to "look like her friends".

It's not difficult to teach your children that what is ok at home, is not ok outside of the home. It's not like I wander the shops with my bits hanging out.

This post has been edited by Mareek: 26/02/2013, 06:45 PM

[CallMeProtart]

The actual gangnam style dance is anything but sexy! My kids do it, but it's kind of a bizarre horseriding move.... he's 'doin' it rong'?

I was upset though when my cousin last week introduced them to Nikki Minaj. REALLY not appropriate clips. I don't know what he was thinking. Hopefully now he's left they will forget about it.

TBH I go to more lengths to protect mine from gender related behaviour than sexualising behaviour, because I think they are kind of linked. And also because I guess they are only 3 and 4 so they don't have much opportunity to be exposed to the latter anyway.

but its no wonder the girls are wearing mini shorts above their backsides as it almost seems a lot of parents are too liberal about their bodies in the home so perhaps the kids don't see the problem?

Are you serious? Do you think seeing their parents in the nude really teaches kids to sexualise the naked body? Honestly?
And seriously. How many teens want to look like their parents?