Not a Blank Book

Back in the 80s, Joani wrote The Playbook for Kids About Sex and then A Kid’s First Book About Sex.  They’re kids’ books all right, written around a first or second grade level, and they don’t talk about where babies come from.  There’s plenty of books about that.  Instead, these books talk about privacy, body parts, nudity, different kinds of touch, and even intercourse.  They’re available for free download on her website.

Why did Joani write books about sex for kids?  Her answer, paraphrased in the form of a bulleted list because I think they’re easier to read:

1. A very wise person once observed that when little kids ask where babies come from, we tell them about sex.  When older children ask about sex, we tell them about reproduction.  Think about that.
   
   
2. Related to number one, by the time we get around to talking to older kids about sex, it’s all about the negative stuff: diseases, unplanned pregnancies, that kind of thing.  I wanted to give kids something positive to build on.
   
   
3. Parents have a lot of issues and awkwardness around talking to their kids about sex, so I wanted to give them a tool they could use to distance themselves and allay some of their anxieties.  These books are based not on telling kids what we think they need to know, but rather on asking questions on how the children feel about certain topics.  And parents don’t even have to think up the questions themselves.