This is Mr. B.’s last week in fifth grade and it’s being devoted to “health education.” Not nutrition. Not exercise. But puberty, its physical and emotional effects on boys and girls, sexual activity, rape, sexual harassment and sexually transmitted diseases such as AIDS.
The school gave parents a chance to come see the curriculum materials and, if desired, to opt their kids out. I did the former but not the latter. Seems pretty tame to me, leaving all the politically-controversial words unspoken, and is therefore (as you might expect) misleading on many things, including the principal way the virus that causes AIDS is transmitted, i.e. by anal intercourse.
One of Mr. B.’s pals is sitting it out. His parents don’t trust the school system. I don’t trust the system’s overpaid administrators to do anything political that might jeopardize their careers, but I think the teachers are doing the best they can under the circumstances.
They do send home a FAQ sheet every day (blue for boys, pink for girls, isn’t that precious?) which asks parents to discuss the material and sign the sheet. Mr. B. and I have had some good, long (and detailed) conversations about the material. None of which my parents did for me in the relatively-repressed 1950s, and I remember my pubertal confusion.
He’s still not sure what all of this is about, saying he has no notion of why he would be interested in doing anything sexual anyhow. Apparently puberty’s light bulb has yet to come on. I’m not sure I will know when it happens, but I’ll be watching for the illumination.
THE TEXAS SCRIBBLER 