I was just browsing through SFGate when I found this story about a California elementary school teacher who sent her students home with a DVD containing pictures and video of the kids during the school year. What was meant as a nice gift of school memories ended up being a scandalous news headline.
In the DVD, the teacher accidentally included a 6-second porn clip of herself on the couch. The teacher only realized her mistake when a concerned parent called her. The teacher then called up all of the parents and asked them to destroy the DVD.
As a result, some parents were forced to have "the birds and the bees" talk with their kids. I can only imagine how uncomfortable that must have been for the parents and kids.
I remember before I started junior high, my mom approached me to talk about "the facts of life." It was all so awkward and embarassing that I covered my ears and told her that we already learned about that stuff in our 5th grade classroom video (it was informative, but not nearly as "informative" as the DVD those traumatized students got). The one we saw was a cheesy 90s video about adolescents going through puberty. The whole thing was so corny and cryptic that, at the end of it, I doubt any of us actually learned what the facts of life were! The dialogue went something like this:
[Scene: Mother and confused preteen daughter sitting on the edge of the bed. Both are wearing neon tops and acid-washed jeans.]
Girl: Mom, what's happening?
Mom: Oh honey! You're growing up. Your body is going through many changes and you're becoming a young woman.
Girl: Oh. I feel weird. Things are...growing.
Mom: That's perfectly normal, dear.
Girl: Gee whiz. That's great to know!
Mom: I hope you know you can always come to me with any questions!
Girl: Thanks, Mom! You're the best! I know that these upcoming years will bring great change in my life and I will oftentimes be confused and anxious, but I will always make smart decisions about my body and I will never be afraid to ask you for advice.
[Smile. Hug. Scene fade out. Fade in cheesy theme music.]
I may be exaggerating a bit, but that was pretty much the dialogue in effect. Quite painful. I think that if I ever have kids and it comes time to have "the talk," I'll just say something like, "Whatever you've seen on TV is completely unrealistic. If you start feeling like you really really want to do something-- don't." Haha, I guess there's no avoiding the awkwardness.
In the DVD, the teacher accidentally included a 6-second porn clip of herself on the couch. The teacher only realized her mistake when a concerned parent called her. The teacher then called up all of the parents and asked them to destroy the DVD.
As a result, some parents were forced to have "the birds and the bees" talk with their kids. I can only imagine how uncomfortable that must have been for the parents and kids.
I remember before I started junior high, my mom approached me to talk about "the facts of life." It was all so awkward and embarassing that I covered my ears and told her that we already learned about that stuff in our 5th grade classroom video (it was informative, but not nearly as "informative" as the DVD those traumatized students got). The one we saw was a cheesy 90s video about adolescents going through puberty. The whole thing was so corny and cryptic that, at the end of it, I doubt any of us actually learned what the facts of life were! The dialogue went something like this:
[Scene: Mother and confused preteen daughter sitting on the edge of the bed. Both are wearing neon tops and acid-washed jeans.]
Girl: Mom, what's happening?
Mom: Oh honey! You're growing up. Your body is going through many changes and you're becoming a young woman.
Girl: Oh. I feel weird. Things are...growing.
Mom: That's perfectly normal, dear.
Girl: Gee whiz. That's great to know!
Mom: I hope you know you can always come to me with any questions!
Girl: Thanks, Mom! You're the best! I know that these upcoming years will bring great change in my life and I will oftentimes be confused and anxious, but I will always make smart decisions about my body and I will never be afraid to ask you for advice.
[Smile. Hug. Scene fade out. Fade in cheesy theme music.]
I may be exaggerating a bit, but that was pretty much the dialogue in effect. Quite painful. I think that if I ever have kids and it comes time to have "the talk," I'll just say something like, "Whatever you've seen on TV is completely unrealistic. If you start feeling like you really really want to do something-- don't." Haha, I guess there's no avoiding the awkwardness.