Mommy Laid An Egg by Babette Cole is a silly book that tells kids the basic facts of life, and yes, it includes some ridiculous illustrations.
When my daughter was in first grade, her teacher read this book to her entire class. I only found out because my daughter pulled the book off the shelf at the library and started showing it to her little brother. This may sound shocking, but we were in Berlin.
Sex ed is considered a right in Germany. Germans believe children have a right to know how their own bodies work, especially as they grow. Parents can’t opt their kids out of sex ed and information is given at different age levels throughout a child’s education. So that means Mommy Laid an Egg for first graders!
In the U.S., parents have to provide access to information about sex. It’s a rare school that would even pick up this political hot potato. If you feel hesitant, please consider why you are holding back–and the dangers of ignorance. They will get information from elsewhere –from ads, the TV, the Internet, music videos, even the kid down the street — all these sources are less than ideal, and what they tell your kid will likely give them a distorted view of sex.
Why shouldn’t kids know about how babies are made? As my seven-year-old once said to me – “somebody has to tell us some time!”
I am recommending some of the many books that influenced my own book Achtung Baby. See my previous recommendations for Free Range Kids by Lenore Skenazy; Free to Learn by Peter Gray and The Wave by Todd Strasser More to come, so check back here.
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I read about Mommy Laid an Egg in your book (Achtung, Baby) and I tried to track it down for my son. I went to a book store and they didn’t have it, nor could they order it for me. I checked with the local library and they didn’t have it at any of the locations in our city (Cincinnati). But I filled out a purchasing request and we now have it on the library shelves! I felt so accomplished.
Thank you for the suggestion!
(Unrelated to this post – do you have any more specific info on the flow of the projects that you write about your kids doing at their kita? I’d like to try it with my son and nieces but don’t know where to start?)
So glad to hear that you got Mommy Laid an Egg in your library! That is definitely and accomplishment. As for the “flow of projects,” I’m not sure if I understand your question. But feel free to email me. I’ll try to explain more if I can. My address is on the about page.