Sahamamama Posted May 10, 2016 Share Posted May 10, 2016 We have had some discussions about these topics, but I think it's time to explore these more in depth. I'd like to have some accurate, visual (illustrated) resources on hand to explain and discuss the following: female reproductive anatomy (my oldest knows this, it's time for another round with all three girls [9.5, 9.5, 11.5]) male reproductive anatomy (still thinking about this, but I think we should go there -- they have no little brothers, no little cousins, so no "incidental" or "accidental" exposure here; we'll have to spell it out) menstruation & its relationship to child-bearing (the "what," "how," & "why" of a period) a few other aspects of puberty (physical & emotional changes) how conception takes place & the development of the unborn baby (they are fascinated & excited by the idea of learning about this, I think this would be the primary focus -- how the baby grows inside the womb); we would love a well-done video on this the first year of life, from newborn to one year old; we've watched "Babies," and would watch it again; any other resources we should know about? What do you recommend? :bigear: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MrsWeasley Posted May 10, 2016 Share Posted May 10, 2016 Don't get the kindle version as the formatting is awful, but I really like the content in Below Your Belt: How to Be Queen of Your Pelvic Region by Missy Lavendar for female anatomy. I have a 9 year old, and we likedTaking Care of Your "Girls" for female anatomy, too, but I'd recommend pre-reading this for your younger daughters, as it's a little more mature. For puberty, It's So Amazing would be good for your younger girls, while It's Perfectly Normal would be better for your older daughters. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mamakelly Posted May 10, 2016 Share Posted May 10, 2016 I loved the American Girl books, The Care and Keeping of You. They have two of them now, one for older and younger girls. It talks about everything from feelings to how to use a tampon. It's a great book for girls. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Minerva Posted May 10, 2016 Share Posted May 10, 2016 My dd read The Care and Keeping of You when she was nine. It was a good, gentle intro to puberty for girls. We are just finishing up It's Perfectly Normal. It has been an excellent resource for our family. I thought it was a thorough sex-ed introduction, but many of the reviewers on Amazon thought it was X rated and too graphic. It covers a lot of topics: What is Sex? Our Bodies (both male and female), Puberty, Families and Babies, Decisions (birth control), Staying healthy (including online safety, sexual abuse, checkups, HIV, making responsible choices). It has some information on both abstinence and abortion. I just read the excellent book Girls and Sex: Navigating the Complicated New Landscape. It definitely has me feeling like the more we talk about sex with our kids the safer they will be in every way. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sahamamama Posted May 10, 2016 Author Share Posted May 10, 2016 :lurk5: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alisoncooks Posted May 10, 2016 Share Posted May 10, 2016 (edited) menstruation & its relationship to child-bearing (the "what," "how," & "why" of a period) a few other aspects of puberty (physical & emotional changes) how conception takes place & the development of the unborn baby (they are fascinated & excited by the idea of learning about this, I think this would be the primary focus -- how the baby grows inside the womb); we would love a well-done video on this For puberty and menstruation, my almost-10 year old has liked the AG book, The Care and Keeping of You (for younger girls). As far as baby development and conception, I have liked the book A Child is Born by Lennart Nilsson. I can't remember if it has anything inappropriate. I do recall one image of a couple in a mating position, shown through body heat imaging. Amazon seems to have many editions of the book -- I purchased mine in 2005, so I don't know about changed editions. I also think this DK book looks well-done. It covers a lot of bases, with a lot of images. There are a couple of PBS/NOVA videos that cover prenatal development. The Miracle of Life is one. Another is Life's Greatest Miracle. Edited May 10, 2016 by alisoncooks 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rwilk Posted May 10, 2016 Share Posted May 10, 2016 My dd read The Care and Keeping of You when she was nine. It was a good, gentle intro to puberty for girls. We are just finishing up It's Perfectly Normal. It has been an excellent resource for our family. I thought it was a thorough sex-ed introduction, but many of the reviewers on Amazon thought it was X rated and too graphic. It covers a lot of topics: What is Sex? Our Bodies (both male and female), Puberty, Families and Babies, Decisions (birth control), Staying healthy (including online safety, sexual abuse, checkups, HIV, making responsible choices). It has some information on both abstinence and abortion. I just read the excellent book Girls and Sex: Navigating the Complicated New Landscape. It definitely has me feeling like the more we talk about sex with our kids the safer they will be in every way. There is an earlier book in the "It's Perfectly Normal" series called "It's So Amazing" which is a bit more tame. The books are very comprehensive, and we love them. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Classically Minded Posted May 10, 2016 Share Posted May 10, 2016 I loved the American Girl books, The Care and Keeping of You. They have two of them now, one for older and younger girls. It talks about everything from feelings to how to use a tampon. It's a great book for girls. We used these too and my dd12 still looks at them and refers to them! 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rocassie Posted May 11, 2016 Share Posted May 11, 2016 I have a DK book The Pregnant Body Book. It is written at an adult level in a clinical way and has a lot of pictures and diagrams. It has one chapter on male reproductive organs and one of females, each touches on puberty as well. Otherwise most of it is about the changes a females body will undertake as well as the development of the fetus from conception to early infant development. I got it when I was pregnant for myself, but all of my kids want to look at it and read it. It has been a great reference book for us, and I find myself pulling it out frequently to answer the kids questions. As for a book about puberty, I liked the American Girls Care and Keeping of You. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
againstthegrain Posted May 11, 2016 Share Posted May 11, 2016 We like the vintage "So That's How I Was Born!" in regard to conception and unborn baby education. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MrsRobinson Posted May 11, 2016 Share Posted May 11, 2016 (edited) For puberty and menstruation, my almost-10 year old has liked the AG book, The Care and Keeping of You (for younger girls). As far as baby development and conception, I have liked the book A Child is Born by Lennart Nilsson. I can't remember if it has anything inappropriate. I do recall one image of a couple in a mating position, shown through body heat imaging. Amazon seems to have many editions of the book -- I purchased mine in 2005, so I don't know about changed editions. I also think this DK book looks well-done. It covers a lot of bases, with a lot of images. There are a couple of PBS/NOVA videos that cover prenatal development. The Miracle of Life is one. Another is Life's Greatest Miracle. I have A Child is Born (the original). I don't think the heat camera shot was inappropriate. I mean when you talk about the mechanics they're going to have an image in their minds that might me more graphic than that! Lol. The chapter on the actual child birth is photographs of an actual birth, not illustrations. I thought it was too graphic for my 7 and 3 year olds who's mama was going to have that happen to her soon, but your girls might be ready for it. Personally, I still find video and photos of live births shocking and I've done it myself 3 times! Edited to fix auto correct. Edited May 11, 2016 by MrsRobinson Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alisoncooks Posted May 11, 2016 Share Posted May 11, 2016 I have A Child is Born (the original). I don't think the heat camera shot was inappropriate. I mean when you talk about the mechanics they're going to have an image in their minds that might me more graphic than that! Lol. I agree; I just wanted to give an example of the most overtly s3xual image I could remember. ;) OP - Thanks for this thread. Almost-10 year old and I have been having some interesting conversations recently about baby-making, and I've realized she has some....inaccuracies...that need to be addressed. :p (Apparently, even though she KNOWS about animal reproduction and HOW they "do it", she did not realize that humans actually did a similar thing; I had assumed she'd make that connection/leap. :o) 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
908874 Posted May 11, 2016 Share Posted May 11, 2016 My dd read The Care and Keeping of You when she was nine. It was a good, gentle intro to puberty for girls. We are just finishing up It's Perfectly Normal. It has been an excellent resource for our family. I thought it was a thorough sex-ed introduction, but many of the reviewers on Amazon thought it was X rated and too graphic. It covers a lot of topics: What is Sex? Our Bodies (both male and female), Puberty, Families and Babies, Decisions (birth control), Staying healthy (including online safety, sexual abuse, checkups, HIV, making responsible choices). It has some information on both abstinence and abortion. I just read the excellent book Girls and Sex: Navigating the Complicated New Landscape. It definitely has me feeling like the more we talk about sex with our kids the safer they will be in every way. From another thread a while back, I found the It's Perfectly Normal series. I got the "It's not the Stork" for my kids because they are 4 and 5. They like it and I plan on continuing with the same series using their age guidelines. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mrs Twain Posted May 11, 2016 Share Posted May 11, 2016 I am also looking into this topic. It's Perfectly Normal sounded fine until I read the one star reviews on Amazon. Yikes! The American Girl books sound great for my daughters. Now what for my son...? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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