Should abortion be talked about in front of kids

[DanCa]

I was at the children's mass at my nieces school today and abortion was brought up several times. I was wondering do you think abortion is an appropriate topic to bring up in front of kids from k - 8 ?

[trotsky]

1. Might want to edit.

Your subject line and the poll itself are opposite questions. A person with an opinion on the issue would answer one Yes and the other No.

[DanCa]

5. Done (nt)

[mandyky]

2. Other - I think it is appropriate for older kids

to hear it, as relates to health class. Say 5th to 8th graders.

Young kids might not understand or be scared, etc. by such talk.

I am curious about what was said in Mass about abortion..

[liberal N proud]

3. Yes it should be talked about with kids - BUT:

The parents should be briefed before hand what is going to be covered.
Parents should be adult enough to allow their kids to make up their own minds on the subject. Most will anyway regardless of what Mom and Dad think.
I think it should be something that is brought up at a much older age than kindergarten. 6 -7 th grades at the earliest.

But it is a private school and the parents know what to expect, Propaganda to the max.

[SamuelAlito]

4. As long as they force-feed the kids only one side

I, the Right Honorable Samuel A. Alito, think it's just great for kids to be forced to learn whatever their church leaders think is right.

Read all about it on my blog.

The Right Honorable Samuel A. Alito, Jr.
(the A stands for Awesome).

[GreenPartyVoter]

6. I don't want it discussed in front of my 5 and 7 year olds. They still

don't even have the particulars of how a woman becomes pregnant let alone what can happen after that.

I prefer to shield their innocence from a lot of things like this as long as I can.

[DanCa]

8. Thats my thinking

I remember I didn't even know what a gun was until I was eight. I mean can't we let kids be kids for as long as they can.

[Maddy McCall]

11. Times have changed. Abortion is now a topic discussed openly on...

tv, in political ads, at schools--in all areas of the public forum.

I don't think you should avoid the discussion with your children. I just think you should handle it on a level that they can understand.

If you don't discuss it with them, trust me, someone else will. My son has already been confronted by other children talking about it, as well as one idiot of a teacher (public school).

I would love to protect the innocence of my child...instead, I have protected my child through enlightenment. And I did it on a level he understands, instead of using "graphic" terms.

[Bluerthanblue]

14. well said, my thoughts exactly- eom

[DanCa]

16. I reall miss the eighties dont you ?

It must be really hard to be a kid today.

[Maddy McCall]

19. I was a child of the 70s. Born in the sixties.

Abortion has been discussed in the public forum since I was a child--yes, even in the eighties.

[GreenPartyVoter]

20. I still feel like my kids are too young, though. I always answer any

questions they have but this isn't something they have asked me about.

As far as non-graphic terms, my kids think a woman gets pregnant from "special loves" that the daddy and mommy have. Although they do know they grew in my belly and came out a hole between my legs. That's as detailed as we have gotten about procreation.

In fact they just brought home from the library a book about cats with a king and queen making kittens and the five year old points at one of the pics in the series and so I am thinking to myself, "Great. This would be a decent way to talk about sex. Same way as I learned about it at his age."

But no, he just pointed to the Tom and said, "Hey that looks like our cat."

Not one peep about what was going on. *lol*

I guess he just didn't care?

[Maddy McCall]

26. When they are ready to discuss it, you will know.

They will come home and ask you, "Is abortion really murder?" or "What is abortion?"

That's when I decided to discuss it with my son.

And LOL at the cat story. :D

[GreenPartyVoter]

29. Well we have come close to them getting blindsided by stupid abortion

protestor signs. Those were horrific.

And then last year after one of the major churches affirmed its supprt for gay marriage hubby's church affirmed it's stance against it and the pastor's wife read a note about it to the congregation, which would have been fine but I was annoyed that they didn't do it after all the kids went down to kiddy church. x(

But yeah, I think my kids will come to me when they need to know things. They have been asking about death ever since their grandmother died. I am sure if someone forced an issue under their noses they would ask. (Of course, hubby and I have totally different views on abortion and homosexuality, so THAT will be a fun time in our house.... another major reason why I am waiting as long as I can to tackle these issues with the small fry. *sigh*)

[BIG Sean]

32. How do you do that?...what do you say?

I have an 8 year old, and a 10 year old and I know there is no way they would understand. I am 40 and I hardly do.

[Maddy McCall]

33. See post #7

That's how I handled it with my son.

[Maddy McCall]

7. As a parent, I was FORCED to discuss the topic with my son when he was 9

His teacher said that "John Kerry is a baby killer." So, I discussed abortion with him from the perspective that it's a medical procedure, and "Do you think a medical procedure should be between a woman and her doctor? Or do you think politicians ought to tell women what medical procedures they can and can't have?"

He's almost 12, now, and he has become a staunch defender of women on the topic of abortion.

The discussion doesn't have to be graphic, unless the "other side" uses "graphic" terms to sway children against abortion. Then, the only thing you have to do is tell the child that it's a minor surgery that removes the embryo. And you can also tell the child that "partial birth abortions" is a term invented by mean people who just want to scare people into opposing abortion. I told my son that late-term abortions never happen by choice. Usually, late-term abortions are recommended by doctors because the fetus wouldn't be able to survive after birth because of some really severe congenital defects.

Sadly, abortion is a topic that you cannot afford not to discuss with your children these days. It's in the media, on the news, in political advertisements on TV. It's best to discuss it honestly and from the perspective of women controlling their own bodies than to let the "pro-life" crew do the "lecturing" with misinformation.

[seabeyond]

36. i had to talk to my son about 8 because of the kerry race

and the same thing. they heard at chapel kerry was unchristian and a murderer. but why i had to explain abortion was a bumpersticker on one of these sick people that my son read. about killing babies. waaaayyyyyy to soon for kids. and the right talks about liberal sophisticating the children.

[Beaverhausen]

9. Can you give us some context?

how was it discussed? Was it discussed with all ages or just the older ones? Both girls and boys?

[DanCa]

12. when i was at church

basically it was the same old lifer lines that you cannot be a christian and be prochoice and that it's murder and the rest of the blah blah blah. Yes this was in front of all ages.

[Beaverhausen]

18. I just read your post about your question to the priest about stem cell...

...research!!! Good job!

Sounds like they are brainwashing the young kids early to think abortion is evil. I think once the kids get older and face the realities of life they will make up thier own minds.

[Maddy McCall]

21. Thus, the purpose of MY post.

[Warren DeMontague]

38. And then, of course, they brought up the same with regards to war

and the death penalty...


I'm sure.

[Bluerthanblue]

10. Kids aren't stupid- but they are impressionable- and

they need to be able to have their questions and thoughts listened, and responded to on a level they can grasp-
The topic is 'up' whether or not we 'like' it- or would 'choose' it- talking to your kids, and trying to get a feel for their understanding, and help them understand the facts- without shoving your view down their throats is what EVERY child should be 'entitled' to.

[Maddy McCall]

13. Amen.

Good post. My only disagreement with your post is that you have to discuss with them your views--in my case, that abortion should be between a woman and a doctor, not up to politicians to decide. That is the pro-choice perspective to which I adhere, and that's the perspective I chose to explain to him.

[in_cog_ni_to]

15. WHY was abortion brought up at mass?

K-3 may be a little young, but if my child was curious about it at that age, I wouldn't hesitate to answer any questions. I'm just curious about whay it was brought up at mass.

[Maddy McCall]

17. Your poll answers aren't fair. I vote "YES, in a delicate way that ...

a child can understand, WITHOUT using graphic terms."

[DanCa]

39. Ah okay i should have added a gentler answe in there somewhere.

I was still in a knee jerky mood and I appologize.

[Warren DeMontague]

22. Personally, I don't think Catholicism is appropriate for children.

their track record isn't so great in that regard.

[Arkansas Granny]

23. It should be discussed with children the same as you would

discuss sex, drugs and alcohol, i.e. at an age appropriate level, which can vary from child to child. I don't think it would be appropriate to discuss with kindergartners, but certainly with 8th graders.

[Maddy McCall]

24. Unfortunately, by 4th grade, they're already exposed to...

discussion of sex, drugs, alcohol, and abortion, if they have peers, or, as my son had, a fundy public-school teacher who's hellbent on swaying her students' opinions toward her beliefs.

[Arkansas Granny]

31. Sometimes you are forced to have these discussions before

you or your child are ready. A 4th grade teacher should not be having these discussion with his/her class, IMO.

[Yollam]

25. No, like our republican "friends", small children are very susceptible...

...to emotion and scientific ideas like the differences between a blastocyst, an embryo, a zygote, a fetus and a baby are too difficult to understand. All they will understand is that "a baby is killed", and I wouldn't want my child to think that anyone condones that.

Abortion can be approached at an age like 12 or so.

WHy should little kids be burdened with such heavy topics?


However, if your kids are young enough that they don't know what the word means, I see nothing wrong with discussing it with another adult with kids in the vicinity. They just don't need to be brought into the discussion.

But then again, I don't think half of the things that go on inside of churches is appropriate for kids OR adults, so you're probably asking the wrong person...

[Maddy McCall]

27. Unfortunately, it's not always the parents' choice when to discuss it.

Sometimes, the parent has to discuss abortion defensively, because some well-meaning do-gooder approached the child and told him that abortion is murder, or some other nonsense, which forces the parent to have to have a discussion with the child that perhaps the parent was not willing to have.

That's my story, anyway. We discussed it when my son was nine. He was ready to discuss it. We didn't go into the actual procedure--thus, no "graphic" discussion. We discussed it from the perspective that women and doctors should discuss health issues, not churches and politicians.

[dkofos]

28. Not appropriate for k-5 or 6

But it should be talked about in the early teen years in sex ed class.

[Maddy McCall]

30. Again, what if you have to discuss it "defensively" because...

someone outside the home has decided to discuss it with your child--a public-school teacher, or a schoolmate, or a Sunday school teacher.

The pro-lifers are trying to wrangle them in early these days. Sometimes, the best case scenario isn't possible, because some asshole has assumed the position of the parent by discussing a topic with your child that they should not have discussed.

When that happens, the parent has to discuss the topic with the child. I had to when my son was nine. His teacher was discussing the upcoming election between Bush and Kerry, and she said that she liked Kerry, but she couldn't vote for him because "he supports abortion and is a baby killer."

My son came home and asked me if this man he admired had really killed babies. I had to discuss it with my nine-year-old. He was satisfied with our discussion, which was not graphic at all, but which sated his curiosity.

Sometimes, you have discuss the topic when the topic NEEDS to be discussed, and you can't wait until your child is a certain, predetermined age.

[dkofos]

35. First of all the teacher should have been fired.

Secondly, when a child asks a question, answer it truthfully and in a way they can understand.

And then go bitch-slap the teacher for bringing it up in front of 9 year old kids.

[David__77]

34. "K-8" is pretty broad.

8th grade--I think it would be fine in a public or private school. It should be dealt with in conjunction with general instruction on reproductive health. I think 6th grade is a good year, since young people become fertile by then generally. Abortion happens all the time--sometimes naturally and it's called a "miscarriage," and sometimes for different reasons it is induced surgically or chemically. Nothing scary or freakish about it.

[Lefty48197]

37. HELL NO.

It's absurd that adults would speak to the children of others about abortion. Let the brain-washing begin...