So my son came home with a permission slip for health class and obviously I knew it was coming. We sat down, I did my best, it was awkward as hell but I think okay? But then at the end he asked "so... do kids at school know about this?" BUDDY. I nearly had a stroke. He seemed horrified that his peers have this information. Is that normal? Is he gonna be okay?
You did the talk though which is good. It's awkward but at least he heard it from you instead of whatever wild version his friends are telling him.
The permission slip from school is actually perfect because it gives you a defined reason to have the talk. You're not out of nowhere bringing it up
This age is peak anxiety about not knowing what peers know. He's basically asking 'am I normal?' Just reassure him that yeah, it's a normal topic for his age
The 'do kids at school know about this' question is hilarious and also tells you he's worried about being out of the loop socially. Classic
His question is actually kind of endearing in a weird way? Like he's processing the social aspect of it which is where kids his age live. Don't worry, he'll move on to being horrified about something else soon.
The 'do kids at school know about this?' question is sending me 😂 He's realizing his entire grade probably has had the conversation at this point and it's blowing his mind.
You did fine honestly. Awkward is normal, the fact you DID it matters way more than how smooth you were
My 11yo asked the same thing and I just told him yeah, older kids definitely know about it. Seemed to relieve him somehow
How did you answer that? Because that's such a specific 11yo concern - the social/peer group angle of it, not the actual facts.
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The panic about his PEERS knowing is actually hilarious and also like... buddy, yes, literally all of them lol. That's the age where kids are suddenly aware that everyone has bodies and it freaks them out.