As soon as the words ?penis? and ?vagina? tumbled out of my mouth, I wondered what I?d just gotten myself into. I had plunged headlong into ?the talk? almost on impulse. My nine-year-old daughter, Eva, mentioned that they were going to learn about puberty in health class and suddenly there we were, discussing how babies are made. Every word felt like a tentative step on thin ice, but I didn?t want my nervousness to show. If I made the experience awkward and unpleasant, Eva might never come to me again for questions. I didn?t want that, but I also didn?t want to tell her too much. What if I went too far and broke her childhood"

When it comes to how we talk to children about sex, there seems to be an unspoken silence among parents. We don?t openly discuss how difficult it is to have this conversation. Obviously, parents feel strongly about their children?s sexual education?one need only look at the outrage and opposition to Ontario?s sex-ed curriculum for evidence. According to a 2016 Forum Research poll of 1,172 people, one in six parents either pulled their children from class as a result of the curriculum change or considered it. Many were offended by the use of anatomically correct names for body parts, acknowledgment of different sexualities and gender identities, conversations about consent and discussions of masturbation.
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