Web series Sex-Ed School teaches kids aged 9-12 about sensitive topics

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Do you remember your parents sitting you down as a kid to give you The Sex Talk? Did they stammer, eyes averted, about your “flower” or “manhood?” Worse yet, was their awkward silence an implicit denial of your entire pubescence?

Louise Pollard thinks the next generation of kids deserves better. Not only is she a former teacher and mother of four, she’s also the executive producer of Sex-Ed School, an eight-part web series for kids aged nine to 12. Each eight-minute episode features two expert hosts guiding kids through fun activities and talks about topics such as gender, consent, kissing, puberty and being online.

Pollard spoke with Postmedia News about Sex-Ed School, debuting Thursday on Shaftesbury Kids’ YouTube channel.

Q: What inspired the series?

A: I have four kids and my youngest just turned 13. I thought, I’ve got a lot to learn about this new demographic and how they’re going to grapple with this new frontier, as being the first generation of true digital natives. As I dug deeper, I realized there’s a lot of great stuff out there. But I was inspired to create something that was brave enough to put kids in the picture instead of just educators.

Q: Kids can get pretty giggly — was it hard to get them to open up?

A: The nine-year-olds are going into their puberty years, but there’s that lovely sweet spot where they still have that natural curiosity rather than a deeper sense of being self-conscious. Once we got them going and they forgot that the camera was on, their natural curiosity took over. We wanted to capture some of those real comments — we did not want to bring in actors.

Nadine Thornhill, left, and Eva Bloom host the new web series Sex-Ed School. Shaftesbury []

Q: How does this approach compare to having The Sex Talk?

A: We’re trying to normalize and not dramatize these conversations, making them more of everyday conversations rather than this tense buildup that often many parents and educators have about one defined talk. It becomes this ongoing conversation, and the door is always open. The conversation evolves when the child is ready.

Q: Everyone in the series uses proper anatomical names for body parts. What was the intention behind that?

A: There’s research that correlates that with pedophiles, for example. When children know the correct anatomical terms, it puts them in a much safer space because they can articulate things what might have gone on, as opposed to a child who can’t correctly name and articulate with confidence what body part was touched. I always say it’s about keeping kids safe and healthy.

Q: How did you decide which topics to cover?

A: If I had more money and more time, we could have looked at an unending array of topics. The hosts and I went over what we felt would be the best starting point. Agnes Augustin, president of the Shaw Rocket Fund, approached this series with me in a way that lets it be part of hopefully a bigger rollout so we can really start addressing things like online porn and topics that a lot of people know we need to talk about with kids but don’t know where to start.

“I’m surprised that parents still have a fearful approach. They’d rather say nothing than the wrong thing.”

Q: How does this series fit in with sex education at school and home?

A: I’m surprised that parents still have a fearful approach. They’d rather say nothing than the wrong thing. And with teachers, the sex-ed curriculum really should be augmenting what the kids are getting at home. Often the sex-ed curriculum is done toward the end of the school year because a lot of teachers put it off rather than incorporating it across the curriculum and weaving it in as a normalized, natural approach.

Q: What’s the most important thing to remember when talking with kids about sex?

A: It’s that everyday approach. From the time a child is a baby, refer to the sexual body parts as easily as one would the arm or the leg. Model lovely communication between parents and have that conversation around shared attitudes within a family unit. It’s never too late to start. We want to set our kids up for success. This is a safety and health issue, and it’s our responsibility as adults and parents to keep our kids safe. Knowledge is power and if we sweep it under the carpet and pretend it doesn’t exist in their world, that’s frankly irresponsible.

Q: Are you expecting any pushback?

A: I’m absolutely ready for it. There was an example in Europe where some content was put out there and perhaps those on the more conservative side pushed it way up the media tree, taking it all the way to parliament with a petition. It got such notoriety that the show got funded and people saw it in a much bigger way. Everybody should talk about sex and join forces and work together for the sake of this next generation of wonderful kids.

Sex-Ed School debuts Thursday on Shaftesbury Kids’ YouTube channel.