Girls have long hair

Abstract

Describes a research project designed to find out what primary school pupils know about the sexual differences between males and females and how people use their bodies to show people they love them. The project used the draw‐and‐write technique and was carried out at three primary schools in Enfield, North London. Pupils described stereotypical differences between the sexes such as length of hair, rather than showing differences in genitalia. Only one in four year‐3 pupils and one in two year6 pupils were able to name accurately the sexual parts of the body and the differences between the sexes. Boys emphasized the overtly physical and sexual ways of showing love, while girls stressed the social and emotional aspects. Concludes that primary schools need to provide more sex education for their pupils and supplies curriculum maps for carrying out such work.